Last year's meeting is an altogether more relevant touchstone. Not that anyone expected the Wexford forwards to have either the umpires or the crowd's senses working overtime after the 0-9 to 0-8 grind against Offaly in the semi-final, but we did fancy that their backs would make it hard for Kilkenny. They didn't; the winners hit 1-23.

Which returns us to a comment made here on the morning of the league semi-final: Wexford have, in an inversion of affairs in the late 1980s/early 1990s, too many nice defenders and nowhere near enough with a touch of the divil in them. One of the goals they gave away to Dublin was farcical;

whatever about his discomfort when turned, Declan Ruth must manage the bread-and-butter task of cutting out the dropping ball.

Wexford won't outhurl Kilkenny. They categorically won't outmuscle them. Achieving the balance will be the trick. At least the 2-14 they landed against Dublin represents a loftier base camp for a tilt at Everest than last year's equivalent total against Offaly. Let us hope we see the Stephen Nolan of the league quarter-final, he who ate alive a succession of Galway defenders, rather than the Stephen Nolan of the semi-final.

Along with the attendance, the TV spectators and latterly the Offaly under-21s, Kilkenny were among the beneficiaries of John McIntyre's team's success in keeping the pedal to the metal until the far side of half-time in Portlaoise last month; they'll be sharper today as a result than they might have been. The championship structure being what it is, the holders have the luxury here of employing Croke Park as a laboratory, as they did a year ago when retreading Eddie Brennan at right-half forward (it worked) and handing Cha Fitzpatrick (right) the number 11 jersey (it didn't).

Rather like Richie Power in 2005, it looks as though TJ Reid will take another year to adapt to the pitch of intercounty hurling. Such an outcome will do neither him nor his county any harm in the long run, but it does leave Kilkenny strapped for forward options.

Still, this is the kind of game in which Eoin Larkin could prosper.

Either way, there's only one winner.

Verdict Kilkenny

KILKENNY PJ Ryan; M Kavanagh, N Hickey, J Tyrrell; T Walsh, B Hogan, JJ Delaney; J Fitzpatrick, M Fennelly; W O'Dwyer, H Sheffiin, E Larkin; E Reid, M Comerford, E Brennan WEXFORD D Fitzhenry; P Roche, D Ruth, M Travers; R Kehoe, K Rossiter, C Kenny; D Lyng, E Quigley; M Jacob, D O'Connor, S Nolan; N Higgins (c), D Stamp, R Jacob