Wexford FC v Galway

[ForzaForth]

As the scoreline suggests, a very comfortable win for Galway in Ferrycarrig this evening, and the only complaint Wexford can have is about the award of what looked like a harsh penalty just before the break to give Galway the lead goal and put Wexford very much on the back foot. Wexford started with an unchanged XI with Heffernan, D. Levingston, Lynch, Douglas, Boyle, Dobbs, Hanratty, Crawford, Furlong, Piper and Tallon. From the start, it was Galway in the ascendancy and playing quite direct other than through an out ball to Ed McCarthy on the right wing who looked very dangerous. However, Galway didn’t create too many real chances in the first half other than on eight minutes when a Galway forward tried and failed to lift the ball over Charlie Heffernan in the Wexford goal who came rushing out to block it. Wexford were making little headway against a very tough looking Galway defence during this period and had only two ballooned shots over the Galway bar during the first half. The only threat to the Galway defence by Wexford was coming from the impressive Mark Hanratty but I’m not sure of the wisdom of playing him on the opposite wing to his natural left side. Just as Wexford would have been happy to go in 0-0 at half-time, Galway won a corner and, as the ball came in, the referee pointed to the spot for an unclear penalty award to Galway. Hurley converted for Galway and it was 1-0 to Galway at half-time.

[ForzaForth]

Wexford brought on Aaron Doran at the start of the second-half and had a decent spell at the start of the half with a shot deflected for a corner on eight minutes and a header just over the Galway bar from that Wexford corner. Immediately, Galway went up the pitch and got what looked like an insurance goal to make it 2-0 when Lomboto shot and the rebound from Heffernan fell straight back to him to enable him to finish for 2-0. The rest of the game was dominated by Galway as Wexford fell away other than a header by Aaron Doran which went a yard over the Galway bar. Galway got a third when Darren Clarke went on a long run and finished low past Heffernan and then a fourth from a touch home at the far post. Heffernan prevented Galway from going ahead by five goals when he made a good save from a Galway penalty awarded for handball. Based on this performance, Galway don’t look like they’ll concede too much at the back. Best for Wexford were Mark Hanratty, Corban Piper and Darragh Levingston. Crowd was, I believe, 655.