The_Banker
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This Paddy’s weekend I had to head to Tipperary to the ole dolls family for my half yearly penance and I thought I could cope with it until the future mother in law suggests I attend the novena in the local church. Thankfully, thinking quick on my feet I tell her I was going to a match and was really upset to miss the chance to meet the local This post will be deleted if not edited immediately freaks but sure, another time.
Jumping into the car I set out for Wexford to attend the very first home game of Wexford Youths FC who entertained Cobh Ramblers that afternoon.
Not everyone can say they were there at the birth of a Football League club but I along with 2100 other souls have the honour.
It was a 2 hour journey from Tipp and difficult to find but I got there. The ground itself is outside Wexford Town, off a main road, which while visible from the main road, could only be accessed by driving along a narrow boreen.
The ground itself is well laid out. Plenty of car parking in the tarmacadamed ground but with a single narrow entrance I reckon I could be a while getting out after the game. I buy a ticket (€10) and programme (€3) which is a pretty good quality programme for a first attempt and will no doubt become a collectors item in years to come.
Plenty of stewards ensure I go through the temporary electronic turnstiles and enter the ground without hassle. To the right there is 500 seats set up on a temporary stand and three quarters of the standing area is newly tarmac’d with the roadside of the ground grassed.
Behind one of the goals there is a pretty impressive clubhouse that houses the dressing rooms and bar. A large glass frontage ensures a good view for the customers inside.
The pitch itself is like carpet and is perfectly lined and maintained. There are a number of all weather pitches also and they are built to a very high standard.
There are lots of jerseys on display and among the various premiership jerseys on display I see some other Eircom League enthusiasts in Waterford, Shelbourne, Bohemians, Bray and even Sligo tracksuits tops, scarves and hoodies… My Cork City scarf ensures I get a nod from other League of Ireland fanatics. It’s good to see them especially when SKY are showing some premiership game.. Wexford GAA jerseys are also visible.
The teams run onto the pitch and into a howling gale blowing from the north. Cobh win the toss and elect to play with the wind. Before kick off Mick Wallace, the man responsible for the whole show addresses the crowd. He tells us this team will be community based and asks for patience from the people of Wexford as there will undoubtedly be mistakes made and he hopes any errors will be quickly rectified. He takes his place by the dug out in shirtsleeves and I feel sorry for him as I have a hoodie/scarf/woolly hat/parka and I am still cold. Common sense prevails and he calls for a jacket. Pat Dolan is also in the dugout and I am impressed with the amount of weight he has shed since his Cork City days.
Cobh kick off and with a massive gale to their backs they dominate for the first 30 minutes. At one stage the Wexford keeper takes a kick out and the ball blows over the end line for a corner. Cobh have about 10 corners after the first 30 minutes which consists of the Cobh corner taker hitting the ball high and as far as the penalty spot and letting the wind do the rest of the work which nearly works for them on numerous occasions.
On 30 minutes Wexford make a break and with both the Ramblers keeper and Wexford attacker going for the one ball the attacker is upended and I am expecting a penalty and keeper sent off as he is last man back but the ref bottles it and gives a free out to Cobh. In the meantime Cobh’s manager is blowing a gasket with his players for not being five up…
Half time comes as there is a massive hailstorm and everyone is soaked and cold. Pretty girls start selling raffle tickets for 2 tickets to the Ireland V Wales game next week. The pretty smile ensures I buy 2!! I walk around to get a better idea of what people are saying but people are just to cold to converse. I come across a guy talking into a mobile phone for the duration of the match and I assume he is giving a blow-by-blow account to some Far East betting syndicate or website.
Paul McGrath is there also and signing autographs along with Noel Mooney dishing out FAI keyrings and biros to the kids.
The second half begins with Wexford now applying the pressure aided by the wind. The pressure leads to a goal and the locals go ballistic!! While I was there as a neutral observer and Cork City fan I find myself going native and shouting for the local team… They are kids really and they are showing Ramblers a thing or two… They continue the dominance for the rest of the game and could have added to the score if they just had a bit more experience and guile..
At the final whistle the crowd are ecstatic but with the driving rain and cold everyone heads for the cars. The loud speaker appeals for patience while exiting the ground and it takes me a half hour to get onto the main road.
From being there I can see that they are a well-funded club from a facilities perspective but the team itself could do with an infusion of experience and guile from one or two Eircom League journey men. However, Mick Wallace is on record as saying he is going full steam ahead with players from the Wexford area so hopefully they will adapt quickly and to be honest, after a 2-2 draw with Monaghan and a 1-nil defeat of Cobh Ramblers they seem to be doing just that.
The whole team, club set-up and infrastructure seems to be the brain child of Mick Wallace and if anything ever happened to him I am not sure the team would survive. Also if results went a little askew I am not sure people would wait so patiently in the car park after the game to exit and this could upset the fly by night fan…
I got back to Tipp about 8:30 and watched the 9 o’clock RTE news as I was looking forward to hear some mention of the game on the National News program. Alas, I heard all about the Premiership but not a sausage of the Wexford/Ramblers game… For this I pay €157 on a TV Licence. I bought the Examiner (so called “National Newspaper”) and I struggled to find a mention of the game. I eventually found a small article giving a round up of all the Eircom league games just over an Ad for tickets and flights to a Sunderland V Barnsley game. The Ad was as big as the article. I despair….
Jumping into the car I set out for Wexford to attend the very first home game of Wexford Youths FC who entertained Cobh Ramblers that afternoon.
Not everyone can say they were there at the birth of a Football League club but I along with 2100 other souls have the honour.
It was a 2 hour journey from Tipp and difficult to find but I got there. The ground itself is outside Wexford Town, off a main road, which while visible from the main road, could only be accessed by driving along a narrow boreen.
The ground itself is well laid out. Plenty of car parking in the tarmacadamed ground but with a single narrow entrance I reckon I could be a while getting out after the game. I buy a ticket (€10) and programme (€3) which is a pretty good quality programme for a first attempt and will no doubt become a collectors item in years to come.
Plenty of stewards ensure I go through the temporary electronic turnstiles and enter the ground without hassle. To the right there is 500 seats set up on a temporary stand and three quarters of the standing area is newly tarmac’d with the roadside of the ground grassed.
Behind one of the goals there is a pretty impressive clubhouse that houses the dressing rooms and bar. A large glass frontage ensures a good view for the customers inside.
The pitch itself is like carpet and is perfectly lined and maintained. There are a number of all weather pitches also and they are built to a very high standard.
There are lots of jerseys on display and among the various premiership jerseys on display I see some other Eircom League enthusiasts in Waterford, Shelbourne, Bohemians, Bray and even Sligo tracksuits tops, scarves and hoodies… My Cork City scarf ensures I get a nod from other League of Ireland fanatics. It’s good to see them especially when SKY are showing some premiership game.. Wexford GAA jerseys are also visible.
The teams run onto the pitch and into a howling gale blowing from the north. Cobh win the toss and elect to play with the wind. Before kick off Mick Wallace, the man responsible for the whole show addresses the crowd. He tells us this team will be community based and asks for patience from the people of Wexford as there will undoubtedly be mistakes made and he hopes any errors will be quickly rectified. He takes his place by the dug out in shirtsleeves and I feel sorry for him as I have a hoodie/scarf/woolly hat/parka and I am still cold. Common sense prevails and he calls for a jacket. Pat Dolan is also in the dugout and I am impressed with the amount of weight he has shed since his Cork City days.
Cobh kick off and with a massive gale to their backs they dominate for the first 30 minutes. At one stage the Wexford keeper takes a kick out and the ball blows over the end line for a corner. Cobh have about 10 corners after the first 30 minutes which consists of the Cobh corner taker hitting the ball high and as far as the penalty spot and letting the wind do the rest of the work which nearly works for them on numerous occasions.
On 30 minutes Wexford make a break and with both the Ramblers keeper and Wexford attacker going for the one ball the attacker is upended and I am expecting a penalty and keeper sent off as he is last man back but the ref bottles it and gives a free out to Cobh. In the meantime Cobh’s manager is blowing a gasket with his players for not being five up…
Half time comes as there is a massive hailstorm and everyone is soaked and cold. Pretty girls start selling raffle tickets for 2 tickets to the Ireland V Wales game next week. The pretty smile ensures I buy 2!! I walk around to get a better idea of what people are saying but people are just to cold to converse. I come across a guy talking into a mobile phone for the duration of the match and I assume he is giving a blow-by-blow account to some Far East betting syndicate or website.
Paul McGrath is there also and signing autographs along with Noel Mooney dishing out FAI keyrings and biros to the kids.
The second half begins with Wexford now applying the pressure aided by the wind. The pressure leads to a goal and the locals go ballistic!! While I was there as a neutral observer and Cork City fan I find myself going native and shouting for the local team… They are kids really and they are showing Ramblers a thing or two… They continue the dominance for the rest of the game and could have added to the score if they just had a bit more experience and guile..
At the final whistle the crowd are ecstatic but with the driving rain and cold everyone heads for the cars. The loud speaker appeals for patience while exiting the ground and it takes me a half hour to get onto the main road.
From being there I can see that they are a well-funded club from a facilities perspective but the team itself could do with an infusion of experience and guile from one or two Eircom League journey men. However, Mick Wallace is on record as saying he is going full steam ahead with players from the Wexford area so hopefully they will adapt quickly and to be honest, after a 2-2 draw with Monaghan and a 1-nil defeat of Cobh Ramblers they seem to be doing just that.
The whole team, club set-up and infrastructure seems to be the brain child of Mick Wallace and if anything ever happened to him I am not sure the team would survive. Also if results went a little askew I am not sure people would wait so patiently in the car park after the game to exit and this could upset the fly by night fan…
I got back to Tipp about 8:30 and watched the 9 o’clock RTE news as I was looking forward to hear some mention of the game on the National News program. Alas, I heard all about the Premiership but not a sausage of the Wexford/Ramblers game… For this I pay €157 on a TV Licence. I bought the Examiner (so called “National Newspaper”) and I struggled to find a mention of the game. I eventually found a small article giving a round up of all the Eircom league games just over an Ad for tickets and flights to a Sunderland V Barnsley game. The Ad was as big as the article. I despair….