Round-up: Allianz FL D4 action

Allianz Football League Division Four

Carlow 2-15 (2-3-9) Waterford 0-12 (0-2-8)

Tipperary 3-13 (3-4-5) Longford 1-18 (1-2-14)

London 1-20 (1-2-16) Wicklow 0-21 (0-1-19)

Wexford 0-17 (0-2-13) Limerick 0-13 (0-1-11)

London put last week’s heavy defeat to Wexford behind them and dealt a hammer blow to Wicklow’s promotion chances when late points from Shay Rafter and Matt Moynihan nudged them over the line against the Garden County in Ruislip.

Wicklow, who were hampered by the lack of a game in round one, didn’t show any effects as they racked up a five-point lead in five minutes, kicked off by a Dean Healy two-pointer.

London needed a lifeline and they got it when Seán Tucker flicked the ball to the net with seven minutes played. Two points from Kevin Quinn in response hinted at Wicklow sailing through that hurdle, but London suddenly hit a rich vein of form with points from Daniel Clarke, Kristian Healy and Ciaran Diver, and now, for the first time in 2025, Michael Maher’s side were playing with confidence and style.

The contest continued to ebb and flow with both sides enjoying periods of supremacy, with London first getting on level terms in the 56^th minute after two Patrick Dolan frees and a Seán Tucker point made it 1-12 to 0-15.

Twice Wicklow pointed and were reeled in, twice London took the lead only to concede an equaliser, and in a dramatic period of stoppage time, Dean Healy’s score nudged Wicklow one up before London somehow hit four in added time to secure their win, including those points from Rafter and Moynihan in the sixth extra minute.

Wexford are the league leaders now, but they had a much tougher outing in Rathkeale today, only wrapping up their win in the last 10 minutes when they hit the last three scores of the game.

Emmet Rigter was the star of the show in the first half, kicking four points from play as Limerick took a one-point lead into the dressing room. With wind set to favour Wexford after half-time however, that was always unlikely to be enough, and so it proved.

Kevin O’Grady and James Naughton traded points after half-time, but two two-pointers, one from a Seán Nolan free and another from Páraic Hughes gave Wexford a glimmer of a lead, and they kept their noses in front to the finish line.

Mark Russell nailed a two-pointer from out on the sideline in the third minute of stoppage time to ensure that Tipperary edged out a Division Four thriller against Longford in Clonmel this afternoon, continuing their solid start to the season.

Damp and windy conditions didn’t prevent these two sides from playing out a fantastic contest that swung over and back throughout the game. Matthew Carey and Oran Kenny struck from distance to give Longford an early lead, Seán O’Connor and Luke Boland found the net for Tipperary in the space of 60 seconds midway through the first half, and Longford rallied again to lead by 0-11 to 2-3 by the interval, with Aaron Farrell kicking 0-4 after coming off the bench due to an early injury to Dylan Farrell.

Cathal McCabe found the net to stretch Longford’s lead after the break but the first of Russell’s two two-pointers gave Tipp life, and Michael Freaney’s goal put the game right back in the melting pot, setting up a dramatic finish that culminated in a Cian Smith free and Russell’s outstanding strike pushing Tipp over the line.

It was nip and tuck in the early stages of Carlow’s trip to Dungarvan too, but once Ross Dunphy met a high ball from Conor Doyle with a decisive fist to hit the Waterford net, Carlow always had just enough breathing room to ensure that Shane Curran enjoyed a first competitive win as manager of the Dolmen County.

Alan Dunwoody pointed for the home side to leave a goal in it, 1-11 to 0-11 with an hour gone, but Carlow surged home, with Kevin Murphy’s stoppage time goal, fisted to the net with his first touch after coming on, crowning a 2-15 to 0-12 win.