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Garvey stung late on as TRR go back top in men’s EYHL

Men’s EY Hockey League – day 12 round-up

Corinthian 2 (D Howard, A Sutton) Lisnagarvey 2 (O Kidd, M McNellis)

A rare Andrew Sutton goal saw Corinthian produce an incredible late fightback to nick a point against Lisnagarvey, knocking them off top spot of the men’s EY Hockey League.

The first half ended scoreless but things appeared to be going smoothly for Garvey when Ollie Kidd and Mark McNellis put them two clear in the fourth quarter.

But Davy Howard and the experienced Sutton’s goal in the last 30 seconds earned the reds a gleefully celebrated point which lifts them from eighth place to sixth in the rankings.

Glenanne 3 (S O’Connor, J Rogan, R Couse) Pembroke 5 (A Sothern 4, J Dale)

Alan Sothern showed how invaluable he is for Pembroke as he scored four goals as he returned to full flow after injury to give his side a vital victory over Glenanne, denting the hosts’ title chances in the process.

It was a measure of efficiency as Glenanne had a larger amount of possession and chances but Pembroke picked off corners and strokes from their fewer attacks to make the difference.

The Glens peppered Ilko Dartsch’s goal in the first few minutes with a couple of corners and a Richie Shaw volley flashing across goal. Sam O’Connor put them in front in the 24th minute but Sothern equalised within two minutes to have it level at the big break.

The second half started with the Glens on the attack for the most part but Pembroke’s first attack of the half led to a stroke which Sothern did not catch too cleanly but got enough on it to make it through David Lawless.

Jason Rogan equalised when he flicked in when the ball fell to him after a left-wing attack and Richard Couse applied a very smart take through his legs and finish for 3-2 from Shane O’Donoghue’s pin-point pass.

But Pembroke finished strong with Sothern scoring a second stroke for 3-3 after a corner shot hit a body on the line with 13 minutes to go. Julian Dale added a direct drag-flick to retake the lead soon after and Sothern completed the victory with his fourth of the day. They finished up round 12 one point away from safety while Glenanne are in third, three points off first.

Annadale 1 (J Clark) Three Rock Rovers 3 (B Johnson 2, R Canning)

Three Rock Rovers returned to the top of the men’s EY Hockey League as their set-piece functioned well to record a 3-1 win over Annadale at Lagan College.

Annandale got off to a flying start with Owen McElhinney’s left-wing cross on his reverse turned in by James Clark. Rovers, though, were level in the sixth minute when Ben Johnson nailed a drag-flick.

Rovers were initially awarded a stroke in Q2 when Johnson got in behind the last defender and went tumbling under a challenge from goalkeeper Sam Hamill but an umpire’s consultation overturned the decision.

Lisnagarvey’s Daniel Nelson shoots under pressure from Craig MacKay. Picture: Adrian Boehm

Conor Quinn made a big save from David Tremlett’s deflection before Rovers made it 2-1 with the last play of the half as Johnson’s shot was blocked by a body on the line and Ross Canning stepped up to convert from the penalty spot.

The Dubliners moved into a 3-1 lead from their third penalty corner of the second half with Johnson again the man on target, going down the glove side into the bottom corner.

After that, Rovers held on reasonably comfortably with Quinn not called into action in the closing 20 minutes while Hamill made some robust stops in the Dale goal.

UCD 1 (H Lynch) Monkstown 4 (D Carson, T Kohlmann, M Gibbons, G Sarratt)

Monkstown recorded a 4-1 win for the second week running as they proved too strong for UCD at Belfield. The students started well with Ewan Ramsay drawing a couple of good saves from Dave Fitzgerald but Monkstown were on their way in the second quarter.

David Nolan danced one way then the other from a free, getting to the baseline and crossing to Davy Carson to finish off. It was 2-0 by half-time via a sweet team move through the middle which Theo Kohlmann finished off.

Mark Gibbons was credited with the third goal with a deflection from a right-wing cross though the students argued it took a foot rather than a stick. Matthew O’Brien Holohan made a number of top class saves but the fourth goal fell to Guy Sarratt with a piece of individual brilliance, beating a couple of players on the baseline and then reversing into the net.

Harry Lynch pulled one back from a corner in the dying minutes for UCD.

YMCA 2 (G Glutz 2) Banbridge 3 (D Finlay, J McKee, E Magee)

Banbridge, meanwhile, won a rollercoaster against YMCA 3-2 to continue their push for a good playoff draw.

Grant Glutz had the Y 1-0 up from a penalty stroke but David Finlay had Bann level before half-time and a world class effort from Johnny McKee gave the Co Down side the lead for the first time. Eugene Magee’s corner goal put the visitors 3-1 up; Glutz’s second of the day closed out the game but proved immaterial.

Bann remain level with Monkstown in fourth place but have reeled in the gap to the top three.

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Pembroke winning streak ends as chasers cut the gap

Women’s EYHL – day 12 round-up

Cork Harlequins 0 Belfast Harlequins 1 (E Uprichard)

Emma Uprichard’s 19th minute goal gave Belfast Harlequins a huge three points over their Cork namesakes, pushing them five points clear of the relegation zone. For the Farmers’ Cross side, it leaves them with eight points to make up in the closing six matches.

The Cork side had the pick of the first quarter chances with Beth Anne O’Farrell going close but the Belfast side came into their own and began to threaten before Uprichard got the only goal.

She came in from the right, beating a couple of defenders before sliding a reverse sweep past the Cork Harlequins keeper. It remained that way through to the break despite Michelle Barry winning a corner but produced no reward.

The third quarter was end to end with the hosts having some big chances they should have put away while the Belfast side were fast on the break but held at bay by a strong defensive showing. The fourth quarter followed a similar pattern with both teams creating chances but not capitalising as the visitors held on for a significant victory.

Pembroke 2 (E Curran, S Campbell) UCD 2 (K Egan, E Paul)

Pembroke’s seven-game winning streak was brought to an end as UCD stormed back to grab a share of the points at Serpentine Avenue, coming back from 2-0 down.

In a first half of few chances, Pembroke opened the scoring from a lovely flowing move, started and finished by Ellen Curran. The midfielder laid off to Sinead Loughran who fed it on to Aisling Naughton on the right baseline. Her ball to the baseline ended up blocked at the near post by goalkeeper Laura Gunning but Curran had followed up the attack to pop in off the pads.

For UCD, their best chance came off the back of Michelle Carey’s driving run with the ball hitting the outside of the goal. Pembroke, though, doubled their lead when a corner was slipped to Sally Campbell who pushed in from the left of the D.

The students were back in the game in the 47th minute when Aine Naughton raced into space down the right right wing and squared for Katherine Egan who controlled well and slotted by Ruth Cowman in the Pembroke goal.

Early in Q4, Hannah McLoughlin hit the post after a surge from the top of the circle as UCD put on the pressure while a corner chance was well blocked by Cowman, scrambling to her right from a deflected shot.

And the equaliser arrived with five minutes to go with Emma Paul slamming in a sweep-shot from a corner into the bottom right corner. Pembroke did land a corner in the closing seconds but it was skewed wide and the laurels shared.

Muckross 0 Catholic Institute 4 (R Upton 2, N Carroll, H Kelly)

Catholic Institute continued their excellent start to 2022 with a third successive victory since the turn of the year, keeping them in second place. 

Hannah Kelly lines up a shot. Picture: Adrian Boehm

The first quarter was scoreless with Insta testing the Muckross defensive mettle before taking the lead in the second quarter through Naomi Carroll, a cracking reverse-stick shot from the Olympian.

That was how it remained through to half-time but the Limerick side cut loose in the second half with Hannah Kelly grabbing a second goal. And Róisín Upton added two identical penalty corner drag-flicks in the closing period to expand the lead to 4-0.

Pegasus 2 (K McKee, T Doherty) Railway Union 1 (N Shaw)

Pegasus fought back from a half-time deficit to land an important win of their title chances as Katie McKee and Taite Doherty turned the tide against Railway Union at Malone Road.

Niamh Shaw got the only goal of the first half with a cracking hit from a double-switch move from a penalty corner to give Railway the half-time advantage.

Pegasus, though, were level two minutes into the second half when Katie McKee twisted and turned to get the space to shoot on her backhand where she powered home.

And the Ulster side had the winner when Ruth Maguire picked out a brilliant pass to Taite Doherty and she struck a crisp effort for 2-1.

Loreto 1 (H Matthews) Old Alex 3 (N Evans 2, M Power)

Nikki Evans’ classy double earned Old Alex a key win over fellow playoff chasers Loreto to put them in fourth spot in the women’s EY Hockey League.

Nikki Evans’ sparkling top-corner effort lit up the first half as she picked up Millie O’Donnell’s ball into the D, steadying before unleashing a sublime shot on her backhand.

Prior to that, Loreto had seen a corner shot confidently booted away by Holly Micklem while Emma Russell went inches wide from an Evans pull-back. Liz Murphy, meanwhile, was alert to clean up a one-on-one chance.

Loreto had most of the play after the goal with a number of half-chances slipping by with Cailtin Sherin stepping forward and going close.

Alex had the best of the third quarter and they were rewarded when Lena Tice lifted an overhead into the D to Mikayla Power who controlled and slipped in her shot for 2-0.

The Beaufort side got one back from the third of a series of three corners when Hannah Matthews’ hit took a heavy deflection off the number one runner. 

But Evans quickly restored the Alex lead when she reacted brilliantly to a rebound from Tice’s corner shot, batting home on the dive.

Micklem did brilliantly to keep out an Aoife Taaffe first-time shot in Q4 and Matthews went close with another corner effort in a late series of attacks from Loreto but Alex held on for their first win in the EYHL since early November.

 

EYHL Division 2 round-up
Ards, Corinthian, Monkstown and Queen’s moved into the prime positions in EYHL2 with high-scoring wins in their Saturday match-ups.
Ards head up Pool 1 thanks to a 6-1 win over Galway. It was tight in the first half with the oranges missing a number of chances but they still managed a 1-0 lead at half-time thanks to a near post shot from Ali Carson.
An impressive second half saw Amy Benson and Zara Malseed on the scoreboard twice for Ards before youngster Katie Kimber scored Ards’ final goal from a well rehersed penalty corner routine in the 6-1 win.
Alyssa Manley smartly converted a penalty corner with a well placed strike for Galway to score their first goal in their EYHL2 campaign.
Corinthian withstood a Trinity comeback to win 4-2 in the other game and move into second spot in the group. Two goals from Lauren McGrane and one from Christina Seggie had the reds 3-0 up before Faye Neill and Kate Sullivan made things interesting. Seggie’s second, though, killed off the tie.
In Pool 2, Monkstown moved closer to a confirmed playoff spot with a 5-0 win over Lurgan with Susie Kelly, Claire O’Reilly, Chloe Watkins, Natasha Twomey and Rebecca Carthy all scoring.
It puts them 10 points clear of Queen’s who were 4-1 winners at home against Cork C of I.
EYHL Division 2

Pool 1: Ards 6 (Z Malseed 2, A Benson 2, A Carson, K Kimber) Galway 1 (A Manley); Trinity 2 (F Neill, K Sullivan) Corinthian 4 (L McGrane 2, C Seggie)

Pool 2: Lurgan 0 Monkstown 5 (S Kelly, C O’Reilly, C Watkins, N Twomey, R Carthy); Queens University 4 (J McMaster 3, E Getty) Cork C of I 1 (C O’Sullivan)

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Harlequins duo face key tussle in women’s EYHL as men’s top five meet bottom five

The battle for playoff places continues to heat up in the women’s and men’s EY Hockey Leagues with the newly introduced quarter-final phase making life very interesting.

This season, the top two will go straight to the EY Champions Trophy semi-finals while the next four sides in each competition getting a shot in the quarter-final playoffs for a place at the finals weekend at Havelock Park on April 23rd and 24th.

With two sides automatically relegated from both the elite men and women’s leagues, too, it means there is a wealth of intrigue in each area of the tables.

Indeed, at the bottom of the women’s EY Hockey League, it is a vital day for the two sets of Harlequins as Cork host Belfast at Farmers’ Cross. The Cork side have one point to their name and need to make up five points if they are to get out of the danger zone.

Eighth placed Belfast, on the flip side, will be acutely aware of that and know that if they can land the three points, it could be a knock-out blow to the Munster side’s chances of staying in the top tier.

At the top, leaders Pembroke will meet a UCD side who had a wealth of players involved in the Irish women’s squad who impressed in midweek in an uncapped series against France.

Katherine Egan scored twice in Tuesday’s 4-0 success in Antibes while Eva Lavelle and KJ Marshall also lined out in the series for the senior panel for the first time.

They joined club mates Hannah McLoughlin and Sarah McAuley – another scorer this week in Wednesday’s 3-0 win against the French – and shows the quality they have in their camp.

They will be aiming to end Pembroke’s seven-game winning streak and make a strong push for the playoff places. The Serpentine Avenue hosts, though, have shown all facets to suggest they are in rude health for their title push, fighting back last week to beat Loreto 2-1 having trailed early on.

There is plenty of scope for jostling of positions throughout the division. Loreto currently sit outside the playoff places but a win over Old Alex could see them jump a number of places.

Belfast Harlequins Emma Uprichard in action against Pembroke. Picture: Billy Pollock

Both have players in their panels who got their first tastes of senior Irish hockey with Loreto’s Christina Hamill scoring in game two in France while Alex goalkeeper Holly Micklem recorded a clean sheet for her week’s efforts.

Pegasus have a tester in their pursuit of the top two spots when they host Railway Union who bring a slightly erratic form book to the table in 2022, winning well over Cork Harlequins but falling 6-1 to Catholic Institute.

Insta, meanwhile, are looking for a fourth win in succession when they go to ninth place Muckross.

In EYHL2, Monkstown can potentially propel themselves even further clear in Pool 2 when they go to second placed Lurgan. Simon Lowry’s squad are the only side with a perfect record and hold an eight point lead over the Ulster side with Anna O’Flanagan and Chloe Watkins doing lots of damage.

Lurgan, though, defied the odds last time out to defeat Queen’s in spite of several Covid absentees and will look to cause plenty of problems. Cork C of I go to Queen’s with the winners hoping victory will put them in the top two shake-up.

In Pool 1, Ards will be favourites to maintain their place at the head of the group when they host Galway who have yet to score in the competition. Trinity and Corinthian will be looking to boost their respective playoff chances with the reds winning a recent Leinster league meeting between the sides 4-1.

In the men’s EYHL, the top five face the bottom five. YMCA host Banbridge in what has proven a lively match-up in the past few seasons; the Y were without Harry McCarthy, Ross Henderson and Peabo Lembethe – currently with South Africa in Pro League action – last week for their date with Glenanne.

Lisnagarvey – reinstalled as leaders this week – go to Corinthian looking to maintain their place at the head of the pack after a confident finish to their win over Annadale with Ollie Kidd’s goal the pick of some tidy goals.

Glenanne were understrength last week with Mark Keppel and Paul Byrne getting rare appearances for the first team but they did well to score a good win.

They are up against Pembroke who welcomed back Ronan Flannery to the side a week ago while Ilko Dartsch lined out in goal in their tie against Monkstown.

Three Rock Rovers are on the M1 for a second successive week, this time to face Annadale whom they drew with 2-2 at home.

UCD, meanwhile, are in a last chance saloon as they need to win at least four of their last seven games to have a chance of staying up this term. The first of those is against Monkstown at home on Saturday; for Town, Robert Mason made a comeback to the first team while Geoff Cole and David Nolan did not play.

Saturday 12th February 2022
Men
EYHL Division 1: Annadale v Three Rock Rovers, Lagan College, 2.30pm; Corinthian v Lisnagarvey, Whitechurch Park, 3.15pm; Glenanne v Pembroke, St Andrews, 3.15pm; UCD v Monkstown, Belfield, 2.50pm; YMCA v Banbridge, Wesley College, 3.50pm

Women
EYHL Division 1: Cork Harlequins v Belfast Harlequins, Farmers’ Cross, 2.45pm; Loreto v Old Alexandra, Beaufort, 1.30pm; Muckross v Catholic Institute, Grange Road, 1pm, Pegasus v Railway Union, Queen;s, 2.30pm; Pembroke Wanderers v UCD, Serpentine Avenue, 2.45pm

EYHL Division 2
Pool 1: Ards v Galway, Londonderry Park, 2.30pm; Trinity v Corinthian, Santry Avenue, 2pm
Pool 2: Lurgan v Monkstown, Lurgan JHS, 2pm; Queens University v Cork C of I, Malone, 12.45pm

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Junior Green Army find out new World Cup group

Ireland’s Under-21 women’s team will meet England, hosts South Africa and Ukraine in a reshuffled Junior World Cup group following a number of changes to the tournament line-up.

The Junior Green Army were originally due to play in the competition in Potchefstroom in December but it was put on hold due to the arrival of the Omicron variant but they can now put full focus on the tournament which runs from April 2nd to 13th in Potchefstroom’s North-West University.

“It’s great news that the Junior World Cup will go ahead after the late postponement in December,” said Irish head coach David Passmore of confirmation of the line-up and that the tournament will go ahead in a full 16-team format.

“The girls were devastated so we are indebted to the clubs for accommodating this through changes in EY Hockey League schedule along with Hockey Ireland and the FIH for striving to find solutions to the scheduling issues.

“While we have started to train with the same group of 20, each player knows the last selection was made on form and that they will need to maintain form to make the plane for South Africa.

“Given how hard the girls had worked in preparation for December and the uncertainty of whether Covid would allow for the event to proceed, they have had a six-week break but now we start to crank things up to perform at our best.”

In terms of form guides, the Junior Green Army impressed last summer with a series win over the Welsh senior team and against the Great Britain Development panel.

They also drew with England in December in a hastily arranged Four Nations tournament in Valencia, organised once the World Cup was put on hold. South Africa and Ukraine, though, will be new opposition at this level.

Ireland had originally been due to face the Netherlands, Zimbabwe and Korea in the opening group but a number of changes to the tournament line-up meant a reshuffle in opposition.

Since December, Belgium, Spain and Japan decided they could no longer participate with Ukraine, Malaysia and Wales the nations stepping in to take their place at the main event.

And coach Passmore says it makes for some new challenges compared to the ones originally envisaged.

“The trip to Spain in December highlighted some areas we need to develop and we will be working hard on some specific components with our play with some matches against the seniors, boys teams and a two-match series against England in March to assist with thanks to our main sponsors Uniphar, SoftCo and Park Developments.

“The pool we now face is obviously different from what we expected and provides different challenges in that we know little about South Africa or Ukraine but we know the home nation will present a stern test on home soil.

“Ukraine offer a different style of play to most European countries and can be hard to break down. Either way we will set our standards high and work hard in what is a great and exciting opportunity for those players who play.”

The fixture schedule will be confirmed in due course.

Elsewhere, the Irish senior women’s World Cup opponents will be confirmed on Thursday morning with the International Hockey Federation hosting the draw in Lausanne. It will be broadcast online via the FIH’s Watch-Hockey app.

FIH Women’s Junior World Cup, April 2-13, 2022 (all at NWU, Potchefstroom, South Africa)
Pool A: Canada, Netherlands, USA, Zimbabwe
Pool B: England, Ireland, South Africa, Ukraine
Pool C: Argentina, Korea, Russia, Uruguay
Pool D: Germany, India, Malaysia, Wales

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Latest Irish Under-18 boys squad named

The latest Irish Under-18 boys panel has been named with a view to their 2022 campaign. They will play in a five nations tournament in England in April before hosting Scotland for three games in early July. In mid-July, they will play in an international tournament in Germany.

* DEV denotes for Development

* TBA denotes To Be Assessed

Player    Province  Club  School 
Ben Pasley    Leinster  Three Rock Rovers  The High School 
Callum McCourt    Munster  Bandon HC  Bandon Grammar  
Charlie Rowe    Ulster  Banbridge Hockey Club  Banbridge Academy 
Cian Dorgan    Munster  Cork C of I  Ashton  
Conor Matthews    Ulster  Annadale  Sullivan Upper 
Harry Dagg    Leinster  Avoca  Templecarrig 
James Clark    Ulster  Annadale  Methodist College Belfast 
James Evans    Ulster  Banbridge Hockey Club  Banbridge Academy 
Jamie Spratt    Ulster  North Down  Regent House Grammar 
Josh Gill    Leinster  Three Rock Rovers  Wesley College 
Louis Rowe    Ulster  Banbridge HC  Banbridge Academy 
Mackenzie Connor    Ulster  Lisnagarvey Hockey Club  Friends’ School Lisburn  
Matthew McKee    Ulster  Banbridge Hockey Club  Banbridge Academy 
Matthew Stevenson     Ulster  Banbridge Hockey Club   Banbridge Academy  
Max Anderson     Ulster  Cookstown  Cookstown High School  
Patrick McElhinney     Ulster  Annadale HC  Methodist College Belfast 
Rex Dunlop     Leinster  Three Rock Rovers   The Kings Hospital  
Rhys Armah-Kwantreng    Leinster  Monkstown  St Andrew’s College 
Sam Hickmott    Leinster  Monkstown Hockey Club   St Andrew’s College 
Tiarnan Gaffney     Munster  Catholic Institute   Villiers School 
Tommy Dobson    Ulster  Banbridge Hockey Club Banbridge Academy  
Alex Lynch  DEV   Leinster  Three Rock Rovers  The High School 
Ben Pollock   DEV  Ulster  Banbridge Hockey Club  Banbridge Academy  
Mark Cuddy   DEV  Ulster  Cookstown Hockey Club  Cookstown High School  
Sam Dale  DEV  Munster  Cork Harlequins   Bandon Grammar  
Allen Lyons  TBA   Ulster  Annadale   Royal Belfast Academical Institution 
Peter Keappock  TBA  Munster  Waterford Hockey Club  Newtown School, Waterford 
Callum Ullah  GK – TBA  Ulster  Instonians   Royal Belfast Academical Institution (RBAI)  
Conor Murphy  GK – TBA  Leinster  Avoca  Newpark Comprehensive 
Malachy Shute  GK – TBA  Munster  Waterford Hockey Club  Newtown School Waterford 
Robbie Duffy  GK – TBA  Leinster  Monkstown Hockey   Newpark Comprehensive 
Scott Hosick   GK – TBA  Ulster  Lisnagarvey hockey club  Friends’ School Lisburn  
Sam Chapman GK-TBA Leinster YMCA Hockey Club Wesley College
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Ulster shine to reach girls interpro finals

Ulster’s inteprovincial girls teams both confirmed their place in this season’s finals, setting up final dates with Leinster at Under-16 level and Munster in the Under-18 competition.

At Under-16 level, Ulster who secured their place in that showdown with a 3-0 win over Munster from their winner-takes-all encounter. Rebekah Lennon scored a hat-trick in the success as they completed the group stages unbeaten.

Leinster were 2-0 winners over Leinster South with Orla Young Hughes and Sarah Byrne getting the goals which propelled the blues to the top of the table and a place in the final on April 3.

In the Under-18 competition, Ulster produced a remarkable comeback from 2-0 down to defeat Munster 3-2 in what was a precursor for this competition’s final showdown in April.

Amy Connolly and Robyn Murphy put the southern province two goals up but Gabriella Scott fired a double with Sophie Kidd on the mark, the winner coming on the final hooter.

That result meant Ulster topped the round-robin phase on 10 points with Munster on 8 with both advancing to the decider.

Leinster edged out Leinster South 3-1, coming back from 1-0 down to land the result for their first win of the campaign.

Michelle Cashman’s penalty stroke gave South the lead but replies from Ella Pasley, Emma Montgomery and Alex Gallagher turned the tie their way. The two sides ended their group on four points.

Girls Interprovincial results
Under-16: Leinster 2 (O Young Hughes, S Byrne) Leinster South 0; Ulster 3 (R Lennon 3) Munster 0

Under-18: Ulster 3 (G Scott 3) Munster 2 (R Murphy, A Connolly); Leinster 3 (E Pasley, E Montgomery, A Gallagher) Leinster South 1 (M Cashman)

 

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Three Rock win back men’s National Indoor title

Men’s National Indoor Trophy final
Three Rock Rovers 5 (J Hosking 2, B Ryder J Walker, J Althusmann) Railway Union 3 (J Pillow, B Parsons, K Carroll)
Three Rock Rovers won the men’s National Indoor Trophy title for the fifth time in six attempts as Jody Hosking’s late double and a last minute Ben Whelan stroke save proved the difference.

That save came with the game poised at 4-3 for Rovers with Railway seaching for an equaliser but the goalkeeper got a strong glove to Roland Schneider’s effort to keep the narrow. And in the final three seconds, Hosking finished off the win with left-board flick into an unguarded net to land the spoils.

Early on, Railway had the edge in a cagey first quarter with Jake Pillow scoring the only goal, ghosting around the back and finding a great finish from the right of the D.

Rovers fought back in Q2 with Ben Ryder levelling the game when he dragged into the goal from Ali Haughton’s pass and James Walker put his side in front, stepping in front of his marker to finish off a classy move via Jonas Althusmann and Eckart Geyer in the right corner.

Althusmann made it 3-1 at half-time with a spectacular flick from a corner rebound but Railway got back on track in Q3 with Brendan Parsons producing a direct corner goal from the top of the D.

And it was level at 3-3 when Carroll did likewise to set up a cracking finish to the contest. Rovers ran up a couple of corners in the closing minutes and from the last of them, Hosking whipped in a powerful shot for 4-3.

Ben Ryder in action for Three Rock against Cookstown. Picture Max Fulham (click image for more pics)

Railway stormed back, Eoin MacArthur’s shot hitting a body on the line but Whelan stood tall for his key intervention before Hosking added that extra gloss to the scoreline. 

In the semi-finals, Three Rock had a comfortable passage through to the final with hat tricks for Ross Canning, Hosking and Althusmann in a 9-3 win over Cookstown. Railway were taken to the wire by Banbridge who cut the gap to 4-3 and won a string of late corners but the Dubliners held on for a final berth.

Three Rock Rovers: S Davey, E Geyer, B Ryder, R Canning, J Hosking, J Althusmann

Subs: B Whelan, J Walker, J Pabsch, D Shirley, A Haughton

Railway Union: S O’Keeffe, K Carroll, M Fulham, J Pillow, R Abbott, E MacArthur

Subs: F Keaveney, R Schneider, B Parsons, R Forrest, D Curley, J McKeever

 

Semi-finals: Three Rock Rovers 9 (R Canning 3, J Hosking 3, J Athusmann 3) Cookstown 3 (C Anderson, J Haycock, B Nelson); Banbridge 3 (J McKee 2, A Tinney)  Railway Union 4 (K Carroll 2, B Parsons, E MacArthur)

Third place playoff: Cookstown 3 (C Anderson, J Haycock, B Nelson) Banbridge 2 (J McKee, N Glassey)

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Railway retain women’s National Indoor Trophy crown

Women’s National Indoor Trophy final
Railway Union 7 (S Patton 2, L Lloyd 2, M Carey, O Fox, O Patton) Ards 3 (A Desneaux 2, A Benson)
Railway Union won the women’s National Indoor Trophy for the third successive edition as their international stars proved too hot to handle for Ards at Gormanston Park.

They were out of the blocks quickly with Orla Fox producing some very smart individual skills to go around two tackles, zig-zagging in before whipping her shot.

Ards forced a couple of good stops form Mary-Kate Tierney in the Railway goal soon after while Caroline Adams cleaned a Sarah Patton shot off the line in a lively, end-to-end spell.

Patton did double the lead in the second quarter, finishing off an excellent move via Fox and Kate McKenna and they held that 2-0 advantage into half-time with Jenny Long’s corner effort disallowed after a post-hooter discussion.

Ards fought back in the second half with Amy Benson surging through the middle to cut the gap in half. 

But some quickfire work from Railway soon had the game spinning their way. Michelle Carey’s driving run ended with her rounding the goalkeeper and popping in for 3-1. Next time, she laid off a pass to her right out of traffic to Lily Lloyd who scored.

Railway Union’s Michelle Carey on the attack. Picture: Max Fulham (click image for more from the day)

Holly Jenkinson set the fifth in motion, passing to Patton who squared to Lloyd to tap in her second. Andrea Desneaux pulled one back from a corner but both Orla and Sarah Patton scored for Railway to make it 7-2. 

Desneaux got another corner late on but Railway were well clear to continue their run as national champions.

Earlier in the day, Ards made it through to the final in dramatic style as they edged out Muckross 2-0 in a shoot-out after normal time had ended 3-3 with Desneaux grabbing a late equaliser.

Railway had a more comfortable passage to the final with a 10-3 win over Galway. Muckross took third place with a 7-4 win over Galway.

Ards: N McKnight, K Kimber, A Desneaux, N Grundie, A Benson, C Adams

Subs: E Robinson, B Kirk, F Brown

Railway Union: M-K Tierney, H Jenkinson, O Fox, O Patton, L Lloyd, S Patton

Subs: K McKenna, K Lloyd, M Carey A Long, J Long, H de Burgh White

 

Women’s National Indoor Trophy results

Semi-finals: Ards 3 (A Benson, K Kimber, A Desneaux) Muckross 3 (J Balcerzak 2, S Barnwell), Ards win shoot-out 2-0; Railway Union 10 (S Patton 3, L Lloyd 2, K Lloyd, H Jenkinson, H de Burgh Whyte, O Fox, K McKenna) Galway 3 (R Dillon, E Carey, A Manley)

Third place playoff: Muckross 7 (J Balcerzak 2, S Barnwell 2, E Kiely 2, C Montino Mena) Galway 4 (F Kelly 2, E Carey, A Manley)

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Pembroke in seventh heaven with key women’s EYHL victory

Women’s EY Hockey League – day 11 round-up

Catholic Institute 3 (R Upton, H Kelly, E Ryan) Old Alex 1 (D Duke)

Catholic Institute maintained their place in second with another significant win in their pursuit of an EY Champions Trophy place as they saw off Old Alex who started the day in third.

Alex did start in roaring fashion, forcing a goal line save from Roisin Upton while Deirdre Duke also drew a good stop from former Old Alex keeper Pamela Smithwick, keeping it 0-0 in Q1.

Q2 began with Upton going to the sin-bin on a green card but immediately on her return, she ran straight into the circle, met Naomi Carroll’s pass, stopped and slotted into the top left corner.

The Dubliners were level within two minutes with a quick free finding Duke in a good shooting position and she found the bottom corner. Parity, though, only lasted just over a minute as Hannah Kelly slapped in from the second phase of a corner to make it 2-1, a lead they held until half-time.

Eimear Ryan had to save another off the Insta line and a couple of Alex corners in another strong start to a period from the visitors but the Limerick side started to get more on the ball with Carroll to the fore. 

And the third goal arrived from an impressive move, Christine O’Shea finding Aoife Hickey who sent the ball square to Ryan who pulled on a first time rocket, 3-1. The visitors attacked in waves in the fourth quarter but that momentum was slowed when Lena Tice was shown a yellow card and Insta stayed clear for another important win.

Loreto 1 (S O’Brien) Pembroke 2 (A Naughton, L McGuire)

Pembroke overcame a tough hurdle to land their seventh win in succession in the women’s EY Hockey League to maintain their five-point lead at the top.

Loreto had beaten Pembroke 6-1 in the Jacqui Potter Cup just a few weeks ago and they took confidence into the early stages with Hannah Matthews’ corner shot and Yasmin Pratt going close.

They took the lead when Siofra O’Brien burst through the centre of the circle and turned the ball home with an upright reverse-stick shot, Pembroke’s calls for an earlier foot falling on deaf ears.

In response, Pembroke earned four corners but could not find a way past Liz Murphy until the 30th minute. Tori Wensley had two bites from the right of the D, her first shot coming back her way and her second landing at Aisling Naughton on the back post for a simple finish.

Pembroke’s Aisling Naughton celebrates with Rachel O’Brien and Martha McCready. Pic: Adrian Boehm

Six minutes into the second half, Pembroke took the lead from another corner, Leah McGuire taking her time before smashing home as Loreto’s corner defence only went halfway to shut down the shot.  

Loreto fought back, creating a string of chances in the aftermath with Matthews slapping a shot inches wide; O’Brien took in a loose overhead on the edge of the circle but could not get a clean shot off while Lisa Mulcahy also went close.

Pembroke steadied, though, and they were the side who went closest to adding the scoring in the final quarter, Sinead Loughran inches from a spectacular third as she slid full length to deflect the ball onto the bar.

Railway Union 3 (S Rooney, S Hawkshaw, Z Delany) Cork Harlequins 0

Railway Union moved into the top four with a healthy win over Cork Harlequins at Park Avenue. They started well, dominating the first quarter and going two goals up. 

The first was a break instigated by Zara Delany who passed to Sarah Rooney – making her EYHL debut for Railway along with sister Hannah – who slotted home. The second came from a corner; Holly Jenkinson’s sweep was saved by Lorna Bateman in the Quins goal but Railway captain Sarah Hawkshaw made no mistake with the rebound. 

While the hosts dominated possession in the 2nd quarter they failed to finish the moves, with the Cork visitors defending well and making a few forays forward.

The third quarter continued in similar vein with Railway getting their third goal, Zara Delany poking the ball in after a good cross in by Hawkshaw. Bateman in the Quins goal made a number of good saves from sisters Kate and Lily Lloyd to keep the score at three. 

The final quarter was a more even affair with Cliodhna Sargeant and Yvonne O’Byrne pushing forward for Cork Harlequins while Beth-Anne O’Farrell and Ruby Walsh were showing good skills up front. However, neither team could find the net and the score remained 3-0.

Belfast Harlequins 0 Pegasus 3 (S McCay, A Speers, T Doherty)

Pegasus won the Ulster derby to kickstart their new year push for EY Hockey League laurels, getting the best of Belfast Harlequins 3-0 at a blustery Deramore Park. Shirley McCay and Alex Speers brought their wealth of experience to bear, netting their first two goals before Taite Doherty completed the scoring.

It was a really exciting encounter with end to end hockey although Harlequins will rue not having at least one goal from good pressure and two penalty corners in the first quarter.  The second quarter saw Pegasus pressurise more consistently which brought some great goalkeeping from Suzie Taylor and an eventual corner which led to a stroke from a foot on the goal line. McCay  powered the ball high just out of the keeper’s reach to leave Pegasus 1-0 up at half time.

Railway Union’s Kate Lloyd crosses. Pic: Max Fulham

It was more of the same in the second half with both teams hitting the attacking circle. Pegasus’ Alex Speers had a simple tap-in from some clever work along the back line by Lucy McKee. 

Quins had their chances to bring one back and set up an exciting finish and even after Pegasus found the net again through Taite Doherty, Harlequins forced a corner and some strong circle play but were ultimately frustrated not to convert from their chances. Therein lies the difference but definitely an entertaining game and a good example of top level hockey.

UCD 3 (K Egan 2, S McAuley) Muckross 1 (K Fitzgerald)

The league’s top scorers UCD came back from a goal down to defeat Muckross and move into the last of the playoff places after their 10th match of the season. Katie Fitzgerald put the visitors into the lead just before the end of the first quarter.

But Katherine Egan celebrated her international call up with an equaliser in the second quarter and it was 2-1 by half-time courtesy of Sarah McAuley. Egan settled the tie in the 50th minute with her second of the game.

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EYHL returns as playoff chase heats in earnest

The EY Hockey League returns on Saturday, kickstarting the final chase for places at the EY Champions Trophy which will take place at Banbridge in April.

Pembroke’s women and Three Rock Rovers in the men’s competition had the edge over the Christmas break but it is all to play for as the games come thick and fast in the coming weeks.

In the women’s league, Pembroke have been the season’s sensation, building a five-point lead. The Ballsbridge club have never reached the playoffs before but they look the clear favourites now to land the regular season title and take one of the EY Champions Trophy semi-final spots on offer.

Coach Gavin Groves has been growing his panel year on year and the latest additions have been hugely influential. Irish international Ellen Curran has added an extra level of dynamism to the midfield since her move from UCD while Isy Delamer’s arrival from Trinity complements their defensive options.

At the back, they have been outstanding with goalkeeper Emma Buckley conceding just five times in 10 outings while Leah McGuire, MIllie O’Donnell and Amy-Kate Trevor have ensured no side has an easy ride against them,

Further up the field, the gameplan is all about pace with Sinead Loughran, Aisling Naughton and Sinead Loughran scaring the life out of their opponents with Orla Macken pulling the strings. Gillian Pinder oozes class in a well-rounded team and their run of six successive wins has seen them emerge from the pack.

Their first assignment sees them face a Loreto side who they beat well in the EYHL earlier this season but, in Leinster’s Jacqui Potter Cup, turned the tables in January with a 6-1 success.

For Loreto, four of their panel have been called into the Irish setup and it shows they will be more than dangerous in the second half of the season with a number of established stars back in the fold.

Catholic Institute jumped into second place in the table in January when they won well against Railway Union in a back match and if they can match that when they face third place Old Alex, they will put themselves in prime position for a playoff run.

Alex have endured a number of injuries and absences but still find themselves in the top three with Deirdre Duke, Lena Tice and Nikki Evans having limited availability initially but should play a fuller role in the new year. Goalkeeper Holly Micklem has impressed to get a call into Sean Dancer’s national panel.

Alex are level on 18 points with Pegasus – the Champions Trophy holders – who were the pace-setters until that Pembroke setback but look like they will still have plenty of say in the season’s shake-up with Shirley McCay and Alex Speers being huge influences.

They will be favourites when they meet eighth placed Belfast Harlequins although the Deramore Park club are significantly bolstered by the return of Katie Larmour to the club following the completion of her spell at Rutgers University. On the downside, up and coming player Imogen Graham is out for the timebeing following a knee injury.

There looks to be a major scrap for the top six places which will bring a playoff spot in the new format this term. Loreto overcame a mixed start to rise to fifth, level with Railway Union. 

UCD are just outside the playoff places in seventh after a tough run of form without the injured Olympian Hannah McLoughlin who remains the competition’s top scorer despite missing the last few rounds. She has been back in the fold in the Leinster cup and will be a key figure against Muckross on Saturday. 

Railway Union, meanwhile, welcome Cork Harlequins who have seen Cliodhna Sargent come back into their panel to try and help them rise off the foot of the table.

TRR’s Ben Johnson shoots under pressure from Banbridge’s Sam Farson. Pic: Max Fulham

The men’s competition has already been a rollercoaster with the lead changing hands on an almost weekly basis in the past month with Glenanne, Lisnagarvey and Three Rock all taking turns at the top.

After 10 rounds, the three sides are covered by just two points with Rovers something of a surprise package despite winning the last three EY Champions Trophy crowns.

That is because many of their stars are now playing professionally in Europe with a new breed making their mark. They go to Banbridge with former captain Harry Morris available having only played once before Christmas due to a work break in the US but Ali Empey has moved the other way across the Atlantic for an Erasmus stint.

For Bann, Peter Brown returns from injury having missed November and December with Josh Moffett also available after hamstring problems.

Ulster U-18 players Tommy Dobson and Matthew Stevenson moved to Bann from Portadown just before Christmas and will push hard for EYHL squad places.

Elsewhere, it is derby days all round. Lisnagarvey meet Annadale at Comber Road. For Garvey, they had their own run of six wins in succession which saw them hit top spot before falling 4-3 to Monkstown and drawing 2-2 with Banbridge slowed their progress.

Ben Nelson has been the fulcrum of their attack from play while James Lorimer’s corner expertise has been a vital feature. James Milliken has excelled between the posts.

Annadale are seventh following a productive first half of the season. They landed their first win in several years in the top tier when they beat UCD 4-0 and backed that up with a 4-0 victory against Pembroke. 

Michael and Callum Robson’s return from Germany and Tim Cross’s move from the Dutch Hoofdklasse where he played with Tilburg has been crucial for them. Twice this campaign, they have managed to come back from three goals down to secure points.

Glenanne had made the early running with five successive wins to start the season with ace marksman Shane O’Donoghue leading the way. He has 15 goals to his name already.

They face a tricky tie against YMCA who knocked them out of the Leinster Senior Mills Cup and are buoyed by African Cup of Nations winner Paebo Lembethe in their line-up.

YMCA are just inside the playoff places thanks to an amazing closing salvo to the pre-Christmas schedule. They came back from 2-0 down to beat Pembroke 3-2 for a second successive win.

Monkstown, in fifth, are something of an enigma. Their performances have managed to knock Three Rock, Glenanne and Lisnagarvey off top at different stages of the campaign, picking up seven points out of nine against the top three.

But they have only picked up nine points from their other 21 available to stymie a push for the very top of the table. Their next assignment is against a Pembroke side who sit in ninth place and in the relegation places, one point below Corinthian.

The reds, meanwhile, are in eighth place and while they were disappointed to draw 4-4 last week against Annadale from a 4-1 lead, it did end a run of five defeats in a row. 

They face bottom side UCD who have just one point so far. It has been a steep learning curve for them following a late turnover of players during the summer and while they have been competitive, they only have a draw with YMCA on their record while the departure of Sam Walker on Erasmus also makes things tricky. Kevin O’Dea, though, has been a star man for the Belfielders.

Elsewhere, Sunday sees four more inteprovincial matches going to Grange Road with Munster facing Ulster and Leinster playing Leinster South in both Under-16 and 18 girls competitions.

NUIG meet Avoca in the women’s Irish Hockey Trophy, a tie postponed from before Christmas.

 

Saturday 5th February 2022

Men 

EYHL Division 1: Banbridge v Three Rock Rovers, Havelock Park, 4.15pm; Lisnagarvey v Annadale, Comber Road, 3pm; Monkstown v Pembroke Wanderers, Rathdown, 2.15pm; UCD v Corinthian, Belfield, 2.50pm; YMCA v Glenanne, Wesley College, 2.15pm

Women 

EYHL Division 1: Belfast Harlequins v Pegasus, Deramore Park, 2.30pm; Catholic Institute v Old Alexandra, Rosbrien, 1pm; Loreto v Pembroke Wanderers, Beaufort, 1pm; Railway Union v Cork Harlequins, Park Avenue, 1.30pm; UCD v Muckross, Belfield, 1pm

Irish Hockey Trophy: NUIG v Avoca, Dangan, 1.50pm

Sunday 6th February 2022

Women 

Irish Under 16/18/21 Inter Provincials 

U16 Interpros: Munster v Ulster, Grange Road, 2.45pm; Leinster v Leinster South, Grange Road, 5pm

U18 Interpros: Munster v Ulster, Grange Road, 4.45pm; Leinster v Leinster South, Grange Road, 3pm

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