Forde steers Wexford home

Wexford 3-15 Limerick 1-11

It came following a great run out of defence by corner back Colm Morris, who picked out Forde with a long delivery. There was still some work to do when the ball came to him but Forde sold the perfect dummy to both his marker and the Limerick ‘keeper before sliding the ball into the empty net for a truly memorable goal.

This win guarantees Wexford division one status for 2006, but coach Pat Roe has his eyes on the concluding stages of the league, which is not impossible after this superb display.

Refusing to accept that it was the complete performance, Roe agreed that his side have come a long way from the four-point defeat by Limerick in the Gaelic Grounds 12 months ago.

“I thought we were quite good in phases but we let them in for 1-2 without reply and that would be a worry for me,” he said.

“We could only manage a four point lead at half time which should have been ten, such was our control of the game and that is another concern I would have. We were a bit sporadic in the opening half but our second half display was excellent.

“I was very pleased with the pace of our game. We work all the time in training with the ball and the way we fired it around today was great. But there is still a bit to go. There are a couple of very difficult games coming up which will tell us a lot more about our team.

“We are sure of our place in Division One next year which is where this team deserves to be. We are basically the same group of players from last year with one or two additions and there is a tremendous air of confidence among the players which you only get by competing against the best.”

This game will be remembered as the Mattie Forde show. Despite a fitness test before the throw-in, Forde displayed all the skills that made him an All-Star in 2004.

Apart from his contribution of 1-6 (1-2 from play) he had a hand in most of his side’s other scores and there is hardly a better forward in the game at present. Little wonder he received a standing ovation from the small crowd when substituted late in the match.

“I came off purely as a precaution. If I got another bang in the same area I would possibly miss the rest of the league and I didn’t want that to happen,” said Forde.

“The style of football we are playing at the minute is brilliant, and it’s great to be a part of that. We move the ball at great pace and with every player on the move when we have possession, it’s difficult to counteract it.

“We’re away to Sligo next week and if we get the points from that match, we could be looking at the knock-out stages which is where we want to be.”

There was a lively opening to the game when Wexford full back Philip Wallace committed what could be termed a professional foul on Conor Mullane as he bore down on goal.

The foul warranted a yellow card but Wallace stayed on and just as well for Wexford, as he had a blinder in the heart of the home defence.

The sides were level once, before Wexford took control.

Channelling every ball to Forde, Wexford carved open the Limerick defence at every opportunity and were full value for their 1-7 to 0-6 half time lead.

Forde’s influence on the match was profound, and Limerick had Mike O’Brien yellow-carded for a late tackle on him late in the first half which didn’t help their cause. Limerick’s problems were compounded early in the second half when they lost their goalkeeper Sean Kiely with a shoulder injury after colliding with his full back.

Substitute ‘keeper Mike Jones’ first job was to pick the ball out of his net after John Hudson slotted home following a tremendous run from midfield. Limerick brought on Muiris Gavin in the hope of sparking a revival and after he kicked two points in quick succession, the visitors were back in the game when Conor Fitzgerald set up Conor Mullane for a goal, leaving four points between the sides at the three-quarter stage.

However, Wexford weren’t to be denied, and Forde’s magnificent goal meant they were back in control for the remaining minutes.

Scorers: Wexford: M. Forde 1-6 (0-4 frees); J. Hudson, D. Kinsellas 1-3 each; P. Colfer 0-2; D. Fogarty 0-1. Limerick: J. Murphy 0-5 (frees); M. Gavin 0-4 (frees); C. Mullane 1-0; J. Donovan, J. Quane (free) 0-1 each.

WEXFORD: J. Cooper; C. Morris, P. Wallace, N. Murphy; R. Mageean, D. Murphy, S. Cullen; D. Kinsella, B. Doyle; D. Fogarty, P. Colfer, J. Hegarty; R. Barry, J. Hudson, M. Forde. Subs. K. Kennedy for Fogarty; J. D’Arcy for Doyle; N. Lambert for Hegarty; P. Forde for Barry; C. Deely for M. Forde.

LIMERICK: S. Kiely; M. O’Riordan, D. Sheehy, J. McCarthy; P. Browne, S. Lavin, D. Reidy; J. Quane, J. O’Donovan; C. Mullane, J. Murphy, M. O’Brien; C. Fitzgerald, J. Galvin, M. Reidy. Subs. S. Buckley for O’Brien (yellow carded); M. Jones for Kiely; M. Gavin for M. Reidy; M. Crowley for Murphy; G. Aherne for D. Reidy.

Referee: P. Finnegan (Louth).