Hook Hockey

Reds fightback for maiden IJC victory

Men’s Irish Junior Cup final
Cookstown 2 (Steven Allen, Stewart Smyth) Corinthian 2 (Andrew Malcolm, Lloyd McLoughlin), Corinthian win 3-1 on penalties
Jakim Bernsden added to his growing reputation as a penalty shoot-out king as he saved three times to hand Corinthian their first ever Irish Junior Cup title, as Adrian Missen and his reds’ team produced a memorable fightback.

Bernsden helped St Andrew’s win the schoolboy’s Senior Cup in the past month and he followed up that performance to see Corinthian pick up the major prize after being behind 2-0 inside ten minutes.

Cookstown got off to the dream start when they scored twice in quick succession in the sixth and seventh minute. The first came after good work from Stewart Smyth, setting Steven Allen up for a tap-in and the second took barely a minute to arrive from Smyth himself.

Corinthian were shell-shocked but they got themselves right back into the game when Andrew Malcolm scored in the last minute of the first half.

And the Dubliners dominated the second period but, whilst they forced several penalty corners, they had to wait until the 67th minute when Kiwi Lloyd McLoughlin was on hand to finish off at the back post.

He could have won the tie in golden goal but his thunderbolt volley flew inches over before his side were forced to soak up pressure with Clive Hennessy in the sin-bin.

Strokes ensued and the reds looked in danger when their first effort went wide of the post. Cookstown scored their first stroke but their next three all hit Bernsden’s pads while Hennessy and Blennerhassett brothers Alan and Colm nailed mid-height efforts for a 3-1 success.

Corinthian: Jakim Bresendan, Colm Blennerhassett, Alam Blennerhassett, Bruce Campbell, Stephen Williams, Lloyd McLoughlin, Gareth Davis, Jonathan Lewis, Clive Hennessy, Andrew Malcolm, Adrian Missen (Capt).
Subs: Jonathan Roberts, Neil Pelow, Robert Byrnes, Stephen Reid, Ian Stewart.

Cookstown: Ian Cheevers, Daniel Crooks, Mark Wilson, Andrew McWirther, Paul Thompson, Philip Morton, Richard Nelson, Steven Allen, Stewart Smyth, Graham Black, Alistair Thom
Subs: Andrew Smith, Gavin Butler, Paul Watt, Tony Johnson, Ryan Millar