By John Harrington

It might still be the honeymoon period, but so far the union of Davy Fitzgerald and the Wexford hurling team looks like a marriage made in heaven.

Guiding Wexford to promotion from Division 1B at the first time of asking was a serious achievement, and has really energised the whole hurling community in the county.

The key to any great relationship is passion, and that’s why Wexford legend Tom Dempsey believes Davy Fitzgerald has hit it off so well with the Slaney-siders.

“I think people underestimate Wexford as a hurling county,” Dempsey told GAA.ie.

“There's an incredible passion for it. And when passion meets passion, they're good bed-fellows.

“Wexford people are so impressed with Davy's passion, and I think Davy as even maybe been taken a bit aback himself by the amount of passion that he's seeing in Wexford.

“Down here they live for a hurling team to follow. And that's with all due respect of football, but they do live for their hurling and a hurling team to follow. I'd say Davy was impressed by that and he may have even been a bit moved by that.

“Wexford people like animated people on the sideline, and they really like what they see from Davy because he clearly has such a passion for what he's doing. And I think that's why the marriage has worked so well so far.”

Fitzgerald’s commitment to the cause of Wexford hurling has also impressed everyone in the county.

Not only does he travel over and back from Clare for county team training sessions, he’s also made an extra effort to connect with the Wexford hurling community in other ways.

“Yeah, he's worked really hard, in fairness,” says Dempsey. “He's doing great work out in the community. I was at an event in Taghmon there the other night and Davy was at it too.

“He really has hit the county like a thunderbolt really and it's really been good for hurling.

“He got the team very fit, very early and targeted the first two games which was a good idea. There's a real vibe in the county now. The Conor McDonalds, Lee Chins, and Liam Ryans are all now the sporting heroes for the kids in Wexford again.

“There's an incredible buzz around the place and that will be very obvious by the crowd of Wexford supporters that will travel next Sunday to Nowlan Park. The support is back in a huge way and there's a great atmosphere around the place.”

As much as Dempsey himself has been buoyed by Wexford’s rising fortunes under Fitzgerald, past experience has taught him not to get too carried away.

The all too familiar long shadow of Kilkenny looms on Sunday, and no team knows how take the wind out of Wexford sails like the Cats do.

The 2015 Leinster semi-final at Nowlan Park is still a fresh memory for Wexford fans. They went there quietly believing they could turn over the reigning All-Ireland champions, but ended up being ruthlessly crushed by a 24-point margin.

So even though Wexford have built up impressive momentum so far under Fitzgerald, Dempsey is wary of the possibility the team could run into a black and amber wall on Sunday.

“You always worry, we've gone to Kilkenny over the years and been knocked backwards,” he says.

“I think what people need to very carefully realise is that we haven't become All-Ireland winners overnight. Certainly we have progressed, the foundations are there and we’re happy with how we’re developing, but there’s a long way to go yet.

“There's no team that has inflicted more damage to our morale more than Kilkenny. But I think even Kilkenny people that there's a little bit of hope back in Wexford.

“I think that suits both counties too, because everyone in Wexford and Kilkenny were brought up in the '70s, '80s, and '90s on a diet of big Leinster Final clashes between the two counties.

“We didn't win too many of them, but the atmosphere at those games were every bit as good as anything you'd get in Munster.

“There's a great, great buzz and a feeling around Wexford at the moment. Again, I just hope we give a good performance on Sunday and I really do think that we will, I think we’ll be very competitive.”

Dempsey is encouraged by the fact that Fitzgerald hasn’t just made Wexford a physically fitter team, he seems to have toughened them mentally as well.

In both League games against Galway and Limerick they found themselves in arrears in the second-half, yet they had the resolve to find a way to win both matches.

“I think one of things that these lads seem to be developing is a never say die attitude,” says Dempsey.

“In a situation like they were in when they went six points down against Galway and playing against the wind, in previous years we might have tended to fall completely out of games.

“Whereas now it looks like they have the ability to reinvent themselves through the game, and that suggests they have a lot of belief.

“You'd have to excuse us for being fearful going to to Nowlan Park against Kilkenny, but, having said that, Kilkenny aren't the force they were, and that's the truth of it.

“I think we need to go up there and try to attack them. I don't bet, but if you were to look at the bookies odds I presume we'll be quite considerable outsiders.

“Regardless of the result on Sunday, the focus was always on getting promotion out of Division 1B up to Division 1A and that's been achieved.

“Our season shouldn't be judged on Sunday's result. Whatever happens we need to take a very balanced view of it.”

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