Wexford's Liam Coleman pictured at the launch of the Leinster SFC. Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile
By Cian O'Connell
"Probably every Division Four county would tell you this, but we don't feel that's where we belong," Liam Coleman says about the potential that exists in Wexford football.
Manager John Hegarty is instilling belief in Wexford footballers again. During his player career, Hegarty was involved in Wexford's rise. Something is stirring in the south east once more.
The Allianz Football League Division Four final loss to Limerick hurt, but significant progress has been made. Promotion attained ahead of Saturday's attractive Leinster SFC clash against Laois at Chadwicks Wexford Park. "Even if you look at our county, our infrastructure is brilliant," Coleman suggests.
"Look how successful the hurlers have been in the last 10-15 years. Then you look at that Wexford team, the late noughties, early teens, that's where we think we can get to, that's where we want to get to.
"We've had players, even in the last five to six years, all representing at Sigerson level. We know we have the talent, it's just been that consistency."
Keeping a core of players together is key according to Coleman. "You obviously had a successful team, and then after 2011-12, a lot of people retiring," he adds.
"There was just a void there that didn't get filled, and hopefully now John and his management team are putting the structures in place, and the county board are putting the structures in place to allow us, the players, to begin to develop properly."
The weekend defeat to Limerick was a setback, but the start of 2025 has been positive. "The league was obviously really, really good," Coleman remarks. "Couldn't have gone better actually, winning all the matches.
"We performed well and we got to rotate our squad a little bit, get more players in, get more players game time, which is obviously really important to manage a squad.
"One of the hardest things to do in Division Four is to manage a group of 35 to 40 lads, keep them happy, keep them interested, and then disappointing to finish the way it finished."
Liam Coleman is a key performer for Wexford. Photo by Michael P Ryan/Sportsfile
Coleman acknowledges that the Croke Park game didn't go as planned. "At the weekend we wouldn't be happy with how we played really," is Coleman's assessment.
"We conceded nearly as many goals as we conceded in the whole league in one match, which ultimately was the game. To be fair to Limerick, they got their goals at really important times, curbed our momentum twice there in the second half.
"Ultimately, we have to be disappointed at how we conceded them and then how we performed on the day. I don't know why that was. It was the first time a lot of us were in Croke Park. Maybe the occasion got the better of us.
"We were really unfortunate to lose Glen (Malone) in the warm-up. It was kind of a freak injury. Martin O'Connor was obviously a very good player and documented the effort he's put in this year to come back and play with us.
"He was sick, just a bug. Still had an unreal first half, but couldn't last the length. A disappointing end, but in a way it's good to have this weekend to roll straight into."
Hegarty's approach ensures Wexford are retaining players. The panel turnover has decreased recently which is vital. "To me, that's the reason why we've saw success this year," Coleman replies.
"It's because we've had consistency in personnel, first of all, and management. That's made it a lot easier for players to stick around.
"I have to give credit to the players as well. It's a brilliant group of players. Really bought into the project because there’s been a lot of disappointing days.
"For me, since I started playing, it's always been Division Four. We've had disappointing league campaigns, managers have changed, but the players have stayed consistent. Culturally, we've carried that too, which has been really nice to see and really good to see."
The next test is on home turf in the Leinster SFC when neighbours Laois visit Chadwicks Wexford Park.
