Cavan beat Down as Fermanagh draw and Antrim defeated

BBC News

01-03-2025

Down were plunged into further relegation danger as they suffered a damaging 1-20 to 1-18 defeat to Cavan at Kingspan Breffni in Division Two.In Division Three, Fermanagh fought back from five points down heading into stoppage time to snatch a 0-19 draw with Sligo in Enniskillen to move ahead of Antrim, who fell to a 0-22 to 1-17 loss away to Laois.Saturday evening's Ulster derby felt like a must-win game for Down following back-to-back defeats, leaving them only ahead of a pointless Westmeath.Cavan, meanwhile, had put together consecutive wins to ease their relegation concerns. Raymond Galligan's side kept their noses in front throughout the first half despite Miceal Rooney's 15th-minute goal for the Mourne County.A converted mark from Gearoid McKiernan, after points from Cormac O'Reilly and Oisin Kiernan, meant the Breffnimen led 0-12 to 1-6 at the short whistle.The second half was very much tit-for-tat with Down nudging ahead after a Pat Havern two-pointer was followed by a white flag raised courtesy of Daniel Guinness.When Padraig Faulkner netted on the 45th minute it was Cavan in front once more but the hosts wouldn't lead again until eight minutes from time.McKiernan struck from beyond the arc at a vital time and after Down equalised once more a pair of frees from Oisin Brady squeezed Galligan's men over the line.Conor Laverty's side stay seventh with two games remaining and could be all but relegated by the next time they take to the field at home to Westmeath before what looks to be a daunting trip to take on promotion-chasing Monaghan in Clones.Cavan can start looking up the table themselves with an outside chance of making it into the top two.
Fermanagh and Sligo produced a back-and-forth opening period with a David Quinn two-pointer the difference at the break as Sligo led 0-8 to 0-7 in Brewster Park.The Yeats County reeled off six successive scores after the break to establish control. Niall Murphy, who hit 0-4 on the night, was among the six different scorers. Fionan O'Brien and Darragh McGurn replied for the Erne County but still they trailed by five as the clock ticked into added time. Step forth the talismanic Garvan Jones to boom over from beyond the arc before Sean Cassidy matched his effort and goalkeeper Sean McNally levelled from play in the dying embers.Antrim are now just three points above the Division Three drop zone having played a game more than Sligo. Andy McEntee's side weren't helped by the returning Kavan Keenan being shown a red card early in the second half at a time when the Saffrons led Laois 1-11 to 0-13. Conor Hand, just back from suspension himself, netted an early goal which pushed Antrim into a 1-7 to 0-4 lead after 20 minutes. They were outscored 0-7 to 0-2 to the break though with the lively Niall Corbet doing most of the damage for the hosts.Keenan's dismissal after the break was swiftly followed by a Laois scoring spree. Padraig Kirwan (2), Mark Barry (2) and Damon Larkin gave Justin McNulty's men a healthy advantage. Dermot McAleese's two-pointer ended a barren 16-minute spell for the Saffs just before the fourth official came out to raise his board but despite another two-pointer from Paddy McBride in the closing stages a comeback never seemed likely.