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Hockey Ireland Stands With Ukraine

Hockey Ireland is extremely shocked and deeply concerned by the invasion of #Ukraine and the escalation of violence and pro-war rhetoric.  

We join our voices to the calls for peace uttered all over the world and want to express our full support and solidarity with the people of Ukraine and with the Ukrainian Hockey Federation and all Ukrainian athletes. 

Conscious that words are not enough, we want to encourage our hockey community – in conjunction with the European Hockey Federation – to take action.   

The following Irish organisations are responding to humanitarian needs in Ukraine today: 

The Irish Emergency Alliance   

The Irish Emergency Alliance is made up of of ActionAid, Christian Aid, Plan International, Self Help Africa, Tearfund, Trócaire and World Vision.  

Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians fled their country and the horror of war, most via Poland. Many of them will soon try to travel to the various European countries that are willing to welcome them. 

If you are ready to offer temporary shelter to refugees, you can register via the following link: 

You can also choose to make a financial donation through a recognised NGO you trust such as:

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EYHL’s big decisions coming into focus on all fronts

A bumper 12 EY Hockey League top tier games and four vital EYHL2 fixtures makes for another exciting weekend as the formal prizes come ever closer into view.

After six rounds of hot potato, Lisnagarvey will hope to be the first side since November to hold onto the leadership of the men’s EY Hockey League.

Their win last Saturday over Three Rock Rovers provided a significant statement of intent and the expectation, on paper, is they would back it up against ninth placed Pembroke at home.

But the Dublin 4 side have already beaten third placed Glenanne in 2022 while Alan Sothern has come back after injury to score six times in two games.

It is their travails at the far end that has left them vulnerable, conceding on average almost four a game. Garvey were shy the services of international star Ben Nelson last week but his older brothers Matthew and Daniel bring further firepower while Ollie Kidd is maturing at serious pace.

Three Rock host Corinthian in the Marlay derby with the former dropping back off first last week after some rejigging of their forward line-up.

Corinthian have had a bit of a mixed bag of late as coach Brinsley Powell settles into the role full-time having arrived in Ireland in January. They drew with a remarkable late salvo against Garvey before losing 6-1 at home to Monkstown

Glenanne, level with Three Rock, have a real test when they go to Banbridge who – like Monkstown – are making a strong charge for the top spots.

The Glens are another who have suffered with players away while Bann host this one off the back of eight games unbeaten while Louis Rowe looking like a prodigious talent in their forward line. The last loss, though, was against Glenanne in October.

At the bottom, there is a mathematical equation that could see UCD relegated by Saturday evening if everything conspires against them. Their only point to date came against YMCA and they will need to outdo that performance on Saturday at Wesley to keep hopes of a miraculous comeback alive.

For the Y, though, another victory would all but assure them safety, leaving Corinthian, Pembroke and Annadale in the scrap to avoid relegation.

Monkstown are up against Annadale – the Ulster side produced an incredible comeback in their first meeting this season having trailed 3-0 to tie 3-3. Town have started 2022 well, winning three in a row, scoring 14 times in the process.

On the women’s side, it is a massive weekend with seven EYHL fixtures potentially set to have a big impact on the destination of the league title and the playoff places.

In some ways, Railway Union could be the swing-vote. They face the two main challengers, Pembroke on Saturday and then second placed Catholic Institute on Sunday.

For the Park Avenue outfit, it has been a hectic recent schedule with European indoors followed by a large tranche of their players being involved in the indoor series between Ireland and South Africa.

Pembroke re-established a four-point lead last Sunday with a narrow 2-1 success at Cork Harlequins, breaking a run of two successive draws that had seen their lead cut back briefly to the minimum.

Insta have been on a stunning run, scoring 27 times in five successive wins but this weekend is probably their biggest test. Saturday sees them welcome Pegasus – fourth place after back-to-back defeats – before that Railway tie in Dublin at 5pm on Sunday evening.

Third place Old Alex have a busy weekend, too, starting off against Muckross on Saturday before going north to Pegasus on Sunday. The MIlltown club have lost just once in their last nine games to stay very much in the frame in case of slips from the sides above them.

There remains a serious battle between Loreto (fifth), Railway (sixth) and UCD (seventh) to secure the quarter-final playoff places. For Loreto, they are up against Belfast Harlequins while UCD host Cork Harlequins needing results to stay in contention for a top six finish.

In EYHL2 Group 2, Monkstown became the first side mathematically guaranteed a playoff place last week when they ran up an 8-1 win at Garryduff against Cork C of I with Anna O’Flanagan scoring a hat trick.

Should they win at home against NUIG, the likelihood is they will add the automatic semi-final berth in the playoffs with a couple of games still to play.

Ards’ Zara Malseed lines up a shot against Corinthian. Pic: Adrian Boehm

Lurgan against C of I looks to be the key game in the playoff chase as third place faces fourth, the former leading the latter by two points.

In Group 1, Ards are on the brink of formalising some sort of a promotion playoff spot thanks to their 3-1 win over Corinthian last Saturday with Amy Benson netting twice and Ellen Robinson getting in on the act.

That gives them a five-point lead in Group 1 over the reds and they will be going all out now to top the table and go straight into the semi-final spots. They face third placed UCC who want to put some more distance between themselves and Trinity.

Corinthian will be hoping Ards slip in their closing games to open the door but they need to win their remaining ties, starting with away to Galway this weekend.

Elsewhere, the Irish Hockey Trophy sees Ashton make the long trip to Raphoe in their refixed semi-final.

Saturday 5th March 2022
Men
EYHL Division 1: Banbridge v Glenanne, Havelock Park, 2.45pm; Lisnagarvey v Pembroke, Comber Road, 2pm; Monkstown v Annadale, Rathdown, 4pm; Three Rock Rovers v Corinthian, Grange Road, 12.30pm; YMCA v UCD, Wesley College, 4.45pm

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

EYHL Division 2 – Pool 1: Ards v UCC, Londonderry Park, 2.30pm; Galway v Corinthian, Dangan, 1pm
Pool 2: Lurgan v Cork C of I, Lurgan JHS, 1pm; Monkstown v NUIG, Rathdown, 2.10pm

Irish Hockey Trophy, semi-final: Raphoe v Ashton, Royal and Prior, 1pm

Sunday 6th March 2022
Women
EYHL Division 1: Pegasus v Old Alex, Malone Playing Fields, 1pm; Railway Union v Catholic Institute, Park Avenue, 5pm

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Dancer names training panel of 25 as World Cup schedule confirmed

Hockey Ireland senior women’s coach Sean Dancer has named a training panel of 25 players ahead of a busy 2022 which includes July’s World Cup and August’s EuroHockey Championship qualifiers.

This latest squad announcement was confirmed in the week the World Cup schedule and ticket details went on sale. Ireland will open their campaign against the world number one Dutch side in Amsterdam’s Wagener Stadium on Saturday, July 2nd before facing Chile on Tuesday, July 5th and Germany on Wednesday, July 6th. Irish fans are encouraged to buy their tickets in the South Stand (High – Section F) to form a strong supporter’s block.

As for the Irish panel, it will feature 13 Olympians and 17 players who helped Ireland qualify for the World Cup last October in Pisa with Katie Mullan continuing her role as captain of the Green Army.

At the other end of the spectrum, uncapped players Holly Micklem, Caoimhe Perdue, Charlotte Beggs, Síofra O’Brien, Ellie McLoughlin, Katherine Egan and Katie-Jane Marshall all have their chance to shine in the coming months.

This selection follows a highly productive training camp in Antibes where Ireland won 3-0 and 4-0 against the French hosts in uncapped fixtures which gave coach Dancer plenty of food for thought.

Ireland’s women’s World Cup schedule

“Our recent trip to France provided an excellent opportunity to see how our wider squad performed,” he said of this latest selection. “Some stand-out performances from Charlotte, Caoimhe, Holly and Síofra has allowed them to gain inclusion into the national group for our next period of training and competition.

“This is a really exciting year ahead with lots of different challenges. The talent coming through is really strong and the program we have in place with the support of Sport Ireland and Sport NI, along with our sponsors SoftCo, Park Developments and Saba, puts us in a great place to flourish.”

The squad also includes Barr twins Bethany and Serena who are both on the recovery trail having both sustained ACL knee injuries in 2021. Their return to full involvement will be monitored over the coming months.

This selection round, unfortunately, has come too soon for Zoe Wilson who continues to work her way back from a knee injury. Chloe Watkins and Anna O’Flanagan are also unavailable for the summer’s activities.

From this panel of 25, a squad will next be selected for a series at Bisham Abbey against Great Britain which runs from Sunday, March 13 to Friday, March 18. A further camp will be held in the Netherlands from Sunday, March 27 to Friday, April 1.

Ireland’s World Cup opposition were confirmed last Thursday with the Green Army set to face the world number one side the Netherlands, Germany and Chile in Amsterdam.

Reflecting on that line-up, Dancer added: “Holland and Germany are two of the strongest teams in world hockey, what a great chance to test ourselves at a major event! Chile performed well at the recent Pan Am’s and deserved their place. They will have nothing to lose, and we will certainly not be taking them lightly.”

Ireland senior women’s panel for spring 2022 (club/caps)
Ayeisha McFerran (GK, SV Kampong, 113 )
Róisín Upton (Catholic Institute, 89)
Lena Tice (Old Alex, 122)
Katie Mullan (Captain, Ballymoney, 206)
Sarah Hawkshaw (Railway Union, 46)
Deirdre Duke (Old Alex, 154)
Naomi Carroll (Catholic Institute, 121)
Elizabeth Murphy (GK, Loreto, 13)
Hannah McLoughlin (UCD, 26)
Sarah McAuley (UCD, 9)
Michelle Carey (UCD, 10)
Sarah Torrans (Loreto, 33)
Zara Malseed (Ards, 7)
Holly Micklem (GK, Old Alex, 0)
Caoimhe Perdue (UCC, 0)
Charlotte Beggs (Ulster Elks, 0)
Síofra O’Brien (Loreto, 0)
Ellie McLoughlin (GK, UCD, 0)
Erin Getty (Queen’s, 11)
Jane Kilpatrick (Belfast Harlequins, 1)
Katherine Egan (UCD, 0)
Beth Barr (Belfast Harlequins, 20)
Serena Barr (Belfast Harlequins, 10)
Katie-Jane Marshall (UCD, 0)
Niamh Carey (UCD, 3)

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Fingal Hockey Development Officer Vacancy

Hockey Ireland (in partnership with Fingal CoCo and Leinster Hockey) is seeking to employ a Development Officer within the Fingal County Council catchment area . The aim of the Fingal Hockey Development Officer (FHDO) is to grow participation of hockey in the Fingal administrative area by facilitating the promotion of sustainable participation opportunities within clubs and schools.  

The objectives of the role are: 

  • To support clubs in the region to become stronger and more sustainable   
  • To facilitate training of volunteers, coaches and umpires   
  • To grow participation through recruitment and retention initiatives 
  • Growing Hockey through community and school engagement 

For more information see Job Description here: 

To apply please send your CV to sue.haslam@hockey.ie. Closing date is 18th March 2022.

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Upcoming Fundamentals of Umpiring Module 1 Q&A session – 10th March

The First Fundamentals of Umpiring Module 1 Q&A session of 2022 is coming up.

International Umpire Ellie Duffy will be taking the online Q&A session on the 10th March at 7.30pm

To take part in this online Q&A session you must have fully completed your Fundamentals of Umpiring Module 1 through our eLearning Hub https://hockeyirelandhub.ie/

You also need to take part in a Q&A session to complete the practical module 2 session.

To book onto this online Q&A session please email linda.monaghan@hockey.ie

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Pembroke rebuild four-point lead in women’s EYHL as Insta emerge as main challengers

Women’s EYHL Division One – day 13 round-up
Old Alex 1 (Nikki Evans) Pembroke 1 (Gillian Pinder)
Old Alex and Pembroke shared the spoils from an extremely hard-fought tussle in Milltown with World Cup silver medalists Nikki Evans and Gillian Pinder trading goals.

Alex were first to strike just 68 seconds into the contest when Evans pounced on some dither in defence, picking up the ball on the circle’s edge and unleashing a brilliant reverse stick shot to match her one from a week ago.

The hosts had the momentum in this phase with Emma Russell’s shot well saved by Emma Buckley while their first of five penalty corners slipper just wide.

With a higher press in Q2, Pembroke had more of the play as they pinned Alex back for spells as both goalkeepers pulled off key stops. Emily Beatty’s quick shot was parried away by Holly Micklem while Buckley slid out to smother the menacing Mikayla Power.

Martha McCready had a huge chance snuffed out on the goal line by Micklem and the goalkeeper produced the pick of the saves from the follow-up penalty corner when she somehow blocked a corner deflected from Sally Campbell.

The equaliser for Pembroke arrived in the third quarter when Pembroke’s press swallowed up the Alex midfield, turning over ball on the 23m line. Ellen Curran slipped the ball right to Pinder who flicked across goal with a defensive intervention turning the ball in.

While Pembroke had slightly more of the ball, Alex were the ones who had the chances down the closing stretch with Evans hitting the side-netting from a corner move while two further penalty corners were blocked down in the last five minutes.

Belfast Harlequins 1 (J Watt) UCD 3 (A Naughton R Kelly, E Paul)
UCD kept up their push for a playoff place as they won well at Deramore Park, putting 10 points between them and their Saturday hosts.

The students started the livelier, forcing a corner in the first three minutes which was eventually cleared. Harlequins sustained the early pressure and started to ease up the pitch but an unfortunate slip in midfield allowed a ball through to the danger zone and Aine Naughton scored on her reverse. Although the play evened out, UCD found Michelle Carey in space on the right and she used her considerable pace to get to the byline and cross to Rachel Kelly at the left post for their second of the game.

Quarter 2 was a more even affair with some exciting hockey. Belfast Harlequins had their best chance to score from a corner but the UCD keeper made a fine save. Likewise, Q3 was honours even with not much circle penetration for either team but nonetheless entertaining hockey.

It heated up in the final quarter with Quins going down to 10 players but still found some slick two-touch hockey to get on the scoreboard as Sophie Hunter drove into the circle and made a crucial pass to Jenna Watt on the left. Watt made no mistake with the goal: 2-1.

Quins continued to press but a debated penalty corner for UCD, along with a yellow card for Natalie Lyttle, proved definitive. Emma Paul’s shot from that set piece took a deflection to kill off the result and a further yellow for the hosts stymied any hopes of a late charge.

Loreto’s Sarah Torrans gets away from Pegasus’s Emma Quinn. Pic Billy Pollock

Pegasus 0 Loreto 4 (H Matthews, S O’Brien, G Donald, S Torrans)
Loreto ran up a big win away to Pegasus to continue their hot and cold season, putting a dent in the Ulster side’s title hopes while giving their chances of a playoff place an extra pep in its step.

After a scoreless first half, Olympian Hannah Matthews broke the deadlock in the third quarter and they spun out into a 3-0 advantage courtesy of Siofra O’Brien and Grace Donald.

Pegs withdrew their goalkeeper Megan Todd for an extra outfielder for parts of the fourth quarter in a concerted bid to try and grab something from the game but it backfired with Sarah Torrans scoring into an open net. The defeat sees Pegasus drop into fourth place.

Railway Union 2 (L Lloyd, E Smyth) Muckross 0
Railway spent much of the first half on the front foot with Muckross’s defence called on to make a series of important blocks with Aoife Glennon busy in goal while Julia Balcerzak and Ella Malone clearing up off the pads.

The first goal came on the half-hour as Sarah Hawkshaw cut in from the right wing and laid on a perfect slide-rule pass to set Lily Lloyd free. She dummied right to creat a narrower angle but, crucially, an extra sliver of space to flick home from close to the baseline at the near post.

The pattern was a similar one in the second half with Railway pushing on and Muckross defending feverishly with Hawkshaw’s pump at goal well blocked by Glennon. Lily Lloyd picked out her older sister Kate in behind the last defender for another great chance but she was unable to connect with her reverse-stick effort.

Muckross, though, developed as more and more of a threat as time wore on and – after a series of three corners – Catalina Paz Montino hit the post from the second phase of one set play.

Railway Union’s Sarah Hawkshaw takes on Muckross’s Becky McMullen. Picture: Max Fulham

But the vital second goal arrived in the 51st minute when Niamh Shaw, Lily Lloyd and Ailish Long combined down the left channel, getting the ball into the middle where Emma Smyth swept home.

Catholic Institute 6 (N Carroll 2, A Horan, R Upton, A Hickey, E Ryan) Cork Harlequins 1 (L O’Shea)
Catholic Institute closed the Saturday night gap to one point in the women’s EYHL with their fifth successive win. They did fall behind in the first 10 minutes when Leah O’Shea as the bottom side dreamt of a shock result.

But Insta were firing in the second quarter when Olympic duo Róisín Upton and Naomi Carroll combined, the latter finishing off to make it 1-1. Anna Horan put the Limerick side in front for the first time when she dragged in a penalty corner before half-time and Upton matched that feat on the other side of the break.

Aoife Hickey extended the lead to 4-1 and Upton’s hit was turned in by Elizabeth Ryan for another one. Carroll closed out the scoring for a comprehensive win.

Sunday: Cork Harlequins 1 (Beth-Anne O’Farrell) Pembroke 2 (Gillian Pinder, Aisling Naughton)
Pembroke restored some breathing room when they dug deep to beat Cork Harlequins 2-1. Beth-Anne O’Farrell had put Quins in line for a shock result with a 49th minute penalty corner goal but Pembroke rallied quickly with Pinder netting a penalty stroke and Rachel O’Brien got the winner in the 53rd minute.

Pembroke went on the attack from the start, drawing a series of excellent saves from Lorna Bateman while Quins were holding their own in trying to disrupt Pembroke’s flowing hockey in the first half. All the fireworks came in a four minute spell toward the end of the third quarter and while Quins fought hard in the closing quarter, Pembroke picked up three more precious points to rebuild a four-point lead at the top of the table.

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Lisnagarvey back on top of men’s EYHL with thrilling win

Men’s EY Hockey League – day 13 round-up
Three Rock Rovers 2 (R Canning) Lisnagarvey 3 (D Nelson, A Edgar, O Kidd)
Lisnagarvey won a top-table classic to move back to the top of the men’s EY Hockey League table as they beat previous leaders Three Rock Rovers 3-2.

It was their second successive win at Grange Road, winning 2-0 in the Irish Senior Cup a week ago, with this tie a far more open affair.

Garvey looked in good shape to win with something to spare when Ollie Kidd set up Daniel Nelson for a simple finish in the first half and Andy Edgar whipped in a penalty corner drag-flick.

But Rovers came storming back in the third quarter and got a deserved one back via Ross Canning’s outstanding reverse-stick shot that ripped into the netting.

Rovers looked well set to potentially level it in Q3 but Garvey steadied the ship and went into a 3-1 lead courtesy of Kidd’s goal from another set piece.

In the endgame, Peter Blakeney cracked a shot off the post with James Milliken getting an incredible touch to redirect it and the goalkeeper also brilliantly smothered Harry McMahon’s deflection.

James Walker smashed in a second for Rovers with two minutes to go before Matthew Nelson became the next player to rattle the metalwork with a powerful shot pinging off the crossbar.

It puts Garvey into a two-point lead at the head of the table with Rovers dropping back to second, level on points with Glenanne who were 5-2 winners over UCD.

“It’s been tough coming two weeks in a row here and it is always tough against these guys so delighted to come away with the points,” said goalkeeper Milliken post-match, highlighting how his side toughed up a concerted second half onslaught.

“We work really hard on our PCD [penalty corner defence] and it is one of our points of pride; sometimes its guys picking it off the line, sometimes are runners charging it down and occasionally I have to do a job!”

Lisnagarvey’s Troy Chambers and Three Rock Rovers’ Peter Blakeney. Pic: Adrian Boehm

It is the sixth successive round the lead has changed hands in the competition and Milliken says it keeps Garvey on alert that there is a long way to go.

“It is a significant win but we have to keep our feet on the ground. There’s five games left and a lot of teams playing well – Glenanne going well, Banbridge doing great stuff.

“You have to play well every week, have that as a baseline and not as a peak. Every team is working so hard this year and it is one of the most competitive years we’ve had and it forces you to be better every week.”

Annadale 2 (C Robson 2) YMCA 5 (H McCarthy 2, F Marriott 2, A Meates)
YMCA won a huge three-points at Annadale to move five points clear of the relegation zone and also give them a buffer in sixth place in the chase of the playoff places.

It took just two minutes for them to open the scoring with Harry McCarthy picking up the ball wide on the right and delivering an inviting cross for Fionn Marriott to deflect on his backhand.

There was just five minutes on the clock when Dale levelled, again a right-wing cross that was turned in first time, this one by Callum Robson with an open side slap. YM hit back when Scott Ruttle powered through the middle and while a couple of bodies were sent sprawling, Andrew Meates cracked home a reverse-stick shot for 2-1.

For the remainder of the half, Annadale laid siege to the YM circle but they could not make the most of five penalty corner opportunities. The visitors were proving far more efficient, through, as they grew their lead out to 3-1 in the third quarter as a diagonal overhead from Sam Hyland created an overload with the cross going to McCarthy to sweep in his first of the day.

Annadale bounced back with Michael Robson’s slip pass through to Callum Robson allowed the latter slam in his second, cutting the gap to 3-2. But they were wide open at the back and another long ball saw McCarthy through one-on-one with Sam Hamill and he rounded the goalkeeper fo 4-2.

Matthew Walker’s long overhead from left back made it all the way through to Marriott, again behind the last defender, and he slotted home with nine minutes to go and a big three points were assured.

Pembroke 3 (A Sothern 2, G Chambers) Banbridge 5 (Ph Brown, J McKee, O Magee, J Moffett, L Rowe)
Banbridge continued their excellent form, extending their run to eight games unbeaten as they won a goalfest at Serpentine Avenue. It was a measure of things to come that Owen Magee drew the first save from Ilko Dartsch just 10 seconds in.

Pembroke hit the front soon after when Greg Chambers cleaned up off the pads of Luke Roleston following an initial save from Cian Murphy. Bann replied with Philip Brown dragging down the middle from their first corner and they went 2-1 ahead from the penalty spot.

Annadale’s Michael Robson holds off YMCA’s Matthew Walker. Picture: Billy Pollock

Brown’s initially drag was parried high in the air where Jonny McKee batted it goalwards onto the body of Nick Burns; McKee slotted the stroke. It was 2-2 at half-time, though, as Sothern produced one of his trick moves at corner time, dribbling, lifting then bunting home from close range.

Bann restored their lead in the second half when, after some strong Pembroke blocks, a long corner was played to Magee whose shot from a tight angle snuck in. Josh Moffett made it 4-2 in the 44th minute when Alexander Tinney made it all the way up to Louis Rowe; he slipped the ball to Moffett who had a simple tap-in.

A direct Alan Sothern drag brought the contest back into focus but Banbridge killed off the game with nine minutes to go as the Co Down side hunted in packs to turn over the ball on halfway. The ball was fed forward to Rowe who was a handful all game and he dummied the goalkeeper before scoring.

Pembroke had a series of late corners but none hit the sweet spot and so they remain in ninth place while Bann move within two points of second place for the first time since the second day of the season.

Glenanne 5 (S O’Donoghue 4, G Gibney) UCD 2 (S Byrne, H Lynch)
Shane O’Donoghue netted two strokes and two corners to see Glenanne move back into second place with a 5-2 win at St Andrew’s. Gavin Gibney opened the scoring for the Glens with a diving finish to a backhand cross from the left-wing before the students replied with Sam Byrne finishing off in the wake of a turnover move on halfway.

But then O’Donoghue took over, making it 2-1 at half-time from the penalty spot after his initial drag hit a foot on the goal-line. He went direct to make it 3-1 with a direct shot, one which UCD countered with a corner goal of their own from Harry Lynch.

O’Donoghue, though, completed his hat trick in the 58th minute and he made the results extra safe with his second stroke, again awarded after his drag hit a UCD body on the line.

Corinthian 1 (P Caruth) Monkstown 6 (D Carson 2, L Cole 2, G Sarratt, M Gibbons)
Monkstown eased to a strong win over Corinthian to close the gap to the top of the table and put themselves in the frame for a possible top two finish and direct qualification for the EY Champions Trophy finals weekend.

It was 2-0 at half-time and while Peter Caruth got one back for the reds in the third quarter, Monkstown race off into the distance with Davy Carson and Lee Cole scoring twice each with Guy Sarratt and Mark Gibbons also chipping in.

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Vital weekend of EYHL, IHC and interpro action

It’s one of the busiest dates of the season thus far with 11 crucial EYHL top tier games, four more in EYHL2 along with Irish Hockey Challenge knock-out ties and men’s interpro action on Sunday.

In the men’s EYHL, Three Rock Rovers and Lisnagarvey reprise their Irish Senior Cup meeting from a week ago with top spot in the table up for grabs. Garvey won round one 2-0 with a composed performance but Rovers have a couple of forwards returning to the line-up who could make a difference.

In the bottom half of the table, there are loads of permutations with Annadale, YMCA, Corinthian and Pembroke all lying between the cusp of the EY Champions Trophy playoff places and possible relegation.

The pivotal tie looks to be Annadale’s hosting of YMCA; the lie one and two points above the drop zone respectively. Pembroke, meanwhile, will aim to carry their win over Glenanne into a home date with an in-form Banbridge.

Corinthian will look to the double over Monkstown to aid their chances while the Glens host UCD, the latter needing close to a miracle to avoid the drop.

In the Irish Hockey Challenge, Waterford will look to continue their dominant form when they host Mullingar in the quarter-final while Limerick welcome Midleton in the other tie.

On the women’s side, leaders Pembroke and bottom side Cork Harlequins face a double weekend with the two meeting on Sunday. Before that, Pembroke have a big test against third equal Old Alex on Saturday as they seek to maintain their lead at the top.

Any slip, though, could open the door for Catholic Institute to put on more pressure; they host Cork Quins in the Munster derby.

Pegasus face Loreto in another classic encounter while Railway Union will hope not to have too much fatigue in their legs following their indoor exertions when they welcome Muckross to Park Avenue.

In EYHL2, the two Pool 1 leaders are in action with Corinthian facing Ards at Whitechurch Park with both sitting on 17 points, 10 clear of UCC and Trinity. As such, it is a de facto battle for top spot while the two student sides meet in the other game to try and keep their playoff hopes going.

In Group 2, Monkstown take their perfect record to Cork C of I while second place Queen’s go to NUIG in search of points to maintain their hold on second spot.

The women’s Irish Hockey Challenge is at the semi-final stage with Clonakilty welcoming NICS while Wexford go up to Bangor in two of the longest journeys undertaken this season.

Sunday’s interpros see Ulster face Munster at Under-16, 18 and 21 level in the male competitions. Ulster will hope to keep their perfect record going in the younger two age groups while Munster are aiming to reprise their earlier 3-0 win over the northern province at Under-21 level.

Saturday 26th February 2022
Men
EYHL Division 1: Annadale v YMCA, Lagan College, 2.30pm; Corinthian v Monkstown, Whitechurch Park, 3.15pm; Glenanne v UCD, St. Andrews, 1.30pm; Pembroke v Banbridge, Serpentine Avenue, 2.30pm; Three Rock Rovers v Lisnagarvey, Grange Road, 3pm

Irish Hockey Challenge – Quarter-Finals: Limerick v Midleton, Villiers, 2pm; Waterford v Mullingar, Newtown, 1pm

Women
EYHL Division 1: Belfast Harlequins v UCD, Deramore Park, 12.45pm; Catholic Institute v Cork Harlequins, Rosbrien, 1pm; Old Alex v Pembroke, Milltown, 1.30pm; Pegasus v Loreto, Queens University, 12.45pm; Railway Union v Muckross, Park Avenue, 3pm

EYHL Division 2 – Pool 1: Corinthian v Ards, Whitechurch Park, 1.15pm; UCC v Trinity @ Mardyke, 2.30pm
Pool 2: Cork C of I v Monkstown, Garryduff, 3pm; NUIG v Queens University, Dangan, 1.50pm

Irish Hockey Challenge – Semi-Final: Bangor v Wexford, Bangor Aurora, 2.30pm; Clonakilty v NICS, Clonakilty, 2pm

Sunday 27th February 2022
Men
Interprovicincial series
Under-16: Ulster v Munster, Grange Road, 3pm
Under-18: Ulster v Munster, Grange Road, 3pm
Under-21: Ulster v Munster, Grange Road, 3pm

Women
EYHL Division 1: Cork Harlequins v Pembroke, Farmers’ Cross, 1.15pm

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Ireland land first indoor win over South Africa in SPAR series

SPAR Indoor Hockey Series
Ireland 3 (C Brown 2, M Power) South Africa 2 (J Lardant, K de Waal)
Chloe Brown’s penalty corner two minutes from time saw Ireland pick up their first ever indoor international win over South Africa at the seventh attempt on day one of the SPAR Indoor Hockey Series in Gormanston College.

She struck the odd goal in five of a cracking, physical contest with the Irish goalkeepers Millie Regan – in the first half – and Emma Buckley after half-time put in outstanding shifts.

Early on, the visitors – who won all six meetings between the sides in 2019 – made the early moves with Edith Molikoe going within inches of breaking the deadlock while Regan used all parts of her padding, including her helmet to keep out a few early chances.

The hosts, meanwhile, went in front when Orla Macken pulled out a range of skills and won a corner which Brown expertly slotted away.

Ireland moved two up in the second quarter when Mikayla Power cleaned up a bouncing effort in the middle of the circle.

South Africa, though, started their comeback in the seconds before half-time when Jessica Lardant responded with a corner shot, 2-1 at the break.

The third quarter went back and forth with the Kayla de Waal equalising for SA and they almost got another when Eloise Walters’ shot – in her 50th international match – deflected in, but high and slightly off target with her initial shot.

The home side were denied from three corners in the closing seconds of the third quarter before the ship steadied. There were chances a plenty but Ireland won a vital corner with just under two seconds to go; it was switched left where Brown slotted in.

South Africa had some late moments but Ireland managed to hold on for the result. The sides meet again each night this week with games on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday at 7pm and the game on Wednesday at 6pm.

Ireland: M Regan, O Macken, M Power, C Brown, O Fox, A Benson
Subs: E Buckley, S Patton, S Barnwell, K Kimber, L Graham, H Kelly

South Africa: N Serage, J Southgate, E Molikoe, E Walters, K de Waal, J O’Connor
Subs: D de Oliveira, T Kock, R Johnson, J Lardant, D van Taak, C Swanepoel

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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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