Limerick overcome Sligo and finish with a flourish

Limerick 0-14 Sligo 1-9: Allianz Football League Division 3: Limerick secured their first set of points in the opening round of the Allianz NFL Division 3 tie at Kilmallock yesterday with a workmanlike performance that saw them quickly out of the blocks and then outscore Sligo six points to one in the closing quarter.

However, it was a frustrating afternoon for new Sligo boss Niall Carew, whose team was hit with a vomiting bug, necessitating the withdrawal of midfielder Pat Hughes. He also bemoaned the loss of wing-back Brian Curran who was dismissed 20 minutes into the second half at a time when the Connacht side led 1-8 to 0-8. “I thought the referee was very hard on us,” said Carew. “The sending off was definitely a turning point. We had momentum. We were three points up. We had one of our best player’s red-carded (yellow followed by a black card).

“Limerick took full advantage. They kicked their scores and came at us in droves.”