| Waterford show star quality
 Waterford
have long been tipped as the team that are most likely to break the Cork-Kilkenny
axis of hurling domination.
At Wexford Park on Sunday they showed all of their usual quality but the
talking point will be just how poor Wexford were.
From the county which has given hurling folklore the Rackard brothers
and the recently deceased Padge Kehoe Wexford looked like a team unaware
of their proud heritage on Sunday.
They hurled like novices sullenly and unimaginatively plodding their way
around the pitch and producing an effort totally inadequate against a
Waterford team who started the year with enough fire in their belly to
suggest that for all the miles they have travelled the hunger remains
as strong as ever.
There was no period of this match where Waterford looked like losing.
They were physically bigger and technically superior in every area of
the field and that was despite playing without several of their big name
players such as Tony Browne, Eoin Murphy and Paul Flynn.
Wexford scored just once from play in the first-half while Eoin Kelly
was in his usual excellent form in front of goal to ensure that his team
led by 10 points at half-time.
Waterford have been back-boned by the same hardy half-dozen players for
several seasons now but the emergence of Kevin Moran who hit 1-2 from
play could see Waterford develop further.
Wexford have been pining for a big physical forward for many years and
it was only with the second-half introduction of Pat Doran that they got
any change from the Waterford defence.
Doran made a persistent nuisance of himself and it was his industry which
created the space for Eoin Quigley to grant Wexford a late goal they hardly
deserved.
Waterford will have learnt little from this except that their younger
players are maturing into county level players while for new purple-and-gold
boss John Meyler it could be a long winter and a short summer in the managerial
hot seat.
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