Emerging from the shadows

GAA/Keith Duggan talks to Wexford football star Mattie Forde.  Some things never change. The temptation to glaze over tomorrow's league game between Galway and Wexford as a foregone conclusion remains strong. In hurling, the tie holds promise. But not in football - at least, not traditionally.

A bit of spring adventure does little to alter deep prejudices. It is not that the general public regards Wexford football in a poor light, more so that it rarely thinks about it at all.

That Wexford have mixed it admirably in the cut-throat Division One B over the past six weeks has been largely overlooked. The performance of Limerick - also experimenting in life in the big leagues for the first time - has deservedly caught most of the attention. They were unstoppable for the first three games and even a heavy loss to Galway in Ballinasloe was not enough to remove them from the top of the table.

But Limerick's coming had been well signalled over the past three years and particularly with last summer's grand raid on Cork. Expectations of Wexford's progress have been more muted. And yet, with the permutations going into tomorrow's series of games leaving them smack in the middle of the shake-up, they have demonstrated that they have a right to think they belong at this level.

"It has been quite a step up for us," says forward Mattie Forde. "Even at league level, the pace is much faster than it would be playing in lower divisions and what we have learned is that you are automatically punished for mistakes. You just don't get away with things. But I suppose we have won a couple of tight games and are still in contention for the semi-finals if we can squeeze a few more results. But because the group is so tight, relegation also remains a threat."

Forde is looking forward to the Galway game. On St Patrick's Day, the team met with manager Pat Roe just for a light morning session. They considered the bright spots and forgettable moments of last weekend's draw against Cavan. It was a strange game, played under the imposition of a full-force gale.

Forde spent the first half tracking back as Wexford faced an onslaught. When they began to play football they were down 0-7 to 0-1 and slogged steadily until they were back in contention. A late John Hegarty goal seemed to swing it for them, but the concession of a free in the last sequence of the game gave Cavan a reprieve.

The match typified form in a division that has been completely unreadable. In their very first game, Wexford travelled north to Crossmaglen and, for most of the game, Joe Kernan's team gave the Armagh faithful nothing to shout about.

Only in the last 10 minutes, when Armagh drafted in heavyweights such as Oisín McConville, did the home team hesitantly take control. Forde was a spectator that day.

"I was best man at my brother's wedding the day before and Pat just said I would have to sit the weekend out. It was hard watching it and missing the first game, which was a big moment for us. But that game especially, I think, hammered home the lesson about taking our chances or else."

Against Meath, they applied that instruction. Their 0-10 to 1-5 victory was the result of the day. Seán Boylan visited their dressing-room afterwards and was magnanimous and sporting.

But Boylan also said words to the effect that while such isolated moments were all very well and admirable, perhaps it was time for Wexford to believe that they belonged permanently at this level. It gave them pause for thought.

"He was right and naturally when you hear an opinion like that from Seán Boylan, it does hit home. Consistency is what it is about and I think that is what we are working towards, so that results against the bigger teams are no longer just an exception to the rule."

That ambition alone is a far cry from Forde's first experiences in a Wexford shirt, six years ago. The game in the county existed in a twilight zone. All involved believed they were giving it an honest shot. But, in retrospect, they were just going through the motions.

"We might train for an hour and it would usually consist of six laps around the field and six sets of shuttle runs and a bit of a kick around. Then we were playing in the lower divisions of the league with no real prospects of going anywhere. It was nobody's fault, it was just a rut."

There has been an awakening since then. Forde attributes a lot of the success to the fact that the three selectors now working under Pat Roe - Ger Halligan, Declan Carty and Michael Farley - have had a constant input for the past four years.

Collectively, they hold a vast knowledge of the Wexford game and set about giving the squad a direction. A few weeks ago, Forde hit a personal tally of 2-9 in a notably comfortable win against Sligo and a crowd of 6,000 watched the footballers.

That was partly because of a scheduled double header, but the hurling crowd stayed to support. Football in the county has definitely turned a corner.

A number of the boys that won the schools All-Ireland with Good Counsel in New Ross four years ago have joined the senior panel. The under-21 team has started promisingly in the Leinster Championship. The one dilemma is dual players.

There are a number of hurlers capable of playing inter-county football. Forde, who had caught the eye with a number of fine displays in the club championship, spoke with John Conran before the season began.

"We met and there was talk of me coming onto the hurling panel all right, but I felt - and John fully agreed - that it would be impossible to commit to both sports, particularly given that I am captain of the football team this year. John was perfectly understanding about it.

"The way I feel is that there is room for Wexford to do well in both sports as long as there's a bit of understanding."

Pinning his hopes to the footballers has not been difficult. Being in the dressing-room for Scott Doran's 100th game for Wexford this season was something that will stay with him. Doran has seen the beginning and end of countless Wexford football careers and yet remains an automatic choice after 12 years. "He has seen it all. And it's just great that Scott is still going well now that we have a bit to shout about."

Pat Roe has come in from Laois and raised the bar a little bit higher for Wexford. Once, a solitary win in the championship would represent the summit. Now, the plan is to at least get as far as a Leinster final. Why not? That quest begins with a championship match against Louth in mid-May.

"That has always been at the back of our mind. Playing in the top division of the league we regard as good preparation for that day. And if we can get a few more wins and maybe squeeze into the play-offs, then who knows."

And that would mean beating Galway tomorrow. Surely that is a bridge too far? "They are one of the great teams of the past decade or so. And for that reason they are the kind of team you look forward to playing against. Look, we are going to win, there is no point in saying any different because that is how we feel."