Wexford's stunning quarter-final win over Armagh has shown that no one should take them lightly, writes John O'Keefe

WEXFORD'S VICTORY was the story of the weekend, once again confounding the doubters, on the back of a performance laden with character. They deserve every credit once again for the manner in which they hung in there when Armagh were dominant and then showed ruthless conviction when the opportunities arose to win the match.

In analysing this match beforehand I spoke about my concern that Armagh might not last the pace of a keenly-fought encounter and so it proved. This was evident, particularly around midfield, where Paul McGrane struggled to make an impact. Indeed credit must go to Wexford duo Eric Bradley and Brendan Doyle who dominated this area.

The winners made good use of the short kick-out and it beggared belief that Armagh never closed down this avenue of easy possession for Wexford. While the Ulster county dominated for almost two thirds of the match they couldn't put their opponents away.

Armagh almost exclusively looked to Ronan Clarke and Steven McDonell to kick scores and there was a minimal contribution from the half-forward line: in essence there was too much emphasis on defence at times and not enough attention to scoring.

Wexford epitomised that never-say-die attitude. Matty Forde, despite being hamstrung by injury, reinforced what a class player he is and was ably supported by the free-taking of Ciarán Lyng and the general work-rate of PJ Banville. Their half-back line surged forward to good effect and there was a tangible fluency to the way they played.

Manager Jason Ryan once again masterminded a clever approach using Brian Malone to sweep in front of the full-back line. Wexford have shown that no one should take them lightly and neither Dublin or Tyrone are likely to fall into that trap.

Considering the weather Kerry's victory over Galway epitomised the traditional values of Gaelic football at its best; high fielding, accurate passing and excellent score-taking. That applied to both teams. The greater depth in quality to Kerry's forwards and their ability to contribute on the scoreboard was decisive.

Galway's Michael Meehan produced a brilliant performance, delivering emphatically on his potential, but he lacked support. That was not the case down the other end of the field with each of Kerry's six forwards contributing, the pick of whom were Declan O'Sullivan and Colm Cooper.

They were instrumental in Kerry's best moments and, allied to the free-taking of Bryan Sheehan, helped their side to respond emphatically to Joe Bergin's goal. Kerry rattled over six points without reply at a time when the momentum of that goal might have driven Galway to greater heights.

It's Kerry's facility to close out a match, underpinned by good option taking and accurate shooting, that makes them so difficult to beat. Pat O'Shea will be aware, though, there are certain aspects of Kerry's performance that will need a huge improvement for the next game.

It was the poorest performance by a Kerry full-back line in the championship for a long time and they were lucky not to pay a heavier price. In fairness to O'Shea, the introduction of Daniel Bohane helped considerably. Midfield will also be a concern. They are not producing the quantity or quality of possession that the forwards crave and are only barely surviving.

Kerry benefited from the surging runs of the excellent Killian Young and latterly Tomás Ó Sé. Overall, though, Kerry will be happy with where they are at the moment and the improvement shown from match to match in most aspects of the game.

The weekend's final match should have seen Cork win in a canter but somehow they contrived to let Kildare get back to within touching distance. It made for a decidedly uneasy final few minutes for the winners.

Two early goals gave Cork the perfect start: James Masters was orchestrating things nicely while Michael Cussen was a real handful for the Kildare defence. Anthony Lynch had John Doyle well shackled and Kildare were very much on the back foot.

An over-reliance on the defensive aspect of the game meant that Kildare didn't get enough players forward; manager Kieran McGeeney putting too much emphasis on getting numbers behind the ball. They were crying out for a physical presence in the forward line. It looked like they were trying to keep the score down rather than set about winning the match.

Cork boss Conor Counihan's decision to give some game time to the bench was understandable but it disrupted his team's shape and game plan in what was a very sloppy second-half display. John Hayes was an exception to the general malaise.

Kildare finally threw off the defensive shackles and, driven forward by the excellent Dermot Earley, began to take their chances. They'll reflect on what might have transpired had they managed to score from the first penalty. They are a work in progress and it's important they absorb the lessons from this encounter.

The theory about Cork's discomfort in Croke Park was given further substance. They'll want to get Graham Canty and Nicholas Murphy back into the team for what will be tougher days ahead.