Wicklow and Wexford stormed to their first league wins this weekend while Sligo continued their good momentum. Laois continued to look best in class as Leitrim slipped up in Leinster.
Wicklow 1-16 London 1-9 @ Echelon Park
Oisin McConville’s Wicklow finally got over the line with their first win in the bottom division on Saturday. The Garden County welcomed London to Aughrim where a solid opening half would contribute to their eventual seven point win.
Still, the hosts led just 1-6 to 0-6 at the interval and conceded an early penalty to the Exiles, which Mark Jackson duly put away. With the breeze at their backs, Wicklow stayed ahead despite several missed goal chances. Late points from Kevin Quinn (1-3) , Dean Healy (0-2) and substitute Cian O’Sullivan (0-1) put the tie to bed in Wicklow’s favour.
Sligo 0-21 Waterford 0-13 @ Markievicz Park
Sligo have collected their second win after they breezed past Waterford on Sunday. The Yeats County will be well in contention for promotion provided they can keep their momentum going forward.
The home side led 0-9 to 0-4 heading into the break and continued to bound ahead as the second half played out. The evergreen Sean Carrabine (0-8) was the stand-out for the Yeats County while Niall Murphy and Patrick O’Connor chipped in with two points each.
Dermot Ryan was impressive for Waterford, the wing-back tallied 0-5 in the game, and other players came into the game late on. However, the Deise are yet to register a league point and look set to finish the league as the worst senior side in Ireland for another year.
Carlow 2-08 Laois 1-17 @ Netwatch Cullen Park
Laois continued to look like the strongest side in the fourth tier after they overcame Carlow by a six point margin. Despite their sizeable win, the O’Moore County had to overturn a five point deficit in the second half.
Scores from Brian Byrne (0-2) , Evan O’Carroll (0-3), Paul Kingston (1-10) and Mark Barry (0-2) saw Laois halt the Carlow ascendancy and take the lead from their opponents.
Late in the game Byrne was sent off for Laois alongside Shane Buggy of Carlow. O’Carroll was also red-carded in the final moments but the lead of 13-man Laois was never in trouble at that stage.
Wexford 0-19 Leitrim 0-15 @ Chadwicks Wexford Park
A late series of Wexford points saw the Leinster side halt Leitrim in their tracks on Sunday. The Ridge County’s unbeaten run was looking likely to be extended only for Wexford to show serious quality in the last moments.
Wexford led 0-08 to 0-07 at the break and extended their lead to three soon after play resumed. The visitors would comeback through the class of star forward Keith Beirne (0-10) and soon led by two points on the hour.
However, the home side were not content to go another round without a league win and the game was level four minutes later. Points from Niall Hughes, Mark Rossiter, Brian Molloy and Cian Hughes saw the Slaneysiders score five of the last six points to secure victory.
