Wexford game plan to succeed

It's been a curious build-up to tomorrow's Guinness All-Ireland semi-final at Croke Park. As Wexford and Tipperary prepare to meet, the island has been full of noises concerning the likelihood of a Clare-Wexford All-Ireland final to the extent that a class of a pamphleteering war has already broken out between the counties.

Small wonder that one Tipperary hurling sage, happily observing the marginalising of his county, described all the fuss as: "Beautiful, just beautiful".

Aside from Clare's wish-you-were-here postcards to the two semi-finalists, there have been some interesting moves made in relation to team selections.

After the Munster final, during which Clare hustled Tipperary remorselessly and having seen the scale of Wexford's physical challenge in the Leinster final, it was always likely that Len Gaynor would inject more bulk into the team.

That has been done but there is now a question over the coherence of the team. Is it an integrated plan or merely the introduction of some big players in place of smaller ones? A big problem for Tipperary is that unlike Kilkenny, they have had no opportunity to learn since losing their provincial final.

A drab NHL quarter-final against Dublin and an All-Ireland outing in Clones with Ulster champions Down are not very accurate diagnostic indicators. These are some of the questions that have to answered.

If last year's minor Eugene O'Neill is good enough to start against the All-Ireland champions, why didn't he get a run as a substitute earlier in the season, given that he's hardly being picked on the evidence of the quarter-final against Down?

Is a competent showing against Dublin and a lively display on Down's second-choice right corner back sufficient evidence that Brian O'Meara is ready to switch careers into the corner-forward position?

Does Tommy Dunne's spirited display when switched from the wing in the Munster final mean that he can put in a consistent 70 minutes at centre-field when John Leahy has found the same switch unsuccessful?

Will right wing back Liam Sheedy's whole-heartedness compensate for a lack of pace against one of the fastest wing forwards in the game, Larry Murphy?

One benefit of the matches since the Munster final has been the return to the fold of Aidan Ryan, who has been in good recent form and represents a useful acquisition if he has retained his old flair for raising the tempo of a match when coming into it from the bench.

A reluctance to take chances with Declan Ryan means that the widely favoured configuration of him at full forward - so effective last year - and Liam McGrath at centre forward is being put on hold but remains an option although in the view of many Tipperary people, that will necessitate the substitution of Eugene O'Neill, who is regarded as unsuitable for either the corners or the wings.

Kevin Tucker can regard himself as unlucky after a Munster final total of three points. Slight he may be but the points were taken off Anthony Daly who's a lot heftier than Sean Flood.

There has been a tendency to underestimate Wexford. Each match this season has been played in the aftermath of one of Clare's and with the country in awe of the Munster champions' rugged agenda, it can be forgotten that Wexford are as physical a team and can also hurl.

One of the consolations for Tipperary is that Wexford have not sustained their performance for either match to date. They started well against Offaly but let their opponents back into contention; in the Leinster final, they began atrociously but finished in style.

The weaknesses against Kilkenny must have perplexed Rory Kinsella and his selectors because in many cases the problem areas became strengths in the second half. Debilitated by a virus, Martin Storey had his worst match for the champions in a long time and in his absence the rest of the attack struggled until the second half.

One of the reasons that full forward Gary Laffan's possible absence through injury is so worrying for Wexford is that his second-half performance at centre forward unveiled a very useful weapon in the team's armoury. The decision as to whether he fills the AN Other position will be left until tomorrow. Kinsella is cautiously optimistic that he will pass the fitness test. Substitute Billy Byrne also faces a test.

As one of the most easily dispensed with forwards last year, Laffan surprised people in the All-Ireland final by picking off three points from play. This year, he has more than once shown a capacity to play a constructive role on the 40 where his distribution is thoughtful and precise.

In addition to Laffan's growing stature, his potential loss raises the question of who will replace him, given the less than abundant options provided by the Wexford bench.

As might be expected in a match like this, either team could win but the evidence suggests that it will be Wexford. They are settled, physically powerful and play to a well practised game-plan which should hold even if they lose Laffan. Tipperary haven't shown the same hunger in their matches to date and cannot be certain if they have the right blend on the pitch.

If serendipity has a field day, Tipperary can win. More prosaic scenarios say the champions can take the penultimate step to retaining their title.

Wexford: D Fitzhenry; C Kehoe, G Cushe, E Furlong; R Guiney (capt), L Dunne, S Flood; A Fenlon, L O'Gorman; R McCarthy, M Storey, L Murphy; P Codd, AN Other, T Dempsey. Subs: S Kavanagh, J O'Connor, D Guiney, S Carley, T Kehoe, G Laffan, M Jordan, B Byrne, R Hassey.

Tipperary: B Cummins; P Shelly, N Sheehy, M Ryan; L Sheedy, Colm Bonnar, Conal Bonnar; T Dunne, C Glesson (capt); L McGrath, D Ryan, J Leahy; M Cleary, E O'Neill, B O'Meara. Subs: J Cottrell, G Frend, P Delaney, A Butler, A Ryan, R Ryan, L Cahill, K Tucker, A Flanagan.

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