In 2011, Waterford crashed to a 21-point defeat against Tipperary in the Munster hurling final, conceding seven goals in the process. The victory margin was the same in this year's provincial decider, as the Premier clocked up an impressive 5-19 against their opponents.
Yet, five summers ago the Déise had the wherewithal to engineer a retrieval mission that saw them comfortably dispose of Galway at the All-Ireland quarter-final stage.
Derek McGrath and his troops will therefore be hoping that the collective will is there for another successful recovery mission when they face Wexford in this Sunday's quarter-final at Semple Stadium, throw in 2pm.
In many ways it's uncharted waters for McGrath. Aside from the defeat to Cork in the 2014 Munster quarter-final replay, he's never had to rake over the coals of a heavy defeat.
In advance of the Munster final on 10 July, hopes were high that Waterford could take home championship silverware and therefore signal their intent to land the bigger prize in September. It's now a case of trying to pick up the pieces and start afresh in what is a new competition.
"We have a very resilient bunch of lads that have been through a lot in the last few years"
McGrath readily admits that his side face a big challenge in trying to get the show back on the road.
Speaking to RTÉ Sport, he said: "The team and management put in a huge amount of work and preparation for the Munster final and to see it go so badly was hugely disappointing, but we just have to park that game now.
"We are now facing into a new championship, a new challenge. And that challenge is the Wexford game.
"We have a very resilient bunch of lads that have been through a lot in the last few years. We’d he hoping there'll be some sort of redemption in them and an upturn in performance come Sunday."
Three days after the scutching from Tipp, Waterford's U-21s had an emphatic win over Clare in the provincial semi-final and with many seniors on that panel, McGrath is hoping that positive outcome bodes well for the seniors this Sunday afternoon.
"To see 11 or 12 of our panel play so well on that Wednesday night showed a maturity that we are able to bounce back," he added.
"We’ll be hopeful that the knock-on effect of that win will see us do well against Wexford."
Sunday's quarter-final is a repeat of the Division 1 quarter-final between the sides from last April.
Waterford prevailed by the bare minimum over their Division 1B opponents at Wexford Park and McGrath is expecting another tight tussle.
"It’s a 50/50 game on Sunday," he predicted.
"That’s the reality of it. Whether, it’s hurling snobbery or not, but there isn’t that much of a chasm between 1A and 1B.
"Some day people might go with the adage that it’s all on the day. There is nothing between ourselves and Wexford and it was they who knocked us out of the championship two years ago.
"I’m looking forward to the game, rather than being apprehensive. We’ve been in three competitions so far.
"We were beaten in the final of the league and the Munster final. Now we’re in a new competition, with the chance to get to an All-Ireland semi-final. Getting there would be massive for our team."
The Waterford manager also had a fitness update on key forward Stephen Bennett.
"In the aftermath of the U-21 game, Stephen hasn’t been able to train since as he continues to recover from a hip injury. We are monitoring him very closely and hopefully he’ll be available for some part of it."
Watch live coverage of Wexford v Waterford on RTÉ Two and the RTÉ Player from 1.30pm on Sunday 24 July. Watch highlights of all the weekend's action on The Sunday Game on RTÉ Two from 9.30pm.
