Lilywhites raise 24 white flags as Farney flounder

Things are incredibly tight at the bottom of Division 1 after Kildare came out on top of a real relegation four-pointer in St Conleth's Park.

Just one point separates the bottom five teams heading into next week's final round and Kildare will go into their game against Mayo flying high after this stunning victory.

Glenn Ryan's team raced out of the traps and scored the first six points of the game. It was a blistering start and one that Monaghan never recovered from.

Before the game, Kildare were struck by the late withdrawal of Daniel Flynn through illness but the players who took to the field made sure his absence wasn’t felt as they raised more white flags than they have managed in any league game since scoring 4-25 against Kilkenny in 1990.

Flynn’s replacement, Darragh Kirwan contributed five of thosse points, with Paddy Woodgate and Jimmy Hyland also getting off the mark early and by the end of the game that full-forward line had contributed a massive 15 points for Kildare.

But the real star of the show was in the half-forward line where Ben McCormack led the Monaghan defence a merry dance as he brilliantly linked defence and attack. He scored three points himself and had a hand in countless others in a stunning display.

Monaghan recovered after their slow start and rallied through the middle part of the opening half as they finally found a foothold in the game. They cut the lead back to 0-07 to 0-04 and then 0-08 to 0-05 but Kildare rallied and finished the half as they had started.

They scored three of the last four points before the break, two from McCormack and another he created for Kirwan, to lead 0-12 to 0-07 as the teams headed for the dressing room.

Monaghan needed a big start to the second half to give themselves