Railway Union 1 (Nikki Evans) Hermes 5 (Anna O'Flanagan 2, Jenny Burke, Chloe Watkins, Aine Connery)
Hermes blew the Leinster division one title chase wide open as they smashed Railway's perfect record to smithereens at Park Avenue this afternoon, rattling in three goals in the last quarter for an emphatic 5-1 win.
Both sides rested players, Niamh Atcheler and Emma Smyth, involved in the Irish set-up in midweek but the hosts showed few ill-effects when Nikki Evans broke the deadlock in the 10th minute with a brilliant combination with Jean McDonnell. They worked a fine trio of passes between to round the last defender and goalkeeper for Evans to roll in. That was as good as it got, though, for Railway who were pegged back inside three minutes.
Jenny Burke latched onto Aine Connery's 60-metre pass wide on the left-wing, raced away from two chasing defenders and rounded Helen Stevenson to equalise. And Chloe Watkins gave Hermes the lead before the break when she soloed right through the heart of the Railway circle, having started on the 22-metre line, and nudged past the keeper on her reverse side from four yards out.
And while Railway started the second half stronger, they were unable to create clear-cut chances. Hermes, by contrast were ruthless. The excellent Anna O'Flanagan set up the vital third, robbing the ball on the 22 and playing Aine Connery in to smash home. Stevenson was, by this point, playing through the pain barrier with a slight injury but was helpless to stop the fourth when O'Flanagan shot home from the middle of the circle and she completed the rout after Watkins drove into the danger zone and slipped the final ball to the play-maker. Hermes move top for the first time in the current campaign as a result.
Old Alex 1 (Nicola Grey) UCD 1 (Laura Wilson)
Trinity 0 Corinthian 0
Trinity missed out on a chance to break back into the top five as they were denied all three points by an inspired Siobhan Burke who kept a clean-sheet in the face of eight penalty corners. Katie Grehan and Caroline Murphy impressed for the students as the reds scarcely threatened at Santry but a scoreless draw leaves the sides where they were in mid-table.
Glenanne vs Bray; Loreto vs Pembroke - both called off due to frost
Irish Junior Cup results:
Catholic Inst II 1 Railway Union II 2; Galway II 2 (Niamh Codyre, Alison Hynes) UL II 0; Old Alex II 1 (Una Budd) Glenanne II 0; Bandon II 0 Randalstown 5 (Lisa Thomas 2; Lyndsey Black; Pamela Muir 2); Clontarf II 1 (Rehanna Curtis) Greenisland II 2 (Tara Connor, Lyndsey Anderson); Belfast Harlequins II v Loreto II, postponed
Quarter-final draw: Railway Union II vs Galway II; Greenisland II vs Old Alex II; Belfast Harlequins II/Loreto II vs Randalstown II; Lurgan II vs UCC II/Armagh II
* Adrian Boehm's photos from Railway Union vs Hermes can be seen here
24 comments:
Ha! Not so unstopable now!
Great stuff Hermes although suprising to win by such a margin, will make for an interrsting game on Sunday !
fantastic hockey played at park avenue yest!stunning result
5-1....that's a big win.
The standard of hockey at Park Avenue on Sat was very poor. There were only three player who performed to the level expected - Dillon for Railway and Good and Watkins for Hermes - hope Sunday isn't as bad
1.48PM...whose Good??explain your reason for saying the game was poor?
RU
out of the leinster senior cup?
o'flanagan had a great game as well i have to say. dangerous every time she got the ball
well done Hermes..Believe the new coach is fantastic. Anna O'Flannagan should be in that Irish Panel
One of the real stars of this match was O'Neil, filling it at right back brilliantly!
yeah O'Neill had a great game!!
1.48PM showing a remarkable level of knowledge there. I'm sure the Bray keeper is delighted to be credited with only of the only decent performances of the match.
All 6 goals were excellent..
PS. 8.49PM...very clever!!
Hi Steve. Can we get some clarification on the 5yards on the auto pass rule from Ask Ray. Was at a game on Saturday where a team were constantly being penalised for not being 5 yards away from a free that was taken quickly, yet they did not interfere with the play.
Clear that you weren't at the second half of the match Stephen. The goalie's injury, which occurred when the score was still 2-1, was not 'minor'. It was very clear that she was in a serious amount of pain and only played on because there was no sub keeper. Also, on her way in to setting up the third goal, Anna O'Flanagan caught Isobel Joyce in the face. Should the play not be stopped for head injuries? Making no excuses for Railway, they were poor, but it was not so cut and dry as your report suggests.
was anyone who commented there actually at the game on Saturday? You can't have been. 5-1 was not surprising given the injury to the Railway keeper who could barely stand in the second half.
To the first comment 7.36 - such bitterness! What happened - has someone thrown your toys out of your pram! Diddums! Isn't it good to see at least 3 teams fighting it out for top spot - every league match really counts now - makes for an exciting end to the Leinster league. Also I think Hermes were fortunate to get Railway on a day when they had an injured keeper and Emma Smyth was also injured (not rested as suggested!!!!). Sundays game was much closer and it took a fantastic goal to break the deadlock. Well done Hermes.
1.26PM.. what point are you trying to make re 'head injuries'?? I'm a little unclear to be honest.
Also, there were 10 players standing in front of Helen. I'm sure some of them should be holding their hands up rather than letting all the blame be put on their apparently injured keeper.... or is that the easier way to deal with a defeat like this?
2.02PM - Niamh Atcheler was injured too so both teams were without their internationals. Hermes were also without one of their pre-Christmas stalwarts, Jenny Osborne, and they seemed to soldier on in her absence.
Also Railway's goalie was perfectly healthy until the scoreline was at least 2-1, if not 3-1. An injured keeper should not hold any team back from going out there and scoring themselves.
Have to agree Stephen. Your report was clearly based on poor second hand reports there.
I'm sorry, but what are you challenging in Stephen's report??
That the title race is open? That Hermes rattled in 3 goals in the last quarter? That both sides were without players? That Nikki Evans broke the deadlock with a brilliant combination? That Jenny Burke equalised? That Chloe Watkins soloed through the Railway circle? That Railway were unable to create clear cut chances in the 2nd half? That Hermes were ruthless? That the third goal was vital? That Stevenson was playing through the pain barrier? That Anna O'Flanagan scored the fourth and fifth goals? That Hermes moved to the top of the league???
Them's the facts folks.
Going to have to disagree with you all. Was a neutral supporter at the match and yes the GK got injured and was in a lot of pain for a good bit of the second half but the injury certainly didn't appear to restrict her movement in the first two goals. And for goals 3,4 and 5 an fit GK would have struggled to save. Those goals were set up by some excellent hermes passing, which opened up the railway defense resulting in 3 excellent goals being scored from close range. also emma smyth was injured as was niamh atchelor and therefore both were rested. i hope the railway keeper gets back to full fitness soon. she'l be a big loss to any team
The Funny thing about all of this is how much chat the Railway loss has caused. I was NOT at the game but I have spoken to both Railway and Hermes players and supporters and it is hilarious the two different stories I have heard, One group said the fact the goalie couldn't move was the reason for the last 3 goals(I doubt Mick would risk a young players career by forcing her to play with a major injury) and the other group said it was a very scrappy game with niggle but they managed to score some good goals.
Everyone just get over it and move on its only a hockey match lost.
I'm actually happy with all the chat the match has caused though I'm not too impressed with some of the bitchy comments.
It's great we have a forum like The Hook to get further insight into Leinster games and create a buzz about our sport. For too long, unless you were a hockey head , you didn't really know what was going on outside you own club/league. One had to look to the The Irish Times (Mary Hannigan) for any reporting. Now we have The Hook, Evening Hearld for schools and the continuing work of the Irish TImes. Apologies if I've left out other agencies.
It's also great with have a competitive Women's league. Not so long ago Railway used to to be beaten 6 nil by Loreto and the only contenders for the title were the Beaufort side and Hermes. Both clubs should be congratulated for the all the success over the years and for continuing to be one of the top sides.
I'm delighted to see Railway's current form as I was seeing Old Alex and Pembroke challenging a few years ago. UCD and Trinity's results lately should also be encouraged as too many players are lost from school's hockey. It's important that the Universities compete in Div 1.
The spread of talent across all the clubs lately is also positive. Besides making all fixtures competitive, it also means when Irish commitments occur the league is affected so much. I know players and clubs shouldn't be penalized for having the talent but there is only so much time and we are going to have clashes.
K this is getting too long. So can all the Haters temper their comments and all the Players & Club Members, Supporters & Reporters keep up all their good work!
Great comment there 5.08, you really hit on some of the issues that people should be focussing on. It is great for women's hockey that we have three such strong teams as Railway, Hermes and Loreto. They are bringing up the standard, and the fact that other teams have challenged them this year is great. I wholeheartedly support university hockey and think clubs need to encourage their younger players to turn out for their uni.
Also, I just want to say that I don't think for one second that any of the people commenting here are the players from either Hermes or Railway. Both games were played at high tempo and the girls put everything they had into it. I thought both teams played well in both matches with good spirit. Railway will be disappointed with their finishing as they had more shots on goal in both fixtures, and Hermes will be delighted with their form in front of goal. Well done to both teams and I look forward to a great second half of the season!
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