Allianz Football League Division Two

**CORK 1-10 DOWN 0-13 **

By Denis Hurley at Pairc Ui Rinn

An injury-time equaliser from Jerome Johnston helped Down to earn a drawn with Cork at Páirc Uí Rinn on Sunday, thus avoiding a second successive relegation.

The Mourne Men trailed by three points with just 10 minutes left, but they refused to wilt and Ryan Johnston’s point was followed by one from his brother Jerome from a 45 in the 69th minute.

While another chance from a 45 was wasted, Down were given another opportunity from way out on the left, with Jerome Johnston producing a wonderful effort to ensure a share of the spoils.

Éamonn Burns’ visitors only led this game once, after Jerome Johnston’s free in the seventh minute opened the scoring, but even before that, Down had had three wides and would finish the game with a total tally of 14 stray efforts.

Cork didn’t sparkle either, though. Colm O’Neill finished with five points for Peadar Healy’s side while Ruairí Deane scored their first goal since the Fermanagh game midway through the campaign, but not for the first time, they allowed a lead to slip.

The goal came in the 33rd minute, just after Ryan Johnston had cut Cork’s lead to two points, 0-6 to 0-4. Paul Kerrigan’s pass was ideal to find the run of Deane from midfield and he nicely sidestepped Michael Cunningham in the Down goal.

However, Cunningham, with a free, got the final score of the hall and Down added three more on the resumption, from Barry O’Hagan, Caolán Mooney and Shay Millar, to cut the lead to a point.

Cork looked to have given themselves breathing space once more with a trio of scores from O’Neill, Kerrigan and Deane, but they couldn’t push on and Down made them pay.

Scorers for Cork: Colm O’Neill 0-6 (4fs), Ruairí Deane 1-1, Paul Kerrigan 0-2, John O’Rourke 0-1.

Scorers for Down: Jerome Johnston 0-5 (4fs, 145), Ryan Johnston, Caolán Mooney 0-2 each, Darragh O’Hanlon (free), Shay Millar, Barry O’Hagan, Michael Cunningham (f) 0-1 each.

**CORK: **Ken O’Halloran; Michael Shields, Tom Clancy (Clonakilty), Kevin Crowl1ey; Colm O’Driscoll, James Loughrey, Stephen Cronin; Alan O’Connor, Ruairí Deane; Kevin O’Driscoll, John O’Rourke, Ian Maguire; Colm O’Neill, Peter Kelleher, Paul Kerrigan.

Subs: Aidan Walsh for O’Connor (half-time), Donal Óg Hodnett for Kelleher (46), Barry O’Driscoll for Maguire (48), Jamie O’Sullivan for Clancy (53), John McLoughlin for Shields (57), Donncha O’Connor for O’Rourke (70).

**DOWN: **Michael Cunningham; Darren O’Hagan, Brendan McArdle, Ryan McAnallen; Darragh O’Hanlon, Conall McGovern, Jonathan Flynn; Caolán Mooney, Peter Turley; Kevin McKernan, Conor Maginn, Ryan Johnston; Barry O’Hagan, Jerome Johnston, Shay Millar.

Subs: Seán Dornan for O’Hagan (46), Joe Murphy for Flynn (51), Mark Poland for Maginn (64), Alan Davidson for Millar (64).

REFEREE: James Molloy (Galway).