I think 12 of our announced starting 15 were nailed on to play but I was curious to see if Devereux, Donohoe and Kehoe would be retained.
We lack some defensive depth, especially without Damien Reck who was a revelation as the league progressed and was excellent in both the league quarter final and semi final. Eoin Moore hasnāt forced his way back in after getting injured during the league and we donāt even have many defensive options on the bench. If a defender gets broken up then it could be a case of a midfielder or forward coming on and a couple of players moving back a line, e.g. Jack OāConnor from midfield to half back and Chin from half forward to midfield etc.
Not to labour the point but we really lack height back there. Devereux was out-muscled by Colin Fennelly and we were too slow to change it. Liam Ryan also had his struggles in the air against Fennelly and heās one of the two taller ones in the defensive 7 along with OāHanlon. Donohoe actually lost his place during the league after getting a bit of a roasting off a big, bulky lad playing for Offaly called Sean Cleary. But, as mentioned yesterday, Donohoeās forays forward were important in the Kilkenny game and he was involved in several scores.
Because James Breen did two man marking jobs on TJ Reid thereās a lot of media preview pieces expecting him to go out and track Canning too. I expect him to mark Conor Whelan myself and I think Matthew OāHanlon will pick up Canning. The fact we have Shaun Murphy as the extra defender means that OāHanlon (or whoever) can follow Canning if he drops into deeper positions so we hopefully wonāt leave the centre vacated (like it was for a couple of Galwayās goals in the league match). We need to get these defensive match ups right, or at least be quick enough to change it if someoneās struggling.
I wondered if David Redmond or Shane Tomkins would get a start in the half forward line but canāt quibble with Harry Kehoe retaining his place. Weāve far more attacking options these days than usual with those two, Podge Doran, Kevin Foley, Rory OāConnor and Cathal Dunbar (fresh from his hat-trick for the U21s) all on the bench.
Wexford is a funny place. Thereās Munster rugby-esque element to it. More so than most other counties Iād say. Social media has made it a bit sickly this time around alright.
Only 3 of our 10 subs have defensive experience. Tomkins is only back from an ACL so he wouldnāt last a full game but heās good. Jack OāConnor has played a lot at half back but is stronger away from his own goal. Pity as heās a big lad. Wouldnāt be altogether surprised to see him wing back with Redmond starting.
Jack OāConnor is much better in midfield driving forward, throwing off the shackles and all that lark. He lacks a bit of defensive awareness when heās wing back - players seem to drift off him and cause damage. Like when Reck went off against Tipp and he moved back to wing backā¦McCormack got in behind him straight away and set up McGrath for the crucial third goal.
Oh yes, young Barry Nash did untold in that U21 final. OāConnorās come on a lot since then but much better in midfield driving through opposition cunts. Do you really think his brother will be first on upfront?
If you read the posts on here youāll find most of the Wexford related posts are actually from the Galway lads. We canāt be responsible for click bait sites latching onto Davy Fitz.
