Lee Chin: 'You just try and win what you can.. but yeah, time is slipping by'

“You get subtle reminders every now and again that time is passing. Time waits for nobody. That is life, and you get out of it what you can while you're here. You just try and win what you can and be as competitive as possible. But yeah, time is slipping by.” 

Chin is 31 years old. This is his 12th season of inter-county hurling. The Wexford captain is playing better than ever, scoring 3-65 in six championship matches so far. But he is still roving the same peaks and valleys. Wexford started the season on a high. The Leinster championship quickly brought them to a familiar low.

A draw against Dublin and shock defeat away to Antrim had Keith Rossiter’s outfit under severe pressure before their round 3 clash with Galway. Back-to-back victories had them in the running for a spot in the provincial decider. Kilkenny’s one-point victory meant Wexford had to settle for a place in the preliminary quarter-final where they overcame Laois.

“Ultimately the Kilkenny game was a Leinster semi-final. And that is the way we viewed it. We haven't been there back in the Leinster final since 2019 so it was difficult. Look, you had a one game takes all I suppose to get there, and we didn't manage to get there.

“But coming down the road from Antrim, you would have taken being in the All-Ireland Series at this stage, so we're still grateful that we're here.” While the inconsistency is irritating, there is usually on explanation for it. They can see it on the screen.

“The thing that kind of hits us most is when we don't perform, we're able to go back to the drawing board and we're able to see our numbers in terms of our tackle count, our shot selections or how many shots we got off, distance covered and things like that.

“The days we get bet all those numbers are below what we had set our targets on. So, we just have to try and focus on those type of things. Obviously, they vary through each opposition.” There is always context. Take the 26-point triumph over Carlow.

“There are other days where you look at your KPIs and they mightn't actually tell the whole tale either because, let's say against Carlow in particular, we didn't hit our tackle count, but we had most of the possession of the ball, so you can't always depend on them either.

“But they are the foundation that you're always going back to and a majority of the days that that we are beaten, those numbers are not in green. Those are things you need to really focus on.” Chin hurled with his manager Rossiter previously. They lined out in the same team in 2014 as Wexford overcame then All-Ireland champions Clare in an extra-time thriller. Now he is part of a cohort providing a balance to the recent youthful injection.

The Faythe Harriers man is the heart of a group determined to do more. ‘Evolution’ is the name given to his hurl by maker Philip Doyle of L'Ash Go Leor. Matthew O’Hanlon is Combat. Jack O’Connor is The Ranger. Diarmuid O’Keeffe is Sniper. They are all conscious of the ticking clock. Led by Chin, they are all motivated by it.

“I suppose when you're in a position where you haven't won much at all, every year when you come back you have that little bit more in you to try and push for something because you know that you haven't got long left. Obviously, that can be a driving factor.

“But you still have to gather a panel and you still have to get lads right. The young lads, they have to grow up very quickly to try and give you a hand with regards to what you're trying to achieve.

“Look, everything at the moment is very enjoyable and we are just hoping that we can hit a bit of form in the next number of weeks.”