Wexford hurling manager Liam Dunne cast doubt over his future with the senior panel after their defeat to Waterford in the All-Ireland quarter-final this afternoon.
Wexford showed very few signs of threatening an underwhelming Deise side and were beaten by 10 points at Semple Stadium.
Speaking after the game, he hinted at stepping down from his position after being involved in the county for so long and when asked if he would be the man to take the team into next year's hurling Championship, his answer was simple.
"I don't know, I'm there five years," he told Off The Ball's Dave McIntyre. "I went to a county board meeting last year and there wasn't one club opposed to putting me back in, just silence.
"I don't know really [if I'll be here next year]... It's for another day. I've been involved for the last five years and was with Oulart the Ballagh for three years before that. I was with the Wexford minor team for two years and with the Wexford juveniles for two years before that again. That was just after I retired from 16 years with Wexford.
"If anyone deserved a rest and a break... Maybe the county board might send me on a holiday, I'd take it. I've given it everything I can and we're introducing new things all the time.
"We got a lot of sucker punches this year, a lot of blows. I have to give the lads great credit because they've given me everything they have. Some of them guys will be back next year and they'll push it on whether I'm with them or not.
"As I said to lads inside, we're building a foundation There's a lot of young guys and there's a very young panel that is there."
Liam Dunne shakes hands with Waterford boss Derek McGrath after the final whistle. Image: ©INPHO/Tommy Grealy
With regards to today's performance, Dunne put it down to his side being beaten by a "better team".
"We ran out of bodies and ran out of legs, I think to be honest. Waterford put us on the back foot from the very start. They played with the breeze and took their points well. There was a good kick in us in the second half and we got it back to five points, but then they pushed it on again.
"To be fair to Waterford, they took their Munster final defeat and came back all guns blazing today. We were beaten by a better team so we can have no complaints. They were far superior, they could have had us pulverised by half-time.
"Sometimes when the team puts pressure on you and you end up on the back foot. Waterford were so dominant for the first 25 minutes of that game. You were grasping at straw really... We need to keep the scoreboard ticking over to keep up in the game."
He did give credit to his players this afternoon despite the defeat and said that the departure of members from the senior panel impacted on the planning and preparation for the season.
"I can't fault the guys, we don't have that strength in depth. I'm pulling guys in for wherever I can at the moment. But when you're losing some of the top calibre players that you have, the further you go in the Championship and the higher the stakes... We were found out today."
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