Wexford Youths FC 0-3 Kildare County

Brian De Salvo

“If this keeps up,” says Martin, as the rain storm blusters against the window, "Wexford Quay could be flooded tomorrow.” Note the absence of an exclamation mark. Martin is a lifeboat volunteer so a mere gale is nothing special. To-night he’s a match steward at Ferrycarrig Park, which is rumoured to be on “dry” land, but wrapped up in his weather gear he looks as if he’s wearing a sou’wester just in case.

It’s been a game of two halves for me, the first forty five minutes spent “on deck” in the stand where the elements soon reduce my notes to a soggy morass. So for the second half I retreat to “the wheelhouse”. I can’t really see too well through the rain bouncing off the glass but at least I can write down my best guess without it dissolving in front of my eyes.

The best activity tonight is playing. It’s miserably wet but not cold. Which leads me to Wexford’s best performer, the pitch. On Tuesday I watched Waterford and Finn Harps splash through the puddles that festooned the RSC. Three rain filled days later Ferrycarrig plays true. The surface is slick of course. The only participant who appears not to notice is referee McKell who books everyone guilty of slip sliding away during the first half and then is forced to wave the yellow card with much more economy in the second period for fear of finishing eight a side.

Mr McKell is a late replacement. He refereed Youths last home game against UCD and made few friends among the locals. It seems a little insensitive to bring him back to Ferrycarrig so soon. However he was not responsible for the comfortable margin of County’s victory. Youths managed that all by themselves.

Although Kildare have been transformed from the team that has propped up the table for most of the season they didn’t look anything special in the early stages of the game. Christy Doran made tracks down the left to put in Kinsella for a cross which Doyle grabbed over his head but generally Wexford looked the team most likely to.

And when central defender Davy Byrne was forced off through injury after only 18 minutes, County, with Tiernan not on the bench, were hard put to replace him. Two minutes later Sheahan appeared to have his legs whipped from under him in the box but Mr McKell saw nothing untoward.

The Wexford bench, spotting the visitors defensive weakness down the flanks, put on Ritchie Fitzgerald to beef things up. Sheahan seemed to be able to go past his man down either wing but there was no tangible result for all this enterprise. County keeper Darren Kelly looked solid enough but was rarely tested. When he was he pulled off two fine saves, the first when he raced from goal to block Gavin Doyle’s drive at point blank range after 22 minutes and the second just before half time when O’Brien fell over presenting Sheahan with the ball on the right. His slide rule pass through the middle looked promising but Kelly timed his run perfectly to snuff out the opportunity at Doyle’s feet.

At the other end Doyle was rarely troubled although he failed to match the opposing keeper for determination when Lee wriggled in from the right. Fortunately the Kildare striker was equally diffident in trundling the ball towards the open goal and Anto Russell had time to take in a weather forecast on the way to hooking it off the line.

As the first half moved into added time still scoreless I predicted that Youths better score soon because a striker of Philly Hughes’ pedigree was likely to grab a goal at any time. I don’t usually mention my predictions because so few of them prove to have any validity but this time I was spot on. As a trailer for what was to come the said Hughes hit a low shot which fizzed up just before it reached Pa Doyle. This time the young keeper held on.

Three goals in seven minutes shortly after half time settled the match. Hughes got two. Playing in the hole behind Lee he was quick to burst through the middle after fifty five minutes to power a shot past Doyle and dislodge a huge spray of water from the netting behind him. Five minutes later sub Trevor Bowers saw Doyle out of position and arced a thirty yard shot into the empty net. Hughes completed the scoring on 62 minutes from even further out powering a fine lob over the young keeper’s head.

I have some sympathy for Pa Doyle. He was at fault for the last two goals but they were well executed, particularly the final goal from Hughes. And the keeper was facing into gale force winds blowing clouds of heavy rain into his face. I can think of better places for a goalkeeper to be on a stormy night. Like manning a lifeboat. That would be a doddle by comparison.

Wexford Youths: Pa Doyle; Anto Russell, Paul Rossiter, David Breen (Warren Broaders 75), Gareth McCurtin (Muzzi Mullen 67); Shane Sinnott (Ritchie Fitzgerld 31), Shane Dempsey, Conor Sinnott, Patsy Malone, Gary Sheahan; Gavin Doyle
Subs not used: Tiernan Rossiter, Lee Aust,

Kildare County: Darren Kelly; Matty Byrne, Dean Laurence, Davy Byrne (Trevor Bowers 18), Christy Doran; David O’Riordan, David Jackson, Darren O’Brien, Gavin Kinsella; Phillip Hughes; David Lee (Dean Barrett 84)
Subs not used: Colm Daly, Eoghan Kavanagh, Cloin Cassidy

Referee: Jimmy McFell

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