A division of the spoils at Aughrim on Saturday was enough to earn Wexford a June 11th clash with Dublin - but if Wicklow's first half performance had been on a par with their roller-coaster finish, they might have won and kept their championship hopes alive.
Wicklow will look back on this match and consider what might have been. If only Don Jackman had been awarded a free in injury-time for an illegal tackle 40 metres out and within the range of in-form place kicker Kevin O'Brien. If only Tommy Gill, who otherwise had an excellent game, had taken his goal chance instead of a point in the first half. If only the referee had allowed two more minutes for stoppages at the end.
Wexford of course also had their own litany of "if onlys", the most crucial being second-half shots into the side netting by John Hegarty and Jason Lawlor.
Hegarty had scored their goal after 15 minutes, when it was badly needed, as Leigh O'Brien had just managed to tap a simple close-range free wide of the left upright.
O'Brien made rapid amends with a defence-splitting pass to Hegarty, who careered through for a great goal. The score gave Wexford the lead for the first time and they were never subsequently headed, despite Wicklow's belated brilliance. Wexford, having played with the wind led by 1-7 to 0-4 at half time.
Wicklow injected real excitement into a fast-flowing match during the last quarter, leaving Wexford ruffled.
Leigh O'Brien had just put Wexford six points clear, 22 minutes into the second half, when Wicklow reacted with verve and style. Shane O'Neill and Barry Sheehan began to gain the edge in midfield as Wexford's engine room, which had been manned so effectively by Jack Berry and Thomas Howlin, lost control. O'Neill and Sheehan set up a number of Wicklow attacks.
Fittingly, Kevin O'Brien ignited the recovery with a pointed free and when the Baltinglass man, playing in his last championship match, kicked his fourth point in the 63rd minute, after another beauty of a point by will-o'-the-wisp Tommy Gill, the deficit was down to three points. A point by Ronan Coffey and two by Gill, the second in the final minute of the game, brought the scores level, but even with the home support in the 6,000 crowd roaring them on Wicklow could not get the vital winning score. Trevor Doyle had an opportunity for the lead point, but his shot went wide.
"I was very proud of them," said team manager Moses Coffey of his Wicklow side. He argued strongly, as did Kevin O'Brien, that at least two more minutes should have been allowed for stoppages. Wexford manager Ger Halligan said that on reflection they owed a lot to an Ulster county for their win. "We were hammered by Cavan in our last league match and we worked really hard to solve the flaws exposed in that match.
The enforced substitution of centre back Phil Wallace after 19 minutes had been "a huge blow" to his team, he said. "He had a hamstring problem and we took a chance playing him." Jack Berry, who was originally known as a forward, has surely guaranteed himself a place in the Wexford midfield. He seems the ideal partner for Thomas Howlin. Both men will, however, be asked to stay the course a little longer against Dublin.
With some understatement the Wexford manager said: "I must say it was a little worrying for us during the last few minutes when Wicklow had their tails up."
A row is brewing over the venue for Wexford's next outing against Dublin. Kildare and Louth are scheduled to appear on the same bill at Croke Park, but "seemingly double headers are not on because of the work on the stands," Halligan said.
"We will fight against any such move, remember it's six years since we had a championship match in Croke Park."
Wexford: O Murphy; C Morris, S O'Shaughnessy, J Whelan; D O'Brien, P Wallace, P Forde; J Berry, T Howlin; N Morris, M Mahon, L O'Brien (0-6, two frees); S Doran (0-2), J Hegarty (1-0), J Lawlor (0-2, one free). Subs: B Kavanagh for Wallace (19 mins); J Darcy for Kavanagh (half-time); M Kavanagh for Morris (58 mins); S Hughes for Mahon (60 mins).
Wicklow: R Hollingsworth; S Nolan, B O'Donovan, T Burke; B O hAnnaidh, M Coffey, B Whelan; S O'Neill, B Sheehan; D Jackman (0-1), K O'Brien (0-4, three frees), T Doyle; T Gill (0-7, one free), R Coffey (0-1), T Hannon. Subs: R Doyle for Whelan (54 mins); O O hAnnaidh for O'Donovan (62 mins).
Referee: M McBrien (Fermanagh).
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