Cork vs Wexford: Match Preview

5th Aug 2003

Next victims on Cork's unstoppable march to a 29th All-Ireland Hurling Championship are Wexford, who face the all-conquering Rebels in Sunday's semi-final at Croke Park. Wexford are sure to prove no match for the Munster Champions and another easy victory is on the cards. Given Cork's exceptional quality and proud hurling tradition, the game will be little more than a formality and such is the level of overwhelming confidence in the county that already Cork eyes are turning to the final in September. Indeed there is talk of the Rebels fielding their Under-21 side as a sporting gesture in the interests of keeping the scoreline respectable and avoiding unnecessary humiliation to a weaker county. Whatever transpires it is fair to say that rarely can a team be so certain of so comprehensive a victory in advance of the game itself.  Wexford is a pleasant county in the South East of Ireland which will be familar to many Corkonians as the last place to buy seasickness tablets before making the journey to Britain or the Continent. Other than that we can't say we really know a whole lot about it, except that the whole county is hurling-mad and has a proud tradition of being soundly thrashed by Kilkenny or Offaly on Leinster Final day. The heart of any true sporting fan is warmed by the sight of a sea of passionate Wexford supporters, waving their lurid purple-and-mustard banners with the grim fatalism of perennial underdogs and eternal losers. And fair play to them, they're either the second or third strongest hurling county in Leinster, depending on who you talk to and what year it is. Cynics might point to the fact that outside of Kilkenny, Offaly and Wexford itself, Leinster county teams contain at most seven or eight players who have ever actually played the game before. Indeed the very words "Dublin hurling" sound absurd - like "Swiss Navy" or "shy and retiring Corkman", they just don't make sense. Wexford can't be blamed for that however, and one has to admire their enthusiasm and determination to buckle down and fight against the odds. They actually won the All-Ireland as recently as 1996, but the fact that their opponents in the final were Limerick gives an indication of how poor the standard was that year.   Wexford's progress to the semi-final hasn't been easy. True to form, they wilted at the sight of Kilkenny emerging from the Croke Park dressing room for the Leinster Final and no fewer than ten Wexford players needed a change of shorts before the game had even begun. Even the referee, umpires and RTE commentators had lost count of the score by midway through the second half. The Kilkenny full-back line and goalkeeper were seen standing in a circle chatting, smoking cigarettes, swilling cans of beer and eyeing up ladies in the crowd in an effort to combat their boredom. Towards the end of the match a deck of cards and dartboard were sent for by their sympathetic Bainisteoir, eager to find them something to pass the time. If Wexford capitulated so completely against their neighbours, then they must surely be apprehensive about their semi-final chances. Despite Kilkenny winning their 103rd consecutive Leinster Championship this year, they still have won fewer All-Irelands than Cork and are therefore a weaker hurling county (along with the other 30). After the Kilkenny fiasco, Wexford entered the qualifiers where they faced a Waterford side thoroughly demoralised by the hiding dished out by Cork in the Munster Final. Earlier in the Championship this was no bad Waterford side, but with their spirit crushed by the rampant Rebels they were a shadow of their former selves and nothing at all can be read into Wexford's victory. Even John Mullane was subdued, as evidenced by his uncharacteristic refusal to communicate via hand signals to the opposing fans. Antrim (no laughing please) were Wexford's next opponents. Antrim is the strongest hurling county in Ulster, a boast that's a bit like County Wexford's own claim that they have the best weather in Ireland - it's not saying a whole lot given the standard of the competition. Wexford triumphed by a mere three points, the same margin of victory that the Toormakeady Under 14 Junior B hurlers recorded over Antrim in a challenge match earlier in the year. Meanwhile, the Cork hurlers themselves are as always playing down their chances. "Everyone knows that in the GAA it's an advantage to be the underdogs and a disadvantage to be the favourites," said one. "So, seeing as we're strong favourites and Wexford are hopeless underdogs, I fully expect them to beat us by seven or eight goals."