Down come from eight points behind against Kildare to land Division 2 crown

March 29, 2025

Down's Eoghan Sands ©INPHO/Lorraine O'Sullivan

Down are Allianz Hurling League Division 2 champions after defeating Kildare by 4-22 to 3-18 in a thrilling clash in Inniskeen this afternoon.

Ronan Sheehan’s men had held a 0-8 to 0-7 lead when Jack Sheridan hammered in the decider’s first goal in the 18th minute and it’d see Kildare go on to take in a 1-10 to 0-11 lead at the half.

It got worse for the Mourne men at the start of the second-half as goals from Sheridan and Darragh Melville stretched the Lilywhites’ lead to eight points by the 40th minute.

However, the Ulster side came up with the perfect response that saw Tom McGrattan lashing in their first goal moments later and they’d close the gap to one with another McGrattan goal before Donal Hughes levelled matters in the 53rd minute.

Kildare pushed ahead again with a James Burke point but it’d wiped out by Marc Fisher’s goal at the other end and another green flag from Tim Prenter later on sealed the silverware for Sheehan’s charges.


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