Wexford under-rated in Munster vs Leinster showdown
April 29th, 2010 by Kevin EganTaking a break from the football analysis for the moment, the national hurling league finals in division one and two take place this weekend in Semple Stadium, and one could be forgiven for assuming that a little bit of Munster hurling bias was factored into the prices. The division two decider between Clare and Wexford looks, on all known form, to be a quite even match. A quick look at the respective formlines of the two protagonists this year confirms this. Both sides hammered Down and won easily against Kildare and Westmeath, both sides beat Laois by four and they each drew with each other. Wexford won well against Antrim but fell to Carlow, while Clare played poorly against both and limped home in each case by a single point – overall balancing out.
Even going back a little further into last year’s championship, Clare did perform marginally better in that they hurled well against Tipperary for half the game and won the relegation match between the two counties, but Wexford arguably had the best performance that either county put on the board in their win over Offaly. Nothing that either county has done in the last eighteen months suggests that one should be favoured over the other, making the current two point handicap somewhat baffling.
The utterances of Colm Bonnar this week are very worrying from a Wexford point of view in that they reflect a mentality which is rooted in tradition and entitlement rather than realism and determination. Wexford are in division two on merit and nothing they have done this year suggests that they were way out of their league when hurling in the second tier. Bonnar suggested that getting dedicated servants of Wexford hurling like Keith Rossiter and Diarmuid Lyng to tog out would be difficult if promotion wasn’t secured this year – which quite frankly, doesn’t tally with the determined and passionate attitude that those two players have displayed every time this writer has seen them hurl and instead sounds very much like whinging. It would have been much more encouraging if Bonnar had come out and said that his team are aware of how much division two hurling is hurting the development of the sport in the Model County and how they would support a two up and two down system (as would most genuine hurling followers) but that for now, the system is as it is and how Clare simply have to be beaten on Saturday evening.
From a Clare perspective, the fact that four of their games this year went right down to the wire defied the thinking that they would be playing uncompetitive games in this division, but one wonders if they really understand the importance of this weekend’s tie. If asked whether they would prefer to win this match or the Munster semi final against Waterford, it’s safe to say that most Clare supporters would probably elect to win the championship match in Ennis – despite the fact that this tie is much more important for the overall health of hurling in Clare. Wexford can certainly attest to this, having beaten Offaly in two of three meetings last year, but lost the one that counted most.
The factor that tips it over the edge is how both counties concluded the campaign. Clare had a poor outing against a disappointing Kildare team, while Wexford were able to step on the gas against Antrim and win a match that they badly needed in some style. What momentum is there is definitely on Wexford’s side. If push came to shove and this match was priced as an even game, this column would have a slight inclination towards backing Wexford right now, but at the odds on offer, the strawberry men simply have to be backed. For the purposes of a recommendation, we’ll play it safe and suggest a 3pt bet on Wexford plus two points in the handicap betting at even money. For good measure, we’re also going to put a 1pt bet on Wexford to lead at half time and win the game, at odds of 7/2.
The division one final is a bit trickier to assess and the final round clash between the two counties was certainly of no help in that regard. Neither team was hurling at even 50% intensity in that game. Galway’s better strength in depth was rubber stamped by their win and nothing that has happened in this league campaign suggests that Cork have overtaken the Westerners in the overall pecking order. The gap has certainly been closed on last year’s championship standings where Galway were comfortably the better team, but the form of Iarlaith Tannion and a few others suggests that Galway have done enough to stay ahead of the Rebels, something endorsed by the All Ireland prices that see Glaway trading at 5/1 while Denis Walsh’s men are two points higher. This column has an antepost bet on the account on the Galway men and for that reason we will stop short of suggesting doubling up, but for those who don’t have that docket in their wallet or at home, a small wager could be worthwhile.
Tags: Division 2, Galway, NHL, Wexford
Categories: Hurling
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