WEXFORD have dropped Larry O'Gorman as they make two changes for Sunday's NHL quarter-final against Offaly at Thurles. O'Gorman, one of the county's higher-profile hurlers and a former All-Star nominee, had a poor match against Meath in the concluding round of the Division Two programme and was replaced by Damien Fitzhenry.
Fitzhenry, who came to prominence as goalkeeper on the team that reached both Leinster and League finals in 1993, is named to start in Thurles at left wing back. O'Gorman drops to the substitutes' bench yet to be announced, but where he will join such experienced colleagues as George O'Connor. Billy Byrne and Eamonn Scallan.
The other change seed Shade Carley come in at corner back for the injured Colm Kehoe.
Team manager Liam Griffin is happy with progress in the second half of the League, although Wexford's unbeaten record was broken against Limerick. It's the only match we lost. We were a few short and made a bad decision on the line, played against the wind in the first half and let them get out of sight. We also missed a lot of chances.
Griffin points out more positive signs concerning Sunday's opposition: "We beat Offaly in Birr in the Walsh Cup, which was our first time beating them in a while. They beat us at the end of last year in the Oireachtas, but we were about nine players short.
I'm looking forward to Sunday to see what progress we've made. You can only tell that against opposition like Offaly.
He doesn't feel that Wexford's lamentable showing in last summer's championship against the same opponents will colour the match. I wouldn't think so. I'll be disappointed if we don't give a good account of ourselves, which I think we will. We're holding faith with the fellas who played well for us in the League so far and I think they'll respond."
The team is a fairly young one, but with an anchoring of experience, amongst them Martin Storey, who is rehabilitating after a double groin operation. "He's coming along nicely," says Griffin. "People talk about the effect on his form and that, but he was doing very well to be playing with a very sore and very inhibiting injury. He's better now, but short of match practice and I'm hopeful that he'll be fully back before the summer.
Offaly welcome back John Troy to the starting line-up for the quarter-final. He comes in for Aidan Mannion, for whom he came on after 20 minutes of the last League outing against Waterford. As a result, the attack is recast, with Troy going to his customary centre forward role with Pat O'Connor and Declan Pilkington switching between the full and half forward lines.
The AN other vacancy is expected to be filled by Johnny Dooley, provided he recovers from the aggravation caused to his post-operation knee during the Waterford match.
Eamonn Cregan and company look determined to take a closer look at Joe Errity in the full forward role, as he is named there again. At least two of his previous outings in the position have ended with the Birr player having to revert to defence.
Meanwhile, Laois have made only one change for their match against Kilkenny in the other NHL quarter-final. Seamus Cuddy is fit to resume at centre forward and displaces Noel Delaney from the side that beat Antrim in their final regulation League match.
The versatile Delaney may yet find himself in action, however, veteran corner back John Taylor is named despite a rib injury and looks fairly unlikely to play. A bit of a wild card, Delaney is believed to top the list of likely replacements, with half backs Seamus Dooley and Liam Tynan also in the running.
Named among the substitutes is Fintan Lalor, who has been missing with injury since the October match against Limerick. Lalor it was who nearly put Kilkenny out of last year's championship, but his shot for goal was saved before his team lost by two points.
Excitement is high in Laois in advance of the county's first brush with the knockout stages in five years. "I haven't seen the like of it since the 1980s," says county PRO Jack Nolan. The players are very serious about it and they've gone through torture getting ready - I've gone through torture just watching them."
Laois haven't been to Thurles for a competitive fixture since they beat Galway in the Centenary Cup semi-final, 12 years ago. The previous year, they lost a League semi-final to Kilkenny for whom Christy Heffernan scored three goals.
More recently, in February, Lao is beat Sunday's opponents in the Walsh Cup. Although Kilkenny were said to be under-strength. Laois devotees now point out that the selection wasn't that different from the one named by Kilkenny this week.
Sunday will also see the staging of the Railway Cup final at Newbridge. Neither Munster nor Leinster will select until tomorrow.
Kerry's Paidi O Se, manager of the Munster team that brought Ulster's eight year unbeaten run to a halt in the replayed semifinal, will be watching his county's under-21s tonight and will talk to fellow selectors John O'Keeffe (who took a training session with the panel on Easter Monday) and Paddy Sheahan before the team is named.
Leinster's manager, Mattie Kerrigan, has some extensive worries, with doubts hanging over Seamus O'Hanlon (Louth), and Meath pair Tommy Dowd and John McDermott. O'Hanlon is recuperating from an ankle injury while McDermott is only back from a knee injury which kept him out of action for a few weeks.
A referee's report on Dowd's dismissal against Mayo in the NFL quarter-final is awaited before his availability is known.
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