National Forum

Wexford Hurling 2025

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Replying To StoreysTash:  "So Rosslare recent final was over 20 years ago and senior was 16 teams. And zilch since. This accusation could be thrown at a lot of clubs in Wexford who coast along in an endless cycle of mediocrity and happy clappy.
We need to produce better hurlers and who can deliver under the toughest of pressure and no amount of devotion to Fr. Murphy is going to help with that. What will help is more hurling and more hurling against top teams.
I'm don't subscribe that Wexford is for retirees and Dublin is for young people, I see some of my friends now moving back and none of them are moving to Dublin. Some are working remotely and doing a commute 1-2 days max and housing is why they are moving back to Wexford and not Dublin. Its just as expensive to buy houses in Australia and people are moving back."
When you are young 2 days sitting in a car for what could be 4hrs a day doesn't seem that much but as you get older that changes and we do not have a commuter train service from Wexford - Gorey is better. Within the county you will see shifts, it may not be the current lads playing but it will be their kids. Like Kildare and the South Dublin Clubs, Wicklow stands perhaps to benefit the most but again if you do not have the structures in place that gets lost i.e Dublin in Hurling for the most part of the first 100 years of the GAA.
In 2022 12% were Joint Irish Citizens and 8% were not Irish Citizens in Wexford, now none of that may mean anything but it does point to a large population that we traditionally may have ignored. As I said and I don't think we will disagree on this the battle is to get more kids playing the games and to do that we really need a people product in place that encourages them all along the way to stay with the game and get better. Too often the rhetoric coming out of people in the GAA is that you have to be this or that - its in your blood etc I couldn't care less where they come from, get them playing.

zinny (Wexford) - Posts: 2017 - 19/06/2025 16:13:13    2619291

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Replying To wexford2012:  "Some interesting comments coming up about engaging new comers/non-GAA families something we and the GAA as a whole need to become much better at. Its a big challenge but especially for hurling where I think the consensus is that the difference between good and excellent is what work lads to at home and the encouragement they receive. Anecdotally I believe many Dublin clubs are good at integrating non GAA playing parents - I know for some at least the majority of their underage coaches would not necessarily have played the games and this hasn't stopped Na Fianna or Cuala from winning club all Irelands. They must though have supports in place to upskill and support these coaches and must work hard to make sure they are not closed shops but instead welcome people with open arms - doubt they are doing this perfectly either. Soccer has a huge advantage when it comes to children whose parents grew up outside of Ireland, they know these games and its easier to do the basics and less physical (many kids just don't like the idea of getting a clip of a hurl).

In the show 'Succession' the patriarch of the family, Logan Roy, says to his dysfunctional adult children "I love you, but you are not serious people" - is this Wexford? We love it but its just not serious? PJ MacManus speaking the aftermath of Limerick's winning the All Ireland said "...the difference between being involved and being committed is like when you have bacon and eggs for breakfast - the hen was involved, but the pig was committed!" are too many of us hens? Des Mythen in the most recent 'Wexford hurling podcast' spoke of lads just happy to be on the team/panel but not determined to be all they could be, not to put in the work required to step up, just doing enough to get the polo shirt and swan around - maybe harsh but Des must feel there is validity. I've said it before but I suspect there is an issue in our collective psyche, are we too happy to be there, happy to be everyone's second team, jovial and colorful when maybe success demands a dour seriousness? We all love cheeky chappies like Larry O'Gorman but have the demands of intercounty made this a thing of the past and if we hang on, we will be stuck there?"
On the first part there is also a cost element - Hurling these days is not a cheap sport to play - its safer for the helmets but between the cost of hurls and helmets its expensive if you compare that to soccer. We mut have got to the point now where clubs no longer need facilities? perhaps what clubs need to do is focus on the reasons why more kids are not playing and solving those. What would it take to increase the number of kids playing by 20%, we can talk all we want about management at Senior level but if we are not getting the kids through the gate its pointless.

zinny (Wexford) - Posts: 2017 - 19/06/2025 16:25:55    2619293

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Replying To ElGranSenor:  "Have it in my head they lost an Intermediate Final to Ballyfad in 2003"
That's correct, they did. A close enough game but Matty Forde was largely the difference that day for Ballyfad.

Purpleandgold72 (Wexford) - Posts: 274 - 19/06/2025 17:01:16    2619306

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Replying To Viking66:  "Rosslare is growing rapidly. Population won't be an issue in years to come. Getting that population involved in the GAA will be the challenge"
That's where the winning of our next AI title will come from. The hearts and minds of kids in places like Rosslare, New Ross, Gorey/Courtown. Growing populations, parents with limited Wexford or even Ireland connections. Sure we have the perfect role model for them in Lee Chin!

If soccer is strong, for me that's a positive. At least kids are going to be athletic and interested in sport, not just video games. Everyone has a role to play, including Gizzy with his mystical and mythical twaddle!, but we need to be forward looking.

Timbertony (Wexford) - Posts: 429 - 19/06/2025 19:23:19    2619332

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Replying To zinny:  "When you are young 2 days sitting in a car for what could be 4hrs a day doesn't seem that much but as you get older that changes and we do not have a commuter train service from Wexford - Gorey is better. Within the county you will see shifts, it may not be the current lads playing but it will be their kids. Like Kildare and the South Dublin Clubs, Wicklow stands perhaps to benefit the most but again if you do not have the structures in place that gets lost i.e Dublin in Hurling for the most part of the first 100 years of the GAA.
In 2022 12% were Joint Irish Citizens and 8% were not Irish Citizens in Wexford, now none of that may mean anything but it does point to a large population that we traditionally may have ignored. As I said and I don't think we will disagree on this the battle is to get more kids playing the games and to do that we really need a people product in place that encourages them all along the way to stay with the game and get better. Too often the rhetoric coming out of people in the GAA is that you have to be this or that - its in your blood etc I couldn't care less where they come from, get them playing."
I agree with that.

We have loads of eastern European kids and a couple of Thai and Indian.

Their parents are very supportive as well for the most part.

Doylerwex (Wexford) - Posts: 3754 - 19/06/2025 23:00:31    2619361

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Saw some of the Féile and thought Oylegate had a few stand-out lads, the spine of their team were very athletic, 14 had some size in his legs for a 14yo, athletic type too, 11 was a real technical hurler, a bit light and over-played the ball at times but was getting stuck in (And might have been a bit over-zealous in his challenges if anything), 3 in midfield was another good athlete, seemed to only ever hurl off his left side but needs to work on that, 9 who played at centre-back was another good athlete, their high-fielding was very good too, not something we usually associate with a Wexford side

ElGranSenor (Wexford) - Posts: 578 - 21/06/2025 14:53:32    2619625

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Let Dublin be the example of what you can achieve with a bit of guts. What a result for hurling

Doylerwex (Wexford) - Posts: 3754 - 21/06/2025 19:24:24    2619686

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Replying To Doylerwex:  "Let Dublin be the example of what you can achieve with a bit of guts. What a result for hurling"
Limerick looked very poor today amazing how quick they have deterioted and all the money pumped into them had a very poor leauge and championship thought they would pick it up.

Tiger1 (Wexford) - Posts: 403 - 21/06/2025 21:46:05    2619747

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Replying To Tiger1:  "Limerick looked very poor today amazing how quick they have deterioted and all the money pumped into them had a very poor leauge and championship thought they would pick it up."
What they've done in the last decade has been absolutely amazing but hurling needed that.

Everyone will fancy Cork of course but Kilkenny will be smelling blood now.

Is this Dublin's first semi final since 13 ?

Credit where it's due, it's been a huge 12 months for Dublin hurling.

Doylerwex (Wexford) - Posts: 3754 - 22/06/2025 08:23:42    2619802

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Replying To ElGranSenor:  "Saw some of the Féile and thought Oylegate had a few stand-out lads, the spine of their team were very athletic, 14 had some size in his legs for a 14yo, athletic type too, 11 was a real technical hurler, a bit light and over-played the ball at times but was getting stuck in (And might have been a bit over-zealous in his challenges if anything), 3 in midfield was another good athlete, seemed to only ever hurl off his left side but needs to work on that, 9 who played at centre-back was another good athlete, their high-fielding was very good too, not something we usually associate with a Wexford side"
We were very proud of all the lads, we were good enough to get to a cup final, nothing between the best teams, however Ballygunnar were ahead of everyone, much bigger all over the field, just down to the numbers they have available but good hurlers too.

We topped the group, drawing with the Tipp team (we were the better team), and beating the Galway and Offaly teams.

In the cup quarter final we lost out by a point to eventual finalists from Cork. We lead in extra time and they scored two late points, it was difficult to understand 3 minutes of injury time in a 10 minute aside game, but both teams were well matched.

WEX98 (Wexford) - Posts: 542 - 22/06/2025 10:06:08    2619813

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Replying To Doylerwex:  "What they've done in the last decade has been absolutely amazing but hurling needed that.

Everyone will fancy Cork of course but Kilkenny will be smelling blood now.

Is this Dublin's first semi final since 13 ?

Credit where it's due, it's been a huge 12 months for Dublin hurling."
Yes Dublin's first semi final since 2013, were beaten by Cork that day too iirc.

At least we'll be underdogs for the Dublin game by the time that rolls around next year.

Went to the Galway Tipp game yesterday evening down here - didn't exactly leave me feeling any better about Salthill this year.

OpenStandWall (Wexford) - Posts: 274 - 22/06/2025 10:23:32    2619821

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Replying To WEX98:  "We were very proud of all the lads, we were good enough to get to a cup final, nothing between the best teams, however Ballygunnar were ahead of everyone, much bigger all over the field, just down to the numbers they have available but good hurlers too.

We topped the group, drawing with the Tipp team (we were the better team), and beating the Galway and Offaly teams.

In the cup quarter final we lost out by a point to eventual finalists from Cork. We lead in extra time and they scored two late points, it was difficult to understand 3 minutes of injury time in a 10 minute aside game, but both teams were well matched."
Impressive, well done to you and the team

wexford2012 (Wexford) - Posts: 118 - 22/06/2025 16:14:25    2619907

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Hate saying this but Wexford are a complete joke there you have it now Dublin making serious progress along with Kildare and Offaly and you have Clare going for a 2nd All Ireland Minor in 3 years and Waterford in the Minor final and are a super team but Wexford just standing back looking on making no progress and completely being ignored by County board.

Bryson (Wexford) - Posts: 13 - 23/06/2025 00:32:17    2620065

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Replying To Bryson:  "Hate saying this but Wexford are a complete joke there you have it now Dublin making serious progress along with Kildare and Offaly and you have Clare going for a 2nd All Ireland Minor in 3 years and Waterford in the Minor final and are a super team but Wexford just standing back looking on making no progress and completely being ignored by County board."
Sadly I tend to agree.

Heard too much that underage teams training once a week as.opposed to other counties doing 2.and 3 etc. etc.

Fed up of some people always painting a rosy picture too saying our underage teams always on par with others yet we never seem to make any breakthrough worth speaking about.

We are at nothing only standing still

WEXILE (Wexford) - Posts: 424 - 23/06/2025 10:28:11    2620154

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Replying To wexford2012:  "Impressive, well done to you and the team"
Thanks. Apparently Oylegate-Glenbrien has the largest number of players involved in development squads.

WEX98 (Wexford) - Posts: 542 - 23/06/2025 10:36:13    2620160

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Replying To WEX98:  "Thanks. Apparently Oylegate-Glenbrien has the largest number of players involved in development squads."
The figure wasn't for development squads, it was for u14-u20 squads. You had the most.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 16382 - 23/06/2025 11:28:55    2620200

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Replying To Bryson:  "Hate saying this but Wexford are a complete joke there you have it now Dublin making serious progress along with Kildare and Offaly and you have Clare going for a 2nd All Ireland Minor in 3 years and Waterford in the Minor final and are a super team but Wexford just standing back looking on making no progress and completely being ignored by County board."
That's nonsense the last Board meeting was dominated time wise by discussion of our underage to adult teams.
Clare are doing plenty right ok, but really this Waterford group seem more like an exceptional group since they were u14, in general their results at underage have been pretty poor since their last exceptionally good group that won the AI U21 title in 2016.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 16382 - 23/06/2025 11:33:45    2620205

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Replying To Bryson:  "Hate saying this but Wexford are a complete joke there you have it now Dublin making serious progress along with Kildare and Offaly and you have Clare going for a 2nd All Ireland Minor in 3 years and Waterford in the Minor final and are a super team but Wexford just standing back looking on making no progress and completely being ignored by County board."
The county board don't train teams.
They don't select teams.
They have no involvement on the sideline.
They are administrators.
They select managers, selectors and coaches.
They finance all our county teams.
A bit harsh to say that they are being completely ignored by the county board.
The CB are made up of delegates from clubs across the county.
They are all elected to the various positions.
I'm sure they think long and hard before making decisions.
Yes they sometimes make mistakes and should be made accountable but I'm pretty sure that they have the best interest of Wexford Gaa at heart.
They are all unpaid volunteers except the secretary.
We are all frustrated and angry at the lack of success with our county teams and we are good at venting our anger but at the end of the day it's up to the players on the pitch. They must give 100% in training and in games. And yes the training for underage should be increased.
Sometimes having put in the hard slog and given it their all it just doesn't happen but if the quality and skill factor is not there in sufficient numbers there is nothing anybody can do and that includes the cb.
There is always room for improvement and we learn from our failures.
As some very rich guy once said " if I fail I make sure to fail better the next time.

Magpie2 (Wexford) - Posts: 524 - 23/06/2025 11:42:46    2620212

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Good discussion since I went on holidays and read it last night.
Can somebody explain to me what you mean by "hurling is a way of life" or what you understand this to mean?
I am not trolling now.

ExiledInWex (Dublin) - Posts: 1390 - 23/06/2025 12:18:52    2620228

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We are light years behind Clare.

countyman2022 (Wexford) - Posts: 826 - 23/06/2025 12:49:47    2620258

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