Wexford Power to win

Wexford 2-16 Down 2-11: As the Wexford fans celebrated on the pitch, manager David Power took to the sanctuary of a spare dressing room to explain the emergence of his new look young charges while just down the corridor his Down counterpart Jim McCorry struggled with the bitter disappointment of defeat.

To understand the elation, one must understand the backstory in Model County football circles with retirements of key players, the defection of outstanding midfielder Daithi Waters to the senior hurlers and the absence of so many other players for varying reasons.

The provincial championship defeat to Westmeath - having conceded 1-9 in the closing ten minutes in a game they seemed on their way to victory - meant their stock couldn’t plummet much lower.