WEXFORD legend Larry Murphy views tomorrow’s clash with Galway as an ideal opportunity for Keith Rossiter’s side to prove they can be Models of consistency.
On the back of three straight defeats, last Sunday’s impressive win in Clare was another demonstration of Wexford’s ability to conjure up big performances when they are desperately needed.
But producing the goods on a regular basis has been a problem for the Model County, who avoided relegation to the Joe McDonagh Cup in 2023 by bouncing back from a shock loss to Westmeath with a vital victory over Kilkenny.
The unpredictable nature of their form was evident again in last year’s Leinster SHC, when a defeat to Antrim was followed by a comprehensive victory over Galway.
With two games remaining, Rossiter’s men could give their hopes of retaining Division 1A status a big boost by toppling the Tribe again tomorrow at Chadwicks Wexford Park.
And Murphy told SunSport: “It’s a game that could tell an awful lot in terms of consistency, because that’s the frustration of being a Wexford fan.
“They’re capable of a performance, but can they put two together? Can they be consistent? I was actually in a place after the Kilkenny game a few weeks ago where I didn’t think we’d get any points in the league this year at all.
“The Clare match has been a shot in the arm, but the real sign of any team is can they put another performance together? Can they even put three performances together?
“They don’t have to be wins but you have to be able to come away and say that you’re performing week after week. That’s the litmus test for Wexford now.”
Wexford were resoundingly beaten by Cork, Tipperary and Kilkenny before getting their National League campaign up and running at the expense of the defending champions in Ennis.
The visitors were full value for their 1-23 to 1-17 victory against Brian Lohan’s men, who are still searching for their first victory of 2025.
Tony Kelly, who was one of nine starters from last July’s All-Ireland final victory in the Clare team to face Wexford, had 1-3 on the board early on.
But with Lee Chin leading the way in his first outing of the season, the Banner’s own relegated fears deepened with a third loss on the spin.
Murphy said: “After winning the National League and the All-Ireland, Clare are obviously looking to prioritise the tough Munster Championship that they have ahead of them.
“You were nearly looking more at who they were missing than who they had.
“Clare are just in a different place as a team. And when you’re at the top of the mountain, everybody wants to knock you. Wexford were probably just looking for some sort of a boost.
“Having Lee Chin back for his first game was obviously a big thing. His presence alone on the field had a massive effect.
“Damien Reck also probably did a bit of a job on Tony Kelly, which was needed if you look at the way the first 15 minutes went. At that stage as a Wexford supporter, you probably had your head in your hands and you were wondering how you were going to go home on the back of another poor display.
“But it didn’t turn out that way and I think Wexford pushing up on the Clare puck-outs made a bit of a difference. They were just a bit braver.
“With Lee commanding a lot of ball and Kevin Foley back as well, I thought Wexford looked an awful lot more menacing than in the previous matches.”
WEXFORD’S MVP
Now in his 13th season of senior inter-county hurling, Chin, 32, has perhaps never been more important to the Wexford cause.
The 2019 All-Star hit 0-5 in the Cusack Park win – a tally that included a magnificent first-half point from a seemingly impossible angle after he sold a clever dummy to John Conlon.
The presence of such a talismanic figure also appeared to bring the best out of his team-mates at a time when Wexford are learning to adapt to life without retired trio Liam Óg McGovern, Matthew O’Hanlon and Diarmuid O’Keeffe.
One of the heroes of the county’s last All-Ireland triumph in 1996, Murphy said: “When confidence is low and you’re struggling to find something, knowing that you have Lee Chin in the dressing room, even if he was a sub, it just changes the mood to have him there.
“You always feel you’re in a different place when you have your top players present. That all helps an awful lot, psychologically as well, and it also gives the management options to play around with certain players.
“But when you have limited resources and somebody like Lee Chin is there — even from an aesthetic point of view, he’s a man-mountain — and when he fills that jersey it just makes you feel like you’re in a better place.
“Wexford probably lacked a bit of leadership in the first few games but Lee is a natural leader.”
HUGE LOSSES
The losses of McGovern, O’Hanlon and O’Keeffe are sure to be significant.
But Murphy is enthused by the way youngsters Cian Byrne, Conor Foley and Richie Lawlor have settled in.
He added: “You have to throw down the gauntlet and you have to challenge players to step up to the mark.
“That’s how you find out about the character of some players.
“It wasn’t a big shock that those lads retired and they owed nothing to the jersey. Guys like that are not easily replaced.
“But at times like this, sometimes you have guys who come out of the shadows and they emerge into the light and they start becoming leaders. You just need a few to step up, which is the opportunity you can get with retirements.”
