Men's IHL: Round One

Group One:
Pembroke 2 (Tim Lewis, Alan Sothern) Cork Harlequins 1 (Dan Hobbs)
Pembroke Wanderers edged out Harlequins in a hard-hitting, fast paced game. Gordy Elliott and Alan Sothern had early chances before Paddy Conlon picked up the first of four green cards handed out on the day in the 14th minute.

Dan Hobbs drew two good saves out of David Harte from set-pieces before Tim Lewis rocked the visitors, toouching in Sothern's low drag in the 30th minute. The Harlequins' response was instant, Hobbs drag-flicking the leveller.

Soon into the second half, Maurice Elliott got the game's only yellow for breaking down play, and with his brother Gordon also on the bench with a green card, the team were down to 9 players.

Quins won a short corner but could not capitalise and when back to full strength, Pembroke punished them. In the 45th minute, Sothern’s drag flick gave his side the win while the Cork side claim a bonus point.

Annadale 1 (Chris Jackson) Glenanne 1 (Mark Lambe)
It may not have had the goals and drama of their previosu meeting, but the Glens' visit to Jordanstown served up an absorbing battle for the 400-strong crowd. Defences dominated with few clear cut chances being created.

Chris Jackson cracked home a penalty corner to open the scoring in the seventh minute before the Leinster side equalised in the 24th minute through Mark Lambe. He was picked out by Stephen Butler's cross following Johnny Kane's long break upfield.

Jackson shaved the Glennane post with a powerful shot soon after. Stephen Butler returned the favour in the second half, grazing the post with a drag flick as play went from end to end in the third and fourth quarters but with neither team able to break the deadlock.

Instonians 1 (Chris Barnes) Cookstown 1 (David Ames)
Not many people gave Inst much of a chance in the build-up to their match with Ulster champions Cookstown, especially without star trio Paddy Brown, Mark Gleghorne and Steven Redpath - recently arrived from Annadale.

Nigel Skillen in Instonian's goal had a particularly fine game as did Julian Lewis in the back four on day where Cookstown will feel they should have picked up all three points. David Ames opened the scoring in the 17th minute with a disputed opener - the hosts claimed the ball hit the young international's body.

Chris Barnes equlaised with yet another corner conversion. The game was end to end from then on, with both sides having chance to nick the win in the closing stages. Cookstown won two corners in the last five minutes well saved by Skillen again to ensure that each side picked up two points for the draw.

Group Two:
Three Rock Rovers 4 (Peter Blakeney 2, Phelie Maguire, Tim Hill) Monkstown 2 (Alec Barrett, Stephen Cole)
The new rules create a bit of a paradox - this was a scrappy enough game but still managed to feel free-flowing thanks to the new rules and some fairly decent umpiring from Messrs Caulwell and Schute.
Rovers went one up despite soaking up a lot of pressure with an excellent goal from Tim Hill, sliding in at the near post to touch in Mitch Darling's bullet cross/shot.

Brian Groves and Gareth Watkins created much down the right wing but got little in the way of clear-cut chances until a well-worked corner - the same move that did for Rovers in the ISC last season - was smothered by Charlie Henderson.

The second half was much more open. Peter Blakeney batted in a second after Dave Fitzgerald's spectacular save. Alec Barrett pulled on back from Ian Allen's pullback and Stephen Cole levelled with an outstanding touch, deflecting the ball behind his back from a hit-in.

But Rovers nabbed the points in the last seven minutes, Phelie Maguire was played into the circle by Peter Blakeney and his attempted pass found a defender's stick for a lucky goal, though if the defender missed surely Darling would have been on hand.

Blakeney made the game safe late on, rounding off a superb team goal involving Maguire and Darling again.

Banbridge 2 (Ross McCandless, Simon Magowan) Lisnagarvey 0
In a typical Bann-Garvey battle, both sides served up a committed and exhausting match under the Havelock Park lights. Ross McCandless drew first blood with a drag-flick in an open first quarter, Mark Daniel and Jason Lynch going close.

The second period was tighter with only Eugene Magee's flashing reverse in terms of goalmouth action. The final period of the match saw two Garvey players on temporary suspensions and during this period Magowan extended Bann's lead, pouncing on a rebound after Kevin Lunn saved well from Geoff McCabe.

Restored to full strength Garvey forced five short corners in a four minute spell but were unable to capitalise but Bann finished the stronger when Magowan and Magee both pressurised the Garvey defence both winning penalty corners.

Cork C of I 6 (John Jermyn 3, Andy Herbert, David Hobbs, Roger Gray) Fingal 2 (Adrian Sweeney, Paddy Gahan)
Cork C of I made hard work of their home tie against Fingal, but their superior fitness told in the second half as they cruised to a 6-2 win.

Adrian Sweeney tapped home Eamonn Bane’s cross to give Fingal a shock lead on seven minutes, but CI were level within five minutes thanks to a stunning strike from Andy Herbert, who directed a diving reverse home from the edge of the circle.

John Jermyn roofed a drag-flick from a short corner on 24 minutes to give the hosts the lead, but the Airport side weren’t lying down, and they grabbed an equaliser three minutes later in scrappy fashion.

There appeared to be little danger when David Bane was closed down by Adam Pritchard and Andy Chambers close to the goal on the endline. But Bane found a path past ‘keeper Billy Lynch at the near post, and Paddy Gahan was on hand to tap home after the shot rebounded off the upright.

But C of I simply owned the second half, with the visitors clearly out on their feet after their exertions in the first period. David Hobbs scored on 47 minutes after his short-corner push-out was returned to him in a well-worked move, his shot creeping over the line after a deflection off Fingal netminder Nigel Grother.

Jermyn rifled home a second drag on 50 minutes to push his side out to 4-2, before Roger Gray’s neat reverse five minutes later made the game safe.

Former HGC hitman Jermyn put the icing on the cake nine minutes from time by completing his hat-trick with a carbon copy of his first two. C of I had another effort from Alec Moffett ruled out for use of the foot, though Fingal captain Brian Scully earned his second yellow card of the game for protesting the initial decision.