Down have wrapped up an immediate return to Division 2 with a game to spare, while Wexford will host Westmeath in a winner-takes-all clash next weekend to determine who will join them, although a draw would suffice for the visitors at Wexford Park.
The Mourne men finished strong in defeating Sligo 2-25 to 0-21 at Markievicz Park, with Pat Havern nabbing 1-10 in a fine display while Daniel Guinness kicked 0-6, including one two-pointer, all in the second half. Ceilum Doherty was first to raise a green flag for Down as they kept up their winning record in Division 3.
Westmeath also went well in Mullingar as they crushed Limerick 4-21 to 3-8 in a goal-heavy game in which there could have been more. The Shannonsiders trailed by a point at the break despite having played with the wind, and although Westmeath struggled to put their relegation-threatened opponents away, they finished the game with 1-9 to no reply, the goal coming from inspirational captain Ronan Wallace.
Meanwhile, Wexford had a noteworthy win over Clare in Ennis. Having led by 16 points at one stage, John Hegarty’s side had to withstand a strong Clare comeback to ultimately 1-23 to 2-17. Shane Doyle was the goalscorer for Wexford, before Clare followed up with second-half goals from Eoin Cleary and Mark McInerney, the latter coming from a penalty.
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On Saturday night in Enniskillen, Fermanagh picked up their first points of the campaign with a shock win over Laois, who lost midfielder Robert Tyrrell to a red card on the half-hour mark. Luke Flanagan and Darragh McGurn goaled for the Ernesiders, while Evan O’Carroll scored 1-6 for Laois.
Weekend results:
Clare 2-17 Wexford 1-23
Sligo 0-21 Down 2-25
Westmeath 4-21 Limerick 3-8
Fermanagh 2-13 Laois 1-14
