Wexford FC haven't had too much to smile about this season, so fighting back to get a 1-1 draw against promotion-hopefuls Finn Harps at Ferrycarrig Park on Friday evening will have brought a huge sense of satisfaction. Dean Kelly plundered an 80th m
Wexford FC haven't had too much to smile about this season, so fighting back to get a 1-1 draw against promotion-hopefuls Finn Harps at Ferrycarrig Park on Friday evening will have brought a huge sense of satisfaction.
Dean Kelly plundered an 80th minute equaliser for Damian Locke's men to earn them a welcome point, after Paddy McCourt had fired the Donegal side in front from the penalty spot.
Thomas Croke played a pivotal part in the leveller, as Kelly was quickest to react to tuck the ball away after the midfielder's stinging volley from the edge of the area was well saved by goalkeeper Ciarán Gallagher, and the Waterford native was happy and relieved in equal measures to finally get another point on the board after a five-game losing run.
“It's nice to get a result. We had good spells in the game and then after falling behind to the penalty we showed great character to get back involved. We have a young team and we're improving. We'll take that draw this evening. We got a little bit of luck at times but once there's only a goal in it you always have a chance and thankfully when we got the chance we took it,” said Croke.
Wexford FC have endured some painful nights at Ferrycarrig Park this season, shipping eight goals on two occasions, against Drogheda United and U.C.D.
Croke, who turns 27 next month, is one of the elder statesmen of the team and believes the young players around him just need time to develop and hopes those dreadfully dark evenings are behind them.
“We've a lot of young lads here that are only learning their trade. The First Division can be cruel at times and it's the job of some of the older lads here to help them through it. Every week the performances are getting better, so I think it's important that we don't get another heavy beating here at home and just keep improving,” he said.
One of those young guns, Aaron Dobbs, returned to the starting line-up against Harps after an injury lay-off and Croke says having his presence up front is a big plus for the Slaneysiders going forward.
“When you see him chasing down hopeless balls and putting lads under pressure, even to get us a throw or a corner-kick. It relieves the pressure at the back and it's great to have him back in the side,” he said.
Croke, who wore the captain's armband on Friday evening, is hoping Wexford can begin to find consistency and add to their points tally with some sort of regularity and with it build a firm foundation for the years ahead.
“We're hoping to kick on next week and take it one game at a time. This is a strange league, if you can string three or four good results together you don't know what could happen. It's more so about building a squad for the following year and making sure there's a club here in Wexford,” he said.
