Hurney relishing return to ‘first love’ as Déise eye final place

AS A measure of the progress of the Waterford footballers, their post-match reaction in the Fraher Field on Sunday afternoon was instructive.

In 2007, the final whistle sparked scenes of euphoria at the Dungarvan venue when they claimed the scalp of Clare for their first Munster SFC victory in 19 years, but three years on, replicating that result provoked a more sober response. In the Waterford camp the scope of their ambitions has widened and once the win was achieved in Sunday’s quarter-final, the focus immediately shifted to a semi-final date with Limerick in a fortnight.

“It was very important for us to win and keep progressing,” outlines attacker Gary Hurney. “League promotion was our first objective this year but when we achieved that, the focus turned towards championship. That’s where you want to win. Waterford football seems to be on the way up and that’s the way we want it to be.”