Irish Weekend Highlights

Although the men’s IJC progresses to the Quarter finals and the ESB & Men’s Junior Interprovincials take place this weekend many eyes will be on the ESB Irish hockey league as the women progress through to the final round of the 2009/2010 Irish Hockey League. The top two of each pool will qualify for the finals weekend which is taking place on the 15th / 16th May. As a result of the IHL and Junior Interpros the women’s branch leagues remain somewhat diminished this weekend.

ESB IRISH HOCKEY LEAGUE Round 5

In pool A all matches are scheduled for a 1pm hit off and with that there are some very exciting clashes on offer. In Park Avenue, the top two clash but the curtain raiser will be an U16’s match between Railway and Pembroke at 11.00 in Park Avenue where the up and coming talent in the 2 clubs will be on show. The main event at 1pm sees the top two and unbeaten teams in the pool pitched against each other. Despite Railway having already won the group this will be a close fought game as Pembroke need to win to be assured of second place. These derby games are always fiercely contested and both teams will be hoping all their players are fully fit as the heavy hockey schedule at this time of the year is starting to take its toll. Spectators will be entertained by a ‘hit the cross bar’ competition for the colts at half time.

Elsewhere in Pool A Cork Harlequins are on the cusp of securing a place in the final two if results go their way when they take on Ards with a home advantage. The cork contingent are currently on 9 points just one adrift of Pembroke’s ten so they will be very keen to leapfrog the Pembroke side so they can secure the coveted spot in the finals in May.

The final game in Pool A is between Cork C of I and Ballymoney with both sides looking to secure their first win in the IHL this year and avoid the wooden spoon there is still plenty to play for even though the thought of qualification is off the table for both teams.

In Pool B (all start times 3pm) the big game to watch will be when Hermes will make the short journey to Rathfarnham to face their Leinster rivals and defending IHL champions Loreto in a game that will decide who progresses through to the finals weekend. A draw is enough for Hermes but nothing less than a win for Loreto will do. This match promises to be a great game between these arch rivals, however Hermes will have to cope with the loss of services from Captain Jenny Burke who is expecting her second child but in her absence International Deirdre Duke has stepped into her shoes hitting the net regularly in the last few matches the squad will also now be marshalled by Christine Quinlan who has taken over the captains armband. Loreto will be in no mood to let go of the title they won last year and with the highly skilled players and competitive nature of these two sides this is without a doubt the stand out fixtures of this pool’s concluding round.

Elsewhere table toppers Pegasus currently reside on 12 points will be quite confident of progressing through to the finals weekend when they face Randalstown this weekend who are yet to record their first win in this league. Pegasus have a perfect four from four record and will be keen to keep that in tact as they power forward towards the finals weekend. The final match in Pool B is between Old Alex and UCC neither of whom have done have done enough for a shot at a semi finals spot this year however, this year was their first foray into the Irish Hockey League and both sides have put in some fine performances.

Leinster Men

In Leinster Division One this weekend it’s crunch time for Glenanne as they face the tough prospect of three games in four days that could go a long way in deciding the destination of the title. First up for the Tallaght side is the visit of Three Rock Rovers on Thursday night. Rovers themselves could do with putting some points on the board, with YMCA and Monkstown breathing down their necks for next season’s IHL places. Saturday sees Fingal travel to Tallaght, with Sunday’s game against Pembroke completing a home triple-header for the Glens. Wanderers are the only team to register a league victory against Glenanne this season, and the Ballsbridge club will be hoping to repeat this feat as they still have very realistic title aspirations themselves. Current leaders Corinthian entertain Three Rock on Saturday as their impressive season continues. They will be very interested onlookers in Tallaght as the two sides below them play out a game that is huge for them as well. Pembroke face a difficult weekend double, beginning against Monkstown on Saturday. The Glenageary club sit just outside the IHL places as it currently stands and will be hoping to upset Pembroke in Rathdown, before facing doomed Clontarf on Sunday. The North Dubliners could have a big say in IHL qualification this weekend if they can defy the odds and take something from either YMCA on Saturday or Monkstown on Sunday.

Munster Men:

Cork Harlequins head in to a busy weekend as they look to keep the pressure on league leaders Church of Ireland, but standing in their way are UCC and Bandon. ‘Quins take on the students on Saturday in Mount Mercy College; a ground they will not have fond memories of having been dumped out of the Irish Senior Cup by Lisnagarvey on their last outing at this pitch. UCC have plenty to play for in this match as their battle with Bandon for the IHL wildcard spot continues. ‘Quins travel to Bandon Grammar School on Sunday, a venue where they know goals come at a premium. ‘Quins will have to work hard to break down the Bandon defence who are notoriously hard to score against at home.

Munster Women:

It is a battle of the bottom two as Ashton welcome UL to Ashton School in what should be a close affair.

Ulster Women:

The premier league for the women takes place both tonight and on Friday evening this week. Randalstown v Quins tonight should go in Quins favour if the league tables are anything to go by, Randalstown are just 3 from the bottom at the moment. Victorians v Pegasus should see Pegasus secure a few more points on the board and Victorians will have a very tough task this evening as they are currently facing relegation to Senior 1. Although the mighty Pegasus were held to a 3-3 with Elks at the week end which was not expected by the girls in red. Armagh who are on a high having secured a 3-0 win over Ards last Saturday will be keen to continued their winning ways when they take on Lisnagarvey who are bottom half of league.