Inspired by veteran midfielder Dermot Earley, the Lilywhites packed too much punch for a Wexford side that badly missed ace attacker Matty Forde.

Goals from Alan Smith and James Kavanagh laid the foundations for victory, and McGeeney will be encouraged by the fact that his side racked up an impressive 2-12 scoreline despite the fact that top scorer Johnny Doyle contributed just one point.

Kildare established a foothold from the very start, with Earley and Daryl Flynn giving them the edge in midfield.

James Kavanagh and Padraig O’Neill steered over early points, and they were given a massive boost in the ninth minute when Alan Smith got in for a goal.

He guided the ball into the bottom corner of Anthony Masterson’s net after Ronan Sweeney had delivered the killer pass inside.

Suddenly it all came good for a Wexford side that had failed to score in the opening 14 minutes.

They registered four points in as many minutes, with Shane Cullen getting their first from a simple free.

Midfielder Eric Bradley charged through for a point, and Ciaran Lyng curled over a beauty from far out on the right wing, and moments later he could have had a goal, but opted to tap the ball over the bar.

The sides were level by the 23rd minute when Cullen converted again, but the Lilywhites got back on track, outscoring their opponents by five to one in the final 12 minutes of the half.

It took Johnny Doyle more than half an hour to get his first score of the contest, and a second for Flynn sent Kieran McGeeney’s men in with a 1-6 to 0-6 interval lead.

Veteran midfielder Earley led by example with two points in the early stages of the second half, and climbed majestically for a wonderful fetch to set up a score for Smith.

And it was Kavanagh who took Doyle’s pass to bang in the second Lily goal in the 50th minute.

Wexford did show resistance, with Shane Cullen steering over three frees, but they never looked like making the major breakthrough that would rescue their challenge.

However, goalscorers Kavanagh and Smith still had an eye for the posts, and they added to their tallies with well-taken points to keep Kildare comfortably ahead.

Lyng’s class still shone for the Slaneysiders, but it was Kildare who had the quality, the finishing power and the work ethic that carried them through.

Kildare: T Corley, H Mc Grillen, M Foley, A MacLochlainn, M O’ Flaherty, B Flanagan, E Bolton, D Flynn (0-1), D Earley (0-2), R Sweeney, P O Neill (0-2), J Kavanagh (1-3), A Smith (1-3), E Callaghan, J Doyle (0-1)

Subs: D Brennan for MacLochlainn (h-t), R Kelly for Flynn (53), E O’Flaherty for Doyle (63), A Rainbow for M O’Flaherty (66).

Wexford: A Masterson, B Malone, P Wallace, G Molloy, C Morris, D Murphy, A Doyle, B Doyle, E Bradley (0-1), A Morrissey, R Barry, C Byrne, C Lyng (0-5, 1f), S Cullen (0-5, 5f), PJ Banville.

Subs: N Murphy for Byrne (28), S Roche for A Doyle (45), D Fogarty for B Doyle (50), P Colfer for Wallace (65).

Referee: C Reilly (Meath).