Week 2 of top hockey was jam-packed.
Here’s everything you need to know from Week 2:
MEN
Banbridge V Cookstown 7-1
Goals (Banbridge: J McKee x 4, J Rowe, C Rowe, P Brown; Cookstown: E Cruickshank)
Lisnagarvey V Monkstown 2-2
Goals (Lisnagarvey: M McNellis, T Chambers; Monkstown:S Cole, L Cole)
Glenanne V YMCA 3-4
Goals (Glenanne: S O Donoghue, TBC x 2; YMCA: G Glutz, H McCarthy, T Kok, R Senderson)
Instonians V Annadale 3-4
Goals (Instonians: B Palmer, M Watt, G Lecky; Annadale: D Tremlett, C Robson, A McAllister x 2)
Pembroke Wanderers V Three Rock Rovers 2-3
Goals (Pembroke: T Butler, C Hynes; TRR: M Romoli, J Hoskings, P Lynch)
Banbridge took on Ulster rivals Cookstown at Havelock park where a flurry of goals saw them come out 7-1 on top. Johnny McKee netted four goals in total from play with Jake Rowe finding the back of the goal from a penalty corner. Charlie Rowe got on the scoreboard in the 23rd minute to make it 4-0 before Johnny KcKee scored his third with some great passing moves to beat the goalkeeper. Peter Brown took his chance with the last goal in the first half which meant that Cookstown faced the dauting challenge of coming into the second half 6-0 down. However they fought hard and held off the Banbridge attack with some strong defending and teamwork only broken once by McKee as his netted his fourth and final goal of the game. A neat bit of play from Cookstown in the Banbridge circle led to a PC in the 46th minute which Cruickshank put away to score Cookstown’s single goal for the match. Wishing Mark Cuddy a speedy recovery after taking a knock in todays game.
Monkstown travelled up the road to face off against Lisnagarvey in a repeat of the 2022 EYHL Champions Trophy Semi Final. Both teams started off strong with the first PC to Garvey in the first few minutes saved by James Milliken. A lot of play in the middle of the field saw some breakout chances for both teams but neither able to find the killer pass to score. More corners on both sides but nothing doing and not too much pressure on the keepers with the defenders on both sides staying strong and it was 0-0 at half time. Finally on the 42nd minute Stephen Cole broke the deadlock and took Monkstown in to the lead 0-1. This goal opened the way for more and Lee Cole slotted the second past the keeper with Monkstown now 0-2 up. But Garvey came back strong with Mark McNellis slamming the ball into the goal to see quarter three end with just a goal in it. Into the final quarter and on the 60th minute Troy Chambers found a driving run and with a super finish made it 2-2. Garvey went down to 10 players with 3 minutes of play and with 90 seconds left a Garvey PC was cleared off the line with the final score staying at 2-2.
A minutes silence held in memory of club member Terry Cooney and then Dublin rivals Glenanne and YMCA took to the pitch. YMCA took the strong start to the match scoring twice in quick succession and holding off the Glenanne forwards to hold the lead 0-2 into the second quarter. Remaining firmly in control another goal saw Glenanne enter the second half 0-3 down with the goals coming from Grant Glutz, Harry McCarthy and Tevin Kok. But the second half saw Glenanne come back fighting, a Penalty stroke was converted by Shane O Donoghue and another goal in the fourth corner saw Glenanne come back to 2-3 with all to fight for. Ross Senderson put away a strong strike for YMCA which was very quickly responded to with another Glenanne PC finding the backboard. But YMCA held out and the match ended Glenanne 3-4 YMCA.
Instonians welcomed Annadale for a friday night fixture with a total of 7 goals as well as a smattering of card and some fast paced hockey with plenty of drama for those who came out to watch. the first quarter passed with no goals but plenty of testing from each team with passing around the back trying to find a way past the strong defences. Instonians were the first to find a way past the defence with Benjamin Palmer scoring from a PC. Annadale found their break in the 30th minutes when David Tremlett scored from a PC of their own to see the two teams go into the second half even at 1-1. The third quarter saw a lot of action with Instonians again taking the lead with a second goal from a PC this time by Michael Watt and when Callum Robson scored from play to bring it back even there was no waiting around with Gavin Lecky making it 3-2 within two minutes. The final quarter saw tensions rise with a series of cards and two Annadale goals from play in the 59th and 67th minutes both from Adam McAllister. The final score was 3-4 with Annadale going home with the points.
Pembroke closed off their double header this weekend with the men’s team taking on Three Rock Rovers in their opening game of the season. Mateo Romoli got the play underway quickly with the first goal scored in the second minute taking Three Rock Rovers into the lead. A lot of play around the middle saw the two teams scope out each others playing styles and it wasnt until the 31st minute that Three Rock Rovers found a way through again, this time Jody Hosking finding the backboard. Pembroke quickly found their stride and when Three Rock Rovers picked up a yellow card Traoloch Butler completed the PC with a drag flick high into the right hand corner to end the half 1-2. Quarter three passed quickly with some nice play from both teams but it was Three Rock that found added to the score sheet with Peter Lynch scoring from play. With four minutes left on the clock Cillian Hynes scored with a back post deflection but Three Rock held strong in the last minutes to win the match 3-2.
WOMEN
Loreto V Monkstown 3-2
Goals (Loreto: R Kelly x 3; C O Reilly, E Kealy)
Old Alex V Catholic Institute 1-1
Goals (Old Alex: A Russell; Catholic Institute: C Moloney)
Railway Union V UCD 1-1
Goals (Railway: L Llyod; UCD: M Carey)
Pembroke Wanderers V Pegasus 2-2
Goals (Pembroke: S Young, L McGuire; Pegasus: E Quinn, L McKee)
Belfast Harlequins V Ards 1-5
Goals (Belfast Harlequins: S McCollum; Ards: E Robinson, Z Malseed x 3, A Carson)
Monkstown started off their 2022-23 season against Loreto where Loreto’s Rachel Kelly started the scoring with a nice bit of play leading to a goal in the 7th minute. The first quarter ended 1-0 to Loreto but Monkstown had some chances. The Loreto midfield and forward line linked up well throughout the second quarter and with a lot of pressure from the Monkstown front line the defence held strong to keep it 1-0 into half time. A very even game by all accounts until Rachel Kelly really got going, a hat trick scored before Monkstown had a chance to come back. But they did fight hard to do so, with two goals coming in the 63rd and the 66th minute from Claire O Reilly and Emily Kealy.
Catholic Institute travelled up to Old Alex for their first away match of the season with a large crowd of supporters which saw them draw 1-1. Both teams were very even with the defences rarely being tested in the first quarter. Catholic Institute were the first to score from a PC neatly dispatched by Ciara Moloney. Old Alex came back without too much time in between to score from play with the goal going to Abbie Russell. Going down to 10 for four minutes of the third quarter with two green cards in quick succession they defended well with Catholic Institute unable to get back on the score sheet. Some chances on both sides were firmly defending and then in the 67 minute when a yellow card put Catholic Institute down to 10 Loreto tried to take the tempo up a notch but Catholic Institute stayed strong and saw out the last few minutes for a 1-1 draw.
Railway Unions new pitch saw its first EYHL action this weekend against UCD. A corner for UCD in the 9th minute was not stopped and Railway was quickly onto the counter attack with the home team getting a PC of their own which went wide. An even contest in the first quarter with the only action in the circle being from those two corners. Then in the 22nd minute a goal from play by UCD’s Michelle Carey saw the away team take the lead for two minutes until Railway equalised with a long pass from Emma Smyth finding Lily Lloyd who flicks into the goal past the advancing keeper. Some action in the second quarter saw Ellie McLoughlin make a fine save from a Railway drag flick. A flurry of corners on both sides followed but at half time it remained 1-1. The third quarter remained even with few chances to score so it was all to play for in the final quarter. A yellow card for Railway put them down to 10 but UCD could not find the advantage and the game finished up 1-1.
Pembroke women started off the double header event facing off against Pegasus with a large crowd of supporters cheering for the home team. The first quarter saw some strong play from both teams but Pegasus came out on top with a PC converted by Emma Quinn. A strong chance for Pembroke came when Amy Kate Trevor flashed a shot across the d but no deflections saw the ball go over the back line. The second quarter saw Pembroke with most of the possession and chances and a goal for Sarah Young assisted by Sally Campbell equalised the match. Two PC for Pegasus were well defended with clears from both the keeper and off the line from the defence. A number of attempts from Pembroke came close but at half time it remained 1-1. Pegasus were quick off the whistle and two corners in a row were defending well by the Pembroke defence but Lucy McKee eventually finds a way past in a PC. The third quarter needed a push from Pembroke and they found it with a second equaliser, this time from Leah McGuire in a PC. With strong chances for both teams in the last 10 minutes neither managed to finish things off and the game ended 2-2.
An Ulster Derby saw Belfast Harlequins meet Ards in a high goal match at Deramore. Quins took the lead after 3 minutes with Susie McCollum finding the goal from play but Ards didnt wait around with Emma Reid creating space from a great pass in the centre and Ellen Robinson finding a way into the circle to make it 1-1. The second quarter saw a lot of pressure from Ards with Suzie Parkes making a great save in goal facing a Zara Malseed reverse stick. The third quarter was fairly evenly contested until Zara was given space to run, a good first save from the keeper but a rebound not cleared gave Malseed another chance to make it 1-2 and in quick succession Carson makes it 1-3 for Ards. Some strong attacking from Quins but nothing came and the ball moved up the other end, a PC for Ards with a straight strike by Malseed and it was 1-4. In the 68th minute with a strong reverse stick Malseed gets the hat trick and Quins found no response. Final score 5-1.