Ger Aylward leads way as Kilkenny take Wexford to the cleaners
Wexford had been taken care of but in fairness, most teams would have suffered the same fate with the champions in this kind of form.
The complexion of the scoreboard would have been kinder on Wexford but for the seven straight points they conceded in the final four minutes of action. By that stage, they had given up, which Liam Dunne was understandably annoyed about afterwards.
“It was hugely disappointing. Mark (Fanning) was pucking out the ball and Kilkenny guys were catching them without being contested. That’s an aspect to the game that’s not good enough. No better team than Kilkenny to put you to the sword.”
This win of Kilkenny’s was just two points short of the 26-point winning margin they enjoyed over Offaly in last year’s Leinster quarter-final. It might have been a little harsh on Wexford but nothing could take away from the emphatic nature of Kilkenny’s progress to a Leinster final.
Ger Aylward will be rightly chuffed with his three goals as well as his point-taking. He was a menace in both periods. Richie Power is expected to be ready later in the championship but on the basis of this display he will find it difficult to win his spot back.
Richie Hogan and TJ Reid were essential to so much of what Kilkenny did well throughout the 70 minutes. Stalwart Eoin Larkin offered more of a support role but still chipped in with three points, while Michael Fennelly looked to have his confidence back as he ran hard at Wexford’s middle. Conor McDonald caused Joey Holden some nuisance in the opening 10 minutes but not enough to unsettle the captain who looked composed in the first championship game AD (After Delaney).
There was little or no dirty diesel in the Kilkenny tank, which serves as a major compliment to what Brian Cody and Mick Dempsey have been doing with the group since the relegation play-off win over Clare. “That was our first game and we haven’t had a game since we ended our league,” stated Cody. “We prepared well for it and obviously the goals were crucial. Wexford were in the game for long spells, certainly in the first half and they made things difficult for us, but we would certainly be happy with the display and performance.”
If the finale was dispiriting, Dunne will be just as disheartened by what Wexford failed to do with the wind in the first half. They really needed to take a lead to the break but instead it was Kilkenny, courtesy of three goals, who went in ahead at half-time, 3-7 to 0-10.
Truly, Wexford only had one out-and-out goal opportunity in return, David Redmond’s shot from distance saved well by Eoin Murphy. Another shot was stopped after Ian Byrne looked like he might have found the net.
“It might have prolonged the pain, maybe,” supposed Dunne about the chances being converted. “I don’t know. Against Kilkenny, you need to be able to take every chance. They shored up their defence brilliantly and they were by far the superior team. The game was well over by 15 minutes of the second half, the game was well gone. It was damage limitation after that. Kilkenny could have scored another three or four goals.”
Kilkenny indeed could have had five in the first half. They actually had the ball resting past Fanning on four occasions - Larkin’s 16th minute effort ruled out by Diarmuid Kirwan. Towards the end of the half, Hogan found space on an overlap but a goal went a-begging.
Hogan was very influential by that stage. He had scored the first goal, batting the ball home after Michael Fennelly had found him in the 10th minute. Fast forward three minutes and he was fouled as he set up Aylward for his opener. The Wexford defence appeared to be waiting for a free to be called but the corner-forward made the most of Kirwan’s good use of the advantage rule.
The reigning hurler of the year supplied the pass to Reid before he was brought down for a 28th-minute penalty. Reid’s shot was too good and Kilkenny had well and truly made little of the wind in their faces although Reid was switched onto frees in the second half as Hogan struggled with a couple of placed balls.
Wexford’s defence was struggling, particularly on their left flank and at centre-back where Lee Chin was assigned. As prominent as he was in clearing his lines, he struggled to negate Hogan’s orchestration.
In the second half, Reid had an opening minute shot saved by Fanning but goals followed from Aylward in the 48th minute, thanks to Reid’s directness, and Aylward again in the 53rd minute with Larkin putting in the graft to set him up.
A new name on the scoresheet but the same old Kilkenny, taking care of business.
G Aylward (3-5); TJ Reid (1-7, 1-0 pen, 0-3 frees, 0-1 65); R Hogan (1-5); E Larkin (0-3); J Power (0-2); C Buckley, M Fennelly, K Kelly (0-1 each).
I Byrne (0-11, 9 frees); D Redmond, L McGovern (0-2 each); A Shore (0-1 each).
E Murphy; P Murphy, J Holden, J Tyrrell; P Walsh, K Joyce, C Buckley; M Fennelly, C Fogarty; W Walsh, R Hogan, J Power; G Aylward, TJ Reid, E Larkin.
K Kelly for J Power (56); S Prendergast for J Tyrrell (60); R Lennon for P Murphy (61); M Kelly for E Larkin (63);
M Fanning; C Kenny, L Ryan, E Moore; L Chin, M O'Hanlon, A Shore; D Waters, D Redmond; I Byrne, S Tomkins, D O'Keeffe; P Morris, C McDonald, L McGovern.
K Foley for P Morris (blood, 18-f-t); A Nolan for E Moore (32); P Doran for D Waters, H Kehoe for S Tomkins (both h-t); E Martin for A Shore (62); G Sinnott for L McGovern (65).
D Kirwan (Cork)
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