Sligo overcame a late spirited Leitrim comeback in Carrick on Shannon to secure top spot in the division as Oisin McConville’s Wicklow joined them in the league final with their victory in Waterford.
Laois and Leitrim will face another season in Division 4 as they missed out despite a six goal haul for the midlanders in London.
Leitrim 2-11 Sligo 1-15
Sligo just about got over the line with two injury time points from Patrick O’Connor and Finnian Cawley gave them a single point victory against their promotion rivals. Leitrim had trailed their neighbours by eight points with less than twenty minutes on the clock.
When Pat Spillane finished a fine team move to the net early in the second half it looked like the game might be to far for the home side.
Shortly afterwards two phenomenal saves from goalkeeper Nevin O’Donnell looked to keep the score down for Leitrim but an excellent Barry McNulty goal gave the huge home crowd hope with quarter of an hour left. Things got even better when Aidan Flynn scored a second goal off the bottom of the near post in a goalmouth scramble.
But the experienced Sligo side held their nerve and found the two points required to secure the win and the league final place and promotion it offered as a reward.
Waterford 0-8 Wicklow 2-8
The Garden county as they knew depending on results elsewhere they could be celebrating with a victory in Fraher Field and Wicklow burst into an early lead with two quickfire points which would have settled some of the nerves.
The game proceed in a tit for tat scoring pattern as neither side really got momentum going until Wicklow added two scores in first half injury time to restore that two point advantage at the break.
The low scoring affair was blown open when Dean Healy found the net with a quarter of an hour on the clock to put five points between the sides. Cillian McDonald’s goal with five minutes remaining was enough to put Wicklow in the driving seat and with the late defeat for Leitrim a place in the league final and Division 3 for 2024.
London 2-7 Laois 6-6
Laois made the journey to London knowing even a win might not be enough to secure a top two finish in the league. With fifteen minutes on the clock it looked like there might be difficulty even managing that with London finding the only three scores of the game.
A Brian Byrne goal got them back into the game but it was two goals in two minutes which would define this game. Evan O’Carroll and Eoin Lowry netted to open up a five point lead for Billy Sheehan’s side which they never like giving up.
They would eventually hit London for six with Padraig Kirwan, Mark Barry and Brian Daly adding their names to the goal scorers list. Unfortunately with results elsewhere they were pipped to promotion by Wicklow on head to head results.
Wexford 1-16 Carlow 0-13
Played on Saturday evening with both sides out of contention for League final places. Wexford started slowly with Darragh Foley scoring twice for Carlow but the home side hit five unanswered points in a ten minute golden spell before Carlow hit their own purple patch to level matters on twenty minutes.
Wexford forward Ben Brosnan found his range hitting his 3rd and 4th scores to leave two between them at the half time. Carlow started the second half the same as they opened the game with two scores which levelled matters.
Wexford managed to get and keep their noses ahead through the second half before a late injury time Eoghan Nolan goal confirmed Wexford as the winners as Wexford paid the price for two late black cards for Seanie Bambrick and Ross Dunphy.
Final Whistle
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