Any good Dublin derived from winning the preliminary pool and qualifying for last year's provincial semi-final was atomised by Kilkenny's swingeing victory. This year Laois are in the happier position of facing a Wexford side far less assured and deadly than the All-Ireland champions were a summer ago.

Laois's emergence from the time tunnel at the end of their match with Dublin signified a great step forward for them but the trouble in Leinster is that too many counties' great steps fall far short of the next task.

At their best on a good day, maybe there'd be something here for Laois but take the absence of their best player Niall Rigney and throw in a host of injury troubles and it's hard to maintain a case for them. Wexford have been regrouping under the new management of Tony Dempsey. Results in the League were mixed but hardly more so than Limerick's.

Tomorrow will be the true monitor of progress - expect Wexford to show enough.