‘The way we were playing we knew we were going to win’

IT’S early days yet but the pep that was in Jason Ryan’s step three years ago looks to be back.

The Waterford native certainly had a spring on the sideline halfway through the second half as it dawned on him and most of the 16,500 crowd in Wexford Park that the game was up on Westmeath.

He admitted: “I know it’s a crazy thing to say but the way we were playing we knew we were going to win it.

“It wasn’t a case of 10 minutes to go and whether we would win. We knew we would and then there was elation when we got late scores.

“We were in control most of the way through. There is still room for improvement but we were still dominant team and I’m really proud of what we did.”

His team’s 1-24 tally proved just what type of football Wexford prefer under Ryan. But he insists they attempt to play it every time.

“All of those guys play their best football when they attack and they know it and we know it but it just doesn’t always pan out that way.

“We won enough ball that they were able to get a really good attacking platform and it was great.

“We are all delighted to get the win to get two wins on the trot in the Leinster championship.”

Ryan’s counterpart Pat Flanagan accepted the defeat, claiming everything went right for Wexford.

“Everything was going for them. They had home advantage, they had the game over Offaly... but they still had to go out and produce the football that they produced.

“We had no answer to it. We tried very hard out there, but we didn’t have the physical strength to stop a number of their attackers when they tried to go by us. That’s something we need to look at, but that’s not something that’s going to come overnight. Westmeath is in a rebuilding process.”