By Charlie Keegan
CARLOW hurling manager Colm Bonnar was in no way downcast at the turn of events which saw a one-point interval lead converted into a 15-point defeat by Wexford in Sunday’s Walsh Cup second round tie at Netwatch Cullen Park.
Referring to that opening half, the former Tipperary All-Ireland winner said: “We were right in the game but we missed some seven scoring chances while they only missed two or three.”
The Carlow boss, looking to the upcoming NHL said: “It’s about our lads getting games and building up for the Westmeath game.” [Carlow’s first league opponents] “Two of the Wexford goals should not have happened” he stated candidly. “Wexford have been training very hard. Davy Fitzgerald teams are developed very much on motivation and fitness.”
Carlow are only in week two of their season and looking to Wednesday’s concluding Walsh Cup outing, a home game against UCD. Bonnar said the more games his team gets the better in terms of the side’s development.
Davy Fitzgerald, in charge of a county team at Carlow headquarters for the first time, said the hosts deserved their first-half lead
“In the first half we overplayed the ball too much and Carlow worked extremely hard. They should have been four or five points up at half time.
“I was very happy with the second half. There was no panic at half time and we set up a small bit differently. We just changed our focus – we used a bit more width than in the first half,” the Clare man said, referring to the vast improvement in Wexford’s play after the change of ends.
It was not, incidentally, Davy’s first time to manage a team at Netwatch Cullen Park having coached UL in the Fitzgibbon Cup at the Carlow venue.