Round-up: Weekend's Allianz FL D4 action
Carlow senior football team manager Joe Murphy. Photo by Thomas Flinkow/Sportsfile
Allianz Football League Division Four
Sunday
Wicklow 2-26 London 0-16
Antrim 2-20 Leitrim 1-15
Longford 1-15 Tipperary 0-18
Saturday
Carlow 1-26 Waterford 0-15
Wicklow moved into the promotion race with a hugely impressive 16 point victory over London at Aughrim on Sunday afternoon.
Oisin McConville’s side now lie on six points in second place in the league table, two points behind pace setters Carlow, who have won all four games to date.
Kevin Quinn hit 1-4 from play, while Eoin Darcy hit four points from play in a six point haul. Goalkeeper Mark Jackson weighed in with six points, knocking over three two pointers.
Shay Rafter was London’s main scoring threat, hitting five points from play on a day when their promotion hopes took a major blow.
For Antrim, there was relief as they gathered their first league points under new manager Mark Doran with an eight point victory in Leitrim.
Barry McNulty followed up his astonishing haul of six two-pointers in last weekend’s win over London with three more here (all in the second half), but it wasn’t enough as the Saffrons climbed off the bottom of the table.
Dominic McEnhill shot eight points for Antrim, who had John Finnegan sent off near the end. Antrim’s goals came from Conor Hand and Paddy McAleer.
The final game of the day saw Tipperary’s Sean O’Connor knock over a late two-pointer to claim a point for his side at Glennon Brothers Pearse Park.
That leaves Tipperary on four points, one behind Longford, who lie in third place, a point shy of Wicklow and three behind Carlow.
Longford half-time substitute Dylan Farrell hit 1-3, while O’Connor finished with six points, including four from play for Tipperary, while his team mate Cian Smith hit six points from play as part of an eight point tally.
Mike Solan's Longford are at home to Carlow next weekend and if they could grab a win there it would blow the promotion race wide open.
On Saturday, Carlow made it four wins out of four to surge clear at the top of Allianz Division Four as they had too much for Waterford at Netwatch Cullen Park
The key score in their 14 point win was Sean Murphy's 24th minute goal that sent them into a 1-9 to 0-4 lead and they never looked back after that.
For Waterford it was a fourth defeat in four games and if they had any hopes of a late surge to challenge for an unlikely promotion, those are now dead in the water.
Carlow’s remaining ties are Longford (away), London (home) and Leitrim (home) so Joe Murphy’s side are in pole position to win promotion to Division 3.
Colm Hulton is very much their man of the moment and he starred again, nailing four two-pointers from play, three of them coming up to the break, as he amassed eight points.
Chris Blake also hit eight points for Carlow, with six coming from dead balls.
Dermot Ryan once again led the charge for Waterford with six points, including three from play while Stephen Curry hit three from play in a five point haul.
