Late, late Nash goal sees Limerick pip Wexford

Wexford were moments from maintaining their winning start to Division 3.

BIG WIN: Limerick manager Jimmy Lee. Pic: Noel

Limerick 1-15 (1-3-9) Wexford 1-14 (1-2-11) 

A seismic swing in Limerick’s spring. A Peter Nash injury-time goal nudged them in front for the first time in proceedings and delivered a first League win of 2026. A scrambled green flag that couldn’t have been timelier.

Wexford were mere minutes from maintaining their winning start to Division 3 life. 2012 was the last occasion the county won three consecutive games in the League’s third tier. And when Seán Nolan (free) and Jack Higgins threw over successive scores approaching the end of the regulation 70, the visitors were four in front and firmly on course to bridge a 14-year gap.

James Naughton’s second orange flag of the afternoon halved the traveling lead as the clock spilled into injury-time. And it was Naughton who was central to the winning major. Slipped through by Danny Neville, his side-footed effort along the ground rolled across the face of the goal where sub Peter Nash was present to squeeze the ball home.

Wexford hunted an equaliser in the final injury-time minute of the three allotted. An almighty roar erupted out of Mick Neville Park when a stray handpass deep in the Limerick half brought an end to that hunt and the game itself.

After opening day stalemate with Laois and defeat at home to Down, Limerick have their first win of the campaign. Two invaluable points to deflate the pressure and pessimism that would have gathered increased pace had the winless start continued on home turf.

The visitors played with the gale in the opening period. The visitors were fascinated with the orange flag across said opening period. A fascination that was to their detriment. Its lesser white relative was routinely eschewed so as to work possession back outside the arc.

The visitors thrice tried for a two-pointer inside the opening three minutes. Glen Malone and Mark Rossiter were wide, the third effort landing short and ending in a Seán Nolan converted free.

Of Wexford’s seven first-half wides, five were launched from outside the 40-metre paint. There was another two-point attempt from Cathal Keogh blocked down.

There were two that were successful. The first from half-back Dylan Furlong propelled Wexford four in front after six minutes. The aforementioned Kehoe followed suit seven minutes later for a 0-6 to 0-1 lead. Mark Rossiter’s opener thereafter shoved the gap out to six, the largest it would stand at throughout the first half.

The Limerick restart, initially, creaked under pressure. Six of Jeffrey Alfred’s opening eight kick-outs were not retained. Wexford mined 0-3 of these opposition restarts interrupted.

The irksome bottom line for the visitors was that all this dominance was not being translated into the most precious currency of all. A self-inflicted failure to turn dominance into scores.

Limerick had their own frustrations retreating to the dressing-room at half-time, even if there would have been overall contentment at being only 0-9 to 0-5 adrift.

Jimmy Lee’s side, such was the strength of the gale, dropped three short. Two more were wide.

James Naughton and Danny Neville, when fed, were taking direct lines and dodging tackles. Cillian Fahy was another of influence in the opposition half. He opened the home side’s account on eight minutes and finished, at the end of first-half injury-time, a passage of attacking patience.

The sharper and more incisive attacking play of the second period belonged to Wexford. John Hegarty’s charges punched holes and found gaps with an ease that greatly frustrated Treaty boss Jimmy Lee.

Niall Hughes, slipped inside by his cousin Páiric, goaled on 52 minutes to re-establish the four-point advantage they had carried into the change of ends. They again carried a four-point advantage into injury-time. They were caught. A cruel end to their winning start.

Scorers for Limerick: J Naughton (0-7, tp, tp free, 0-1 free); C Fahy (0-3); P Nash (1-0); E O’Riordan (tp), R Childs (0-2 each); T McCarthy (0-1).

Scorers for Wexford: S Nolan (0-4, 0-2 frees); N Hughes (1-0); D Furlong (tp), C Kehoe (tp, 0-2 each); E Porter, G Malone, L Coleman, J Higgins, T Byrne, M Rossiter (0-1 each).

LIMERICK: J Alfred; J Hassett, D Buckley, O Collins; E O’Riordan, K Ryan, T McCarthy; S Clancy, B Coleman; J Naughton, C McSweeney, A Meade; C Fahy, D Neville, R Childs.

SUBS: P Maher for McSweeney (48); P Nash for Meade (53); J Dineen for Clancy (66).

WEXFORD: D Brooks; G Sheehan, L O’Connor, D Furlong; G Malone, E Porter, S Doyle; L Coleman, N Hughes; C Kehoe, M Rossiter, P Hughes; T Byrne, J Higgins, S Nolan.

SUBS: E Nolan for Doyle (HT); C Hughes for Byrne (51); C Feeney for Rossiter, R Martin for Malone (both 65).

REFEREE: C Ryan (Galway)