Instead of "$2 $1", you can use "${secondMatch} ${firstMatch}".
There is a list of all the replacements you can do here.
Here is an abbreviated list:
$number – The captured group by number.
${name} – The captured group by name.
$$ – $ literal.
$& – Entire match.
$` – The input string before the match.
$’ – The input string after the match.
$+ – The last group captured.
$_ – The entire input string.