Kildare secure Division 1B status for 2027
Cathal McCabe celebrates scoring Kildare's third goal during the win over Carlow
Another outstanding Kildare hurling performance saw them secure their Division 1B status with a game to spare after a dominant win against neighbours Carlow at Cedral St Conleth’s Park.
With wins against Antrim and Down already behind them, Brian Dowling’s side created a winning platform with some superb long-range shooting to open up a half-time advantage of eleven points and three goals in the third quarter put the game to bed before a late Carlow rally.
Kildare, who still had lingering relegation concerns coming into this, were not helped by the absence of the suspended Jack Sheridan and their hat-trick hero against Down Cathal Dowling. The loss of Richy Hogan from the selected fifteen added to a sense of nervousness beforehand, as did the news that Carlow were boosted by Marty Kavanagh’s inclusion.
But the home side settled quickly with a breeze behind them into the town end after Kavanagh opened the scoring from a free.
David Qualter (free), Gerry Keegan and Hogan’s replacement Tim Ryan landed three points in a little over two minutes and after Kavanagh’s second free, they hit three more quickfire points from Conan Boran, Keegan and Paul Dolan, putting them 0-6 to 0-2 ahead by the eighth minute.
Scores from Jack Treacy and Chris Nolan brought Carlow back to within two points before visiting ‘keeper Brian Tracey poked the lively Muiris Curtin’s close-range effort out for a ’65 after Ryan’s shot dropped short, Qualter landing his second from the placed ball before Curtin made it 8-2 from an acute angle.
Kildare, playing confident, expansive hurling against a more sluggish Carlow, were really in their groove now. Tracey plucked a high ball brilliantly out of the air under pressure from Curtin, but Kildare added seven more points in succession (Qualter with three frees, Dolan with three more beauties from his own half to bring his tally to four and Cathal McCabe weighing in with another). That put a Kildare side, who already had twelve scores on the board when they shot their first wide after 21 minutes, into a commanding 0-15 to 0-6 lead after 26 minutes.
In the run-up to half-time Ryan was thwarted by Treacy from a low drive as Qualter and Curtin exchanged points with Kavanagh (two frees), with Kildare reaching the interval with a nine-point advantage (0-17 to 0-8).
Kildare’s 2-2 without reply at the start of the second half put paid to any Carlow comeback hopes, with both goals from the top drawer. James Dolan had stretched the lead with a brilliant point from the right wing when Daire Guerin’s powerful run and emphatic finish rounded off a flowing move involving McCabe and Curtin on 37 minutes.
Qualter pointed again before McCabe himself sidestepped a defender and netted after Guerin set up Simon Leacy’s incursion from deep six minutes later.
McCabe botched a short free inside his own half on fifteen minutes into the half and the retreating Paddy McKenna seemed to lose his bearings a little as he batted out Kavanagh’s shot for substitute Paddy Boland to net the loose ball and give Carlow a much-needed boost.
That was short-lived though as from the next puck-out Carlow’s defence failed to clear under pressure from Guerin and Curtin deftly lifted the loose sliotar past Tracey for the home side’s third goal.
That left a yawning gap of seventeen points but Carlow, who remain in danger of relegation, battled bravely after Kavanagh was sent off on 56 minutes after picking up a second yellow card.
The visitors outscored Kildare 0-11 to 0-3 in the final twenty minutes, with Kildare racking up a disappointing second half wide tally of nine into the Kilcullen End.
Carlow might have had another couple of goals and that may slightly concern Dowling heading into a final fixture with Wexford and then the rarified air of the Leinster Championship, but Paul Dolan and McKenna denied Chris Nolan from close range frees and the Clane goalkeeper also pulled off a top-class point blank save to deny Boland his second goal at the death, the sliotar conveniently coming to a rest a couple of inches short of the goal line.
Remarkably, Kildare still retain a mathematical chance of promotion to Division 1A heading into that final game in Wexford in two weeks’ time, though it would take a win there and a shock defeat for Dublin against Carlow to produce a fairy-tale ending to a highly impressive first campaign at Division 1B level for 46 years.
Paddy McKenna; Liam O’Reilly, Rian Boran, Simon Leacy; Paul Dolan 0-4, Cian Boran, Dan O’Meara; Daire Guerin 1-0, Conan Boran 0-1; Cathal McCabe 1-1, Gerry Keegan 0-2, Tim Ryan 0-1; David Qualter 0-10 (9fs,1’65), Muiris Curtin 1-2, James Dolan 0-1. Subs: Harry Carroll for McCabe 49, Caolan Smith for J Dolan 52, Darragh Melville for Conan Boran 66, Cathal Derivan for O’Reilly 69, Evan O’Briain for Guerin 70.
Brian Tracey; Niall Bolger, Tadhg O’Neill, Paidí O’Shea; Fiach O’Toole 0-1, Kevin McDonald, Eric English; Kevin Kavaangh, Fiachra Fitzpatrick 0-1; Jon Nolan 0-2, Donagh Murphy 0-1, John Michael Nolan; Marty Kavanagh 0-6 (5fs), Jack Treacy 0-2, Chris Nolan 0-5 (2fs,1’65). Subs: Colm Beck for K Kavanagh 23, Conaill Fitzpatrick for English 43, Paddy Boland 1-1 for JM Nolan 43, Ciaran Whelan for O’Neill 57, Colm Kavanagh for Murphy 66.
Niall Malone (Clare).
