A point from free-taker Darren Coffey in the third minute of injury time gave Wicklow a share of the spoils in this disappointing Section D clash with Roscommon at Hyde Park yesterday. In Roscommon's second draw of the new campaign, substitute Jason Neary threw them a lifeline with two points to level the match in the closing stages before Eddie Lohan looked to have earned them a dramatic last-gasp victory when he landed a point in the second minute of injury time.
However, Wicklow swept upfield from the kick-out for Coffey to score the fully deserved equaliser.
Wicklow began brightly and were 0-2 in front from Coffey frees before Roscommon got through for something of a freak goal after six minutes. Left corner forward Derek Duggan rose to try and keep a poorly struck Eddie Lohan free from going wide and could hardly believe his luck when the ball crept between the post and Wicklow goalkeeper Tommy Murphy.
That goal helped Roscommon to a 1-3 to 0-4 half-time lead but after Coffey and Lohan exchanged points, Wicklow got back on level terms thanks to scores from Conan Daye and Mick Murtagh, before forging ahead with a fine point from Murtagh and another Coffey free.
Badly beaten at midfield and shooting a string of wides during a crucial 10-minute spell of the second half, Roscommon looked in real trouble until Neary was sprung from the substitutes' bench and scored twice within two minutes.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/YVIRIOZQ35EWRPZXR27KGMO6YU.png)