LIAM CAHILL says Tipperary are on the “right track” by blooding young players as they rose to the top of Division 1A with a six-point victory over relegation-threatened Wexford.
Darragh McCarthy’s second penalty in two starts secured the spoils as he unleashed an identical finish to his goal against Galway to secure back-to-back Premier wins.
His 1-7 led the way among 12 different Tipp scorers in what ultimately was a mediocre League encounter in front of 5,125 fans at Semple Stadium.
The Tipp boss said: “Darragh McCarthy is very young but he’s a capable player. Big credit to him, at 20-odd years of age, to be able to stand up there on that stage, both last week and again today.
“That’s what you can’t beat, giving players of that age and that potential those opportunities.
“It mightn’t be seen from the stands as anything major now but I guarantee you down the road it’s big because it allows that player to really believe in himself.
“And we’re on the right track with the majority of these younger fellas that are coming through.”
With bigger challenges to come, starting away to Limerick on Sunday, Cahill remains focused on the lessons to be learned for their championship opener against the Munster holders.
He added: “We don’t have to really prove anything to anybody, only ourselves,” he said of their League ambitions.
“We’re very much aware of arriving towards the end of the League with a good settled team, regardless of where we are in the table.
“The 20th of April against Limerick is the ultimate target.”
The full-back line proved Tipp’s most impressive combination between Michael Breen, full-back Eoghan Connolly, and Robert Doyle, making his first start.
They didn’t allow Wexford a sniff of goal while outscoring the visiting full-forward line from play. Connolly notched two points from inside his own half and Breen tagged on one more.
Their midfield were also effective with Craig Morgan winning the penalty and Willie Connors matching his three-point haul against the Tribesmen.
Tipp led throughout the first hour without ever burning off the visitors.
They were 0-12 to 0-8 ahead at half-time having carved out two goal chances. Sticky Wexford defending denied them in both instances as Eoin Ryan hooked Jake Morris and Richie Lawlor hooked Morgan.
Those two met again for the penalty incident as Morgan was taken down by Lawlor. McCarthy stepped up and fired it to that familiar bottom right-hand corner.
Keith Rossiter made five changes from Wexford’s heavy defeat to Cork and will be most pleased with how his young team fought to the very end, tagging on four consecutive points in stoppage time.
Free-taker Cian Byrne finished with 0-7 while debutant Darren Codd and Jack Redmond, on his first start, stood out.
Rossiter said: “The performance last weekend didn’t justify the work the players had put in,”
“It was like a first round of a Walsh Cup type of match from us. We were running over balls, mishandling balls, misplacing passes, not coming off the shoulder, not doing support play.
“It was like we’d just returned after Christmas. The players themselves weren’t happy and I wasn’t happy.
“Today was about getting a bit of momentum, getting a bit of fight back into it, supporting each other, getting the handling right, and I think we did that.”
He will hope to get at least one of Lee Chin, Damien Reck, or Cathal Dunbar back on the field for the visit of Kilkenny to Wexford Park on Saturday.
After a losing start, Rossiter isn’t fixated on the relegation battle.
“I’m not worried at all about it. We’re trying to rebuild a squad, find new players, and whatever way the results go, the results go.
“Of course, I want to win every game and I’d be disappointed getting beat but I want performances.”
Tipperary 1-22 Wexford 0-19
TIPPERARY: R Shelly; M Breen 0-1, E Connolly 0-2, R Doyle; S Kennedy, B McGrath, G O’Halloran 0-1; C Morgan 0-1, W Connors 0-3; A Tynan, A Ormond 0-1, J Keller; J Forde 0-1, D McCarthy 1-7 (1-0p, 0-6f), J Morris 0-2.
Subs: O O’Donoghue 0-1 for Keller h-t, J McGrath 0-1 for Ormond 46 mins, C Bowe for Forde 51, M Corcoran for Kennedy 59, J Ryan 0-1 for Tynan 65.
WEXFORD: M Fanning 0-2 (2f); E Ryan, S Donohoe, N Murphy; R Lawlor 0-1, C Foley, C McGuckin; C Hearne 0-1, David Codd; Darren Codd 0-2, J Redmond 0-3 (1f), T Kinsella; Cian Byrne 0-7 (6f), S Casey, C Flood 0-1.
Subs: J O’Connor for Kinsella 34 mins, C Byrne-Dunbar 0-1 for David Codd 39, M Dwyer for Flood 51, S Roche 0-1 for Casey 61, Cillian Byrne for Cian Byrne 64.
Referee: J Murphy (Limerick).
