Laois top Group 2, Kerry overcome Kildare

LENSTER MHC WRAP: Fresh off an impressive Round 1 win over Kildare, Laois overcame hosts Carlow by 2-19 to 1-9 this afternoon to move top of Tier 2, Group 2 with a game to go.   Pic: Diarmuid Greene/Sportsfile

Daniel Jones netted twice as Laois came from behind with a thrilling second-half performance to move within touching distance of a Leinster MHC knock-out spot.

Fresh off an impressive Round 1 win over Kildare, Laois overcame hosts Carlow by 2-19 to 1-9 this afternoon to move top of Tier 2, Group 2 with a game to go.

The teams that finish first and second in both Group 1 and 2 will advance to fill four preliminary quarter-final slots in Leinster early next month.

Laois moved into pole position in Group 2 with the Netwatch Cullen Park win though trailed by a point at half-time, 0-7 to 1-5, and had to move up a gear for the second period.

Ciaran Kavanagh struck 1-1 for Carlow in the opening half to leave them in a strong position but they only added four more points after the break.

Laois, meanwhile, opened up with some quality hurling in the second stanza and there were strong performances again from Eoin Delaney and Tom Og Phelan though Jones stole the show.

The Abbeyleix attacker was first to react to a shot off the post in the 49th minute to fire home Laois' first goal.

He added a second in the 53rd minute to leave Laois nine points clear at that stage and they stretched the gap to 13 by full-time thanks to points from Phelan, Daniel Whelan, Jones and Oisin Gilligan.

Visitors Kerry defeated Kildare by 2-16 to 2-8 in the other Tier 2, Group 2 game, building on a four-point half-time lead at Hawkfield with an important 52nd minute goal.

In the five-team Tier 2, Group 1, there were impressive wins for Antrim and Westmeath while Offaly had a weekend off.

Antrim led by just a point at half-time in their 2-25 to 1-8 win over Wicklow at neutral Dowdallshill in Louth.

Tom Brennan was Wicklow's principal scorer with five of their seven first-half points and he pinched a goal late in the second-half.

But Antrim were already out of sight at that stage thanks to two second-half goals.

Westmeath made it back-to-back Group 1 wins, beating Meath by 3-21 to 3-12 to join Offaly on four points at the head of the table.

Antrim and Meath are next on two points each with Wicklow rock bottom after three losses.

Westmeath led Meath by 2-11 to 0-7 at half-time this afternoon and added a third goal after the restart to leave neighbours Meath in their rear-view mirror.