Leinster SHC Semi-finals: That one-point victory defines the difference between victory and defeat, the difference between a place in the Leinster final and All-Ireland quarter-finals and a place in the qualifiers, to be taken up with indecent haste within six days.
But here in the corridor outside the dressingrooms it most of all defines the difference between the relieved, dam burst of garrulity from Wexford manager Séamus Murphy and the hollow-cheeked taciturnity of his Offaly counterpart John McIntyre.
Emerging after his words of congratulation to the Wexford players, he can muster no more than: "I've nothing to say. I'm absolutely gutted."
Murphy marched towards yesterday's appointment almost to the slow beat of drums so consensually low was the assessment of his team's chances going into the Leinster semi-final. A scrappy afternoon's hurling and a win pulled out of the fire in the last minute mightn't have had the bookies rushing to revise their odds significantly but it did Wexford and their manager just fine.
"We are satisfied to be honest because the whole country was knocking the hell out of us. The supporters I suppose had lost their faith but in fairness they turned up today in great numbers and I'd like to compliment them. We're not so happy with a one-point victory but we're very happy with the result."
A barrage of Offaly wides in the first half had limited the damage from Wexford's point of view and Murphy acknowledged as much. "At half-time we were saying we were lucky to be in the position we were in although in fairness our defence had played very, very well and hadn't conceded any silly frees and when teams drive wides you sometimes have to give credit to the team that forces it. I know they missed some handy ones as well although in the second half we too had that problem until the finish.
"At the end of the day the result was about hard work and this was the thing we had detailed for the past two or three weeks - that hard work done well might get us a result. This was always going to be a tight call. We've had three meetings this year and it's been a point one way and a point the other."
The winning score was flashed over by Stephen Doyle, one of the two newcomers to senior championship hurling. Murphy praised the debutant, emphasisng he had had to step forward in the midst of an unconvincing overall display by the attack. "He's a very good hurler with a great brain for the game. He was hurler of the year in Wexford last year and man of the match in the county final. Thankfully he came up trumps today when some of our better known forwards wouldn't have had a good day."
In three weeks Wexford are back in the Leinster final, again as underdogs to face Kilkenny.
"We'll have to focus in on what our job is about and get our preparations going. I'm delighted we're not facing the qualifiers next. It's great to be getting back to the sun in Croke Park," said Murphy.
