Saturday, March 14: A busy weekend of EY Hockey League matchups saw our EYHL1 league leaders reaffirm their grasp on the table, while the battle for EYHL2 promotion remains on a knife edge as the leading sides share the spoils.
In the Women’s EYHL, Old Alex picked up a huge home win over Pegasus to boost their survival hopes in the first of two crucial outings this weekend. Ulster Elks came away with a bonus-point draw in their all-university clash against UCD to remain level on points with Old Alex in the table. Loreto also re-established themselves at the top of the table, coming away with an away win over Portadown.
In the Men’s EYHL, Lisnagarvey and Banbridge played out an eight-goal thriller on Comber Road as Three Rock Rovers came from behind on three occasions to earn a draw against the reigning champions. However, Lisnagarvey had the last laugh, taking the bonus point from the shootout. Banbridge held out in a tight affair against Pembroke to record another win and strengthen their league title push. Avoca came from a goal down to record a comprehensive 5–1 win over visiting Cork C of I, strengthening their hopes of a play-off place. YMCA did the same, securing a 3–1 win at home to Cookstown to remain two points adrift of Avoca with a game in hand.
In the Women’s EYHL2, Avoca and Ards played out a tense 0–0 draw in Newpark, with the hosts taking a potentially crucial bonus point from the shootout as they look to gain promotion for the very first time. Monkstown climbed to second place with a narrow 1–0 win over in-form University of Galway, while Belfast Harlequins edged out Lisnagarvey to record their second win of the campaign.
In the Men’s EYHL2, Portrane came away with a potentially crucial bonus point after a thrilling draw in Donabate that saw Cork Harlequins score in the final two minutes, after Portrane had taken the lead just two minutes earlier. Queen’s University put Clontarf to the sword, winning 8–3 at the Dub. South Antrim made it a worthwhile trip to Cork, securing a comfortable win over Bandon. Instonians came out on top in an Ulster derby against CI Annadale to keep pace with Portrane and Cork Harlequins at the top of the table. Bray also took the bonus point in the shootout after a scoreless draw with Catholic Institute.
EY Hockey League – Results
EY Hockey League Division 1 – Women
Old Alex 2 – 0 Pegasus
Portadown 1 – 2 Loreto
Ulster Elks 2 [4 – 3] 2 UCD
Women’s EYHL Standings
- Loreto – 33pts
- Railway Union – 30pts
- UCD – 25pts
- Queen’s University – 20pts
- Pegasus – 20pts
- Portadown – 16pts
- Old Alex – 15pts
- Ulster Elks – 15pts
- Pembroke Wanderers – 14pts
- Catholic Institute – 13pts
EY Hockey League Division 1 – Men
Avoca 5 – 1 Cork C of I
Lisnagarvey 4 [9 – 8] 4 Three Rock Rovers
Banbridge 3 – 2 Pembroke Wanderers
Men’s EYHL Standings
- Banbridge – 29pts
- Lisnagarvey – 26pts
- Monkstown – 22pts
- Three Rock Rovers – 20pts
- Pembroke Wanderers – 20pts
- Avoca – 19pts
- YMCA – 17pts
- Corinthian – 13pts
- Cookstown – 6pts
- Cork C of I 5pts
EY Hockey League Division 2 – Women
Monkstown 1 – 0 University of Galway
Trinity Ladies’ 1 – 4 UCC
Avoca 0 [4 – 3] 0 Ards
Lisnagarvey 0 – 1 Belfast Harlequins
Women’s EYHL2 Standings
- Ards – 11pts
- UCC – 11pts
- Monkstown – 10pts
- Avoca – 9pts
- University of Galway – 6pts
- Belfast Harlequins – 6pts
- Cork Harlequins – 3pts
- Trinity Ladies’ – 1pt
- Lisnagarvey – 0pts
EY Hockey League Division 2 – Men
Bray 0 [2 – 0] 0 Catholic Institute
Bandon 1 – 5 South Antrim
Portrane 3 [4 – 2] 3 Cork Harlequins
CI Annadale 2 – 5 Instonians
Queen’s University 8 – 3 Clontarf
Men’s EYHL2 Standings
- Cork Harlequins – 12pts
- Portrane – 11pts
- Instonians – 10pts
- Queen’s University – 9pts
- South Antrim – 6pts
- Clontarf – 6pts
- Catholic Institute – 4pts
- CI Annadale – 3pts
- Bray – 3pts
- Bandon – 2pts