Hook Hockey » Malahide

The Hook begins 2011/12 preparations

Stephen Findlater — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 12:41:01 +0000

With the release of the Leinster men’s early season fixtures with those of Leinster and South East women to follow in due course, thoughts of the 2011/12 season are slowly appearing on the horizon with the odd pre-season notion coming to mind. The Hook is no different and is looking forward to its fifth season since the site first started in its blog format.

The site has come a long way since its early beginnings. In the past year, the switch to a website format and the development of the site’s excellent photographic arm, culminating in the Irish Hockey Photographers’ dedicated website, were among the projects undertaken.

During the season, the addition of more video elements and our first ever ‘livestream’ – the vast majority with thanks to Tristan Seaton-Stedham – has been a huge advance.

The first Hook Awards’ night – primarily a fundraiser for Glenanne’s EHL trip at Easter – will hopefully become a regular fixture in the local hockey calendar.

Full league tables, updated on Sunday morning’s based on club submissions were integrated mid-season and the Stats Centre will hopefully be tidied up and improved in the coming months.

For the 2011/12 season, using The Hook’s twitter page, the intention is to be ramp up this service and be able to collate virtually all of the divisional results in a simple, free fashion within minutes of game’s completion and, thus provide the earliest possible league table updates.

During the season, the Hook has endeavoured to travel to as many games as possible, taking in trips to Munster, Ulster, the Netherlands and France to cover as many aspects of our sport to the highest standard.

More details will follow on this in due course but to develop these elements and maintain standards, the site does require a personal financial outlay which is primarily attempted to be covered from those who have donated to the site; 100pc of these funds go back into the Hook’s development.

Should you wish to help the coverage and promotion of Leinster and Irish hockey, feel free to contribute to the site via the ‘Donation’ button on the left-hand side of this page (or follow this link).

Finally, thank you all for taking the time to read, contribute and comment to The Hook. Website hits have increased more close to three-fold this season, an indicator that the Hook’s efforts are being appreciated in some form.

Such indicators, along with the feedback received around the grounds week-in, week-out, make the efforts which go into the site much easier to manage.

All the best for the rest of the summer and I look forward to seeing some of you pitch-side as the Irish men and women pursue their Olympic dream, building toward the European Championships in August.

Stephen Findlater

The Hook celebrates first Awards Night

Stephen Findlater — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 00:53:14 +0000

The Hook celebrated its first Awards Night in Kobra on Leeson Street on Grafton Street last Saturday evening, honouring its first seven official award winners at the event, excellently organised by members of Glenanne sports club, with Gary Shaw in particular the driving force behind what we hope will become an annual event.

Carlsberg, Ed Sports and Gilmour Sports also came on board to support the event with proceeds from the event going to support Glenanne’s EHL bid over the Easter weekend.

The awards themselves took on a two-part process with clubs asked to nominate players, coaches and umpires from within their own club and from others to produce the main shortlist.

From those shortlists, the public vote drew well over 4,000 responses and was the most viewed story on the site since moving to the new format at the start of the season. Winners were determined solely on this basis.

Adrian Boehm received the largest percentage of the vote in any category as he took the Contributor of the Year title with a massive 41.72% of the vote for his sterling photographic work that he provides each week.

Indeed, his volume and quality of photos over the last weekend can be seen on the Irish Hockey Photographers website, covering all four of the national finals in Belfield to the highest standard.

Gillian McAuliffe, the woman responsible for the site’s overhaul last summer, took second place in this category just ahead of photographer Deryck Vincent.

The umpire of the year award was the closest category but was eventually taken down by Olympic whistle-blower Carol Metchette (left), coming in just ahead of Fiona Davitt and Kieran Bolger.

Metchette continues to impress in both the men’s and women’s division one games while also showing the tenacity in the past week in the line of duty, umpiring in key games this week despite picking up a shiner sustained in the first meeting of Loreto and Old Alex.

A feature of the umpire’s vote was the spread of nominations in the “Other” option with UDP umpires Karl Chapple and Ali Keogh along with Kris Cholewa picking up a number of votes.

Scott Beattie took the Coach of the Year following a bumper debut year with Sutton Park, winning the northside school’s first Senior title when they claimed the Senior Trophy in dramatic fashion while also reaching the Minor Cup final.

Will Powderly was among the “other” nominations, receiving a high proportion of the public vote while Richard Mason and Didi Cole’s dual-work at Monkstown and Gareth Borland’s role as Leinster U-16 boss and Clontarf player-coach also drew plenty of praise beyond the initial nominees.

Onto the player awards and Dannielle Cummins, Avoca’s first team goalkeeper took the Junior Women’s title just ahead of YMCA taliswoman Tara Powderly.

And another goalkeeper took the Junior Men’s gong, Rathgar Chiefs’ Dan Gribben certainly his side’s most consistent performer until he broke his hand recently in the club’s maiden season.

Audrey McCormack tallied the most votes of any of the categories as the Glenanne woman took home the Senior Women’s Player of the Year. The midfielder continues to be a powerhouse in midfield and the engine which drives the Glens all-action approach.

Finally, Gareth Watkins (below, left) added another personal achievement to 2010 Irish Hockey Club Player of the Year crown, as he topped the Senior Men’s Player of the Year tally ahead of Glenanne’s Joe Brennan.

A big thanks again to Gary Shaw and his crew for putting together the night and to all the people who attended on the night, helped with nominations and voted for the various awards.

The Hook exists for and because of the people that take part in our game at all levels week in and week out and so, to receive the support for this venture and, indeed, the site in general is pretty overwhelming and suggests a need is being fulfilled.

These awards honour just some of the people that make the sport a source of enjoyment for people to be involved in and want to prosper, capturing some of the spirit of the game. Long may it continue.

*** The top three in each category is below with the percentage of the final vote in brackets while also mentioned are some of the people who received sizeable votes in the “other” section and are worthy of mention for their efforts in the past season.

Contributor of the Year (Total votes: 676)
1. Adrian Boehm (41.72%)
2. Gillian McAuliffe (18.64%)
3. Deryck Vincent (18.49%)
Honorable mentions outside of the nominees: Emer Keogh – photographic contributions

Umpire of the Year (615)
1. Carol Metchette (18.21%)
2. Fiona Davitt (14.47%)
3. Kieran Bolger (12.85%)
Honorable mentions: Kris Cholewa, Karl Chapple, Ali Keogh

Coach of the Year (904)
1. Scott Beattie, Sutton Park (22.57%)
2. Graham Shaw, Loreto/Glenanne (14.82%)
3. Mick McKinnon, Railway ladies (10.73%)
Honorable mentions: Will Powderly (YMCA ladies), Richard Mason/Didi Cole (Monkstown); Gareth Borland (Leinster U-16/Clontarf); Mary Logue (Hermes); Brendon Carolan (Pembroke)

Junior Women’s Player of the Year (487)
1. Danielle Cummins, Avoca (28.13%)
2. Tara Powderly, YMCA (23.82%)
3. Sarah Lovett, Monkstown (18.69%)
Honorable mentions: Emma Kilbride (Our Lady’s); Fiona Walshe (Swords); Courtney Watkins (Monkstown)

Junior Men’s Player of the Year (454)
1. Dan Gribben, Rathgar Chiefs (31.5%)
2. Martin Naughton, Avoca (21.37%)
3. Stephen Cairns, Clontarf (16.08%)
Honorable mentions: Harry Spain (Suttonians), Tom Noonan (Clontarf), Paul Kennedy (St James’ Gate)

Senior Women’s Player of the Year (977)
1. Audrey McCormack, Glenanne (22.01%)
2. Chloe Watkins, UCD (14.23%)
3. Kate Dillon, Railway Union (13.61%)
Honorable mentions: Maebh Horan (Trinity), Jeamie Deacon (Railway Union), Sinead Walsh (Railway Union), Nikki Symmons (Loreto), Sinead Dooley (Railway Union)

Senior Men’s Player of the Year (710)
1. Gareth Watkins, Monkstown (21.55%)
2. Joe Brennan, Glenanne (15.07%)
3. Alan Blennerhassett, Corinthian (12.25%)
Honorable mentions: Ali Haughton (TRR); Andrew Walker (YMCA); Brian Groves (Monkstown); Shane O’Donoghue (Glenanne); Andrew Sutton (Corinthian); Fran Lee (Monkstown)

Have your say in the Hook Awards!

Stephen Findlater — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 12:04:31 +0000

The nominations are in and now it is your chance to have a say in who wins the first Hook Awards as the public vote for Umpire, Coach and Senior men’s and women’s player of the year went live this morning.

The poll is also still open for the Hook’s Contributor of the Year with the nominees for Junior Player of the Year (those operating for first teams outside of men’s and women’s division one) set to go live later today.

Nominees for these awards have come about from proposals in the various categories, seeking to honour the broad spectrum of Leinster hockey.

Voting will be open up until March 30 with the winners being announced at The Hook’s Awards Night and end of season party – held in conjunction with Glenanne SC – on April 2 in Kobra on Leeson Street.

To secure your ticket for the event, contact Gary Shaw on 087 986 1942 or email shawsie14@gmail.com. Tickets costs €10 and will also include free entry into NV nightclub while there will be finger-food and spot prizes on the night.

Here are the five votes online thus far:

Railway II complete double: league and cup round-up

Stephen Findlater — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 22:37:00 +0000

Railway Union II claimed division two tonight as they beat Skerries 3-0 thanks to three second half goals. Needing a win to secure the title, the Park Avenue side found the going tough in the first period against a side fighting for their division two survival before Louise McDermott opened the scoring after the break from a penalty corner.

Former Trinity striker Caoilfhinn Rowan added a brace to complete the scoring. It gives Railway II thier first ever win at this level of competition, their first team having won division two back in 1992.

On Saturday, three more women’s cup finals were decided with Monkstown completing the double to take the division 13/14 crown, beating Malahide II 5-0 at UCD with Suzi Murray scoring twice.

Bray V took the division 12 title (pictured in action, below left), coming from a goal down to beat Newbridge III while Hermes III overcame Newbridge II to win the division 7/8 title (right).

On the men’s side, Kilkenny III got the only goal of the game to beat UCD III in the junior cup final. The pair duel once more next week in the final round of division eight matches with the students needing a win over St Brendan’s/PP on the grass to take the silverware. Anthing else could open the door for the cats who travel to Wicklow.

Elsewhere in the men’s leagues, a hat-trick from Karl Chapple and one from Scott Wilkie saw Avoca beat Suttonians 4-3 on Sunday in division two to move the Blackrock side into a tie for third with a home match against Navan to conclude the season.

Understrength Skerries and Naas, due to the junior interpros, also played with the seasiders winning 4-1, Andrew Butterly with two goals while Sean Lawlor and Alan Early were also on the score sheet.

Division three will require a playoff as Monkstown II – shorn of the injured Donal O’Mearain, Alun and Gareth Evans – lost to a resurgent Pembroke II when they needed just a point. Corinthian II’s 6-0 win over UCD II, therefore, means a test match is needed to decide the league winner.

Corinthian III took division four with a 6-2 win over Weston II after beating Three Rock Rovers III in midweek to assure what looked set to be their title for a long while after winning their first five games in a row. Keith Fishbourne retains the title he won with Glenanne III in 2007/08.

As of earlier this evening, St Brendan’s Phoenix Park were within a point of taking division five after they beat Three Rock Rovers IV in a virtual league decider.

Finally, Monkstown took the U-16 league last Friday night, overturning their cup exit at the hands of Corinthian to win 7-0 thanks to hat-tricks from Simon Lowry and Stephen Nolan.

A key result for the Town last Wednesday as they held Clontarf at bay 3-2 in what has been a very competitive league. The Bulls provided some surprises to the Dublin hockey community – though not to themselves – with that eye-catching performance as well as victory over Three Rock Rovers.

Railway Union were also in the frame while Rovers claimed the cup. The Town, meanwhile, held on to the Joey O’Meara Cup for the fifth year running.

This weekend, meanwhile, sees a trio of big matches at Serpentine Avenue on Saturday. Three Rock Rovers II play YMCA II for the fourth time this season in the Railway Cup decider at 2pm, followed on court by UCD and Bray in the division one/two playoff at 4pm.

Monkstown play Glenanne at 6pm in the heavily delayed U-21 final.

* For Deryck Vincent’s pictures of Hermes III vs Newbridge II, click here, and for photos of Newbridge III vs Bray V, click here.

Women's junior league round-up

Stephen Findlater — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 22:24:00 +0000

Virtually all the Leinster women’s leagues have come to a conclusion in the past fortnight. Here’s a quick round-up of whose going up and down across the divisions as well as a couple of cup finals last Sunday:

Division Two:

One of the few issues yet to be resolved this season is the destination of the division two title with Loreto II and Railway Union II the two sides who are potential winners. Loreto must wait anxiously for Railway to play their last two matches against Hermes II (April and a Skerries (April 20) side looking to escape relegation.

Genesis (pictured above left), currently in fourth, are the highest placed first team in the division but not near enough to the top to take an automatic promotion place and must now play-off with Corinthian for division one status at a date to be decided.

At the bottom, Our Lady’s drop out of the division with either Skerries or Clontarf to follow.

Division Three:

North Kildare were one of the first sides to pick up a league title as they eased to the divisional title. Pembroke III took second spot with a crucial final day win over the Kilcock-based side which kept their nose just in front of the chasing Corinthian II and Suttonians. Sutton picked up the division three/four cup with a 2-1 win over Bray.

North Kildare, meanwhile, are hoping to have an astroturf pitch in place at the Maws in time for the 2009/10 season.

Three Rock Ladies II (pictured, right) went down after a mid-season slump in one of the tightest divisions, having occupied the top half of the table in December. Diocesan picked up 18 points but still came ninth and also face the drop.

Division Four:

Rowland Rixon-Fuller’s Muckross added division four to their decent cup run in the Irish Hockey Trophy to make it a successful season as the Teresians-based club continues their rebuilding process.

Cup finalists Bray II will join them after they won the last game of the season against Trinity II 5-0 to push Weston out of the promotion places. Clontarf II and Corinthian III are relegated.

Division Five:

Naas translated top league form into a decent IHC cup run which was only ended after extra time by Fermoy. Consolation was quick to come, though, as they took the league with an immaculate nine wins from nine on the road. They followed up with cup success on Sunday, beating Swords 2-1 powered on by Tracey Dunlop.

Railway Union III took second in spite of a one-point penalty while Loreto IV and Fingal II propped up the table.

Division Six:

North Kildare II added to the success story around the Maws, topping division six, leading home Navan by two points. At the bottom, Loreto V drop a league while Tullamore have one last chance to escape the same fate with a refix against North Kildare. If they gain three points, Old Alex IV will end in ninth place.

Division Seven:

Skerries II took the league win with a dramatic 2-0 win over Bray III last Saturday to leap-frog Newbridge II – who have a cup final against Hermes III to come later this month. They end in second with Bray just outside the promotion places in third. Our Lady’s III and Corinthian IV occupy the last two spaces.

Division Eight:

Dalkey (left) continue their rise through the divisions as they sealed the title in mid-March. Suttonians II follow them up to division seven while Diocesan III and UCD IV go down.

Division Nine:

A 100pc league record and an IHC title, YMCA (below right) completed a perfect season at Grange Road on Sunday when they beat Old Alex V 2-0 in the division 9/10 cup final. With a goal difference of +83, YM look like they can definitely hold their own quite a few divisions higher.

Malahide were best of the rest, garnering 46 points which would have assured the league in the vast majority of the other final tables. Loreto VI and Genesis V were ninth and tenth respectively.

Division Ten:

Old Alex V’s may have been denied a double by the mighty YMCA but did have a league title in the bank to ease their worries. Bray IV go up with Tullamore II and Fingal III going the other way.

Division Eleven:

Avoca II took division eleven in emphatic style, taking the eight-team table by a massive eleven points from Corinthian V. Loreto VII were bottom of the table but league restructuring may ensue at this level of competition due to number of teams left in the table as a result of Three Rock Ladies V withdrawal.

Division Twelve:

Only the league’s most crucial fixture remains as Naas III and Mullingar occupy the top two slots. Naas have a one-point advantage but Mullingar have home comforts in what could be a thrilling end to the season. Pembroke VII came ninth of nine in this table.

Division Thirteen:

Newbridge IV came within one win of a perfect season, dropping just two points all year to take first place. Malahide II follow their first team’s lead and gain promotion too. UCD VI will finish bottom but RCSI have three games left to try and get safe with Skerries III and Phoenix Park II within reach.

Division Fourteen:

Monkstown’s return to women’s hockey has been greeted with a tenth successive promotion, though there has been quite a hiatus between the ninth and tenth. The latter preceded the club changing their moniker to Glenageary United and subsequently disbanding. This vintage has had a hugely impressive first year with an IHC semi-final and a near perfect league record yielding a goal difference of +90. Navan II take second place of the 14 team division.

Women’s Divisional Round-Up

Stephen Findlater — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:47:00 +0000

While the women’s division one title-race has taken on a little bit of a one-sided look in recent weeks, there are plenty of close-run battles right the way down the women’s leagues. Here’s a brief synopsis of whats going on in divisions two to thirteen. Division 14 is being headed by Monkstown who are unbeaten but due to a lack of other results, I’m unsure of what the full state of play is in that one.

Women’s Division Two

An ultra-competitive division two has been beset by all manner of postponements due to the weather and the newly formed Irish Hockey Trophy leaving it hard to read much into the mid-season table with Genesis, for example, left with 13 games to play after Christmas. They are unbeaten after five games but will have to play a lot of double-weekends to catch up. Three Rock Ladies are another unbeaten side with three games in hand over table-topping Loreto II and two on Alec Barrett’s Railway Union IIs. All are still involved in a fascinating battle.

Women’s Division Three

The top seven are all within three points of each other while the whole division has just a six-point stretch meaning its not inconceivable for bottom trio, Avoca UCD II and Genesis II could make a charge for the title. They enjoy games in hand on their rivals and could well threaten Suttonians and Corinthian II. The latter have bounced back well from a horror season last time around to hold onto second place.

Women’s Division Four

Muckross lead the way in division four thanks to their win over Weston before Christmas in the top of the table battle while the club also is on a high after a decent cup run in the IHT. Rowland Rixon-Fuller’s side is top of the division by three points ahead of the Lucanites with the rest of the table just out of striking distance. Newbridge could yet break from the pack and have been buoyed by the news that plans are in place for them to build an Astroturf pitch in their area.

Women’s Division Five

Naas’ impressive away form has seen them zoom clear of the table after eight games. Four wins from four on the road has helped build a five point lead over Old Alex III with Guinness a point further back. Railway Union’s IIIs could get back into the race as they have yet to play on home turf and have two games in hand.

Women’s Division Six

Another tight league with four points covering the top six and the postponements due to the cold snap meaning lots of teams are still involved. Navan lead the way but have played only once away from home this term, North Kildare II are second equal with Genesis III and UCD III all one point off the Meath-side.

Women’s Division Seven

Botanic IIs will hope their new pitch can work wonders for them when it opens for business early in the New Year. The Glasnevin outfit has played just once at home this season and will hope to use that to their advantage to reel in the seven points gap to leaders Bray III. The Wicklow women have played two games more. Skerries II are also in contention though have been hampered by a one point suspension for an incorrectly registered player.

Women’s Division Eight

Dalkey’s first team lead the way but a recent defeat to second placed Suttonians II means their Christmas advantage was reduced to just a point. Clontarf IIIs have also closed the gap while Phoenix Park will be looking to continue their rapid ascent through the leagues in recent years.

Women’s Division Nine

A titanic battle is in store on January 10 as two of the five remaining unbeaten records in Leinster women’s hockey meet head to head in Claremont Road as YMCA host Malahide. Both were promoted from division ten last year and look on course to do so again this term. Malahide also welcomed a new astro at Broomfield in the lead up to Christmas and have gone seven from seven. YM, who have been promoted in every year since they began a female section, have six wins from six.

Women’s Division Ten

Old Alex V, Genesis VI and Trinity IV look set to slug it out in the second half of the season as just two points covers the leading trio after seven games. Swords II and Bray IV could also narrow the gap were they to win their back matches.

Women’s Division Eleven

Unbeaten Avoca IIs have built up a healthy six point lead in this eight-team league thus making them favourites to take the divisional crown. Just two goals conceded in seven games so far have seen them ease clear of the pack at the half-way stage.

Women’s Division Twelve

Naas IIIs 100pc record sees them tie for top spot with Mullingar on 15 points, though the former have an extra-game to play in the second half of the season that could prove crucial. Naas won 2-0 when the sides played at Forenaughts back in November but a reverse in Westmeath would open the race up completely.

Women’s Division Thirteen

Newbridge IVs hold a commanding ten-point gap over the rest of the field after 100pc start after eight games. Old Alex VI and Trinity V are dueling for the second promotion place.

Malahide open new astroturf pitch

Stephen Findlater — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 22:29:00 +0000

Malahide played their first official match on their new astroturf pitch in Broomfield last Saturday, celebrating in style by clocking up a 3-1 win over Railway Union’s 5ths in division nine.

It was the seventh win in-a-row for Malahide’s firsts, winning against the side that pipped them to the division 10 title last season.

The side are pictured in their newly sponsored gear, supplied by Gannon Properties and the new pitch will hopefully aid the growth of hockey in North Dublin along with Botanic’s pitch in Glasnevin which is also close to completion.

Women's divisional Cup finals

Stephen Findlater — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 16:48:00 +0000

Pembroke enjoyed mixed fortunes at the women’s finals at Grange Road on Saturday, winning the division 5/6 title but missing out on the 3/4 title.

Malahide picked up a dramatic win in the Div 9/10 final. They equalised from the penalty spot from Ailbhe Kennedy. The stroke was given in bizarre circumstances, when a short corner was deflected over the stranded Guinness goalie only for the last defender to catch the ball to prevent a certain goal. They scored the winner in extra time from a penalty corner.

Results:
Div 3/4 Cup: Pembroke 0 Diocesan 1
Div 5/6 Cup: Pembroke 2 Clontarf 0
Div 9/10 Cup: Malahide 2 Guinness 1 (aet)

Women's Leagues

Stephen Findlater — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 16:50:00 +0000

With the majority of the women’s leagues finishing up last week, here’s a run-down of some of the end of season results.

Division 2: Bray won the league on Tuesday. IJC winners, Glenanne, could claim second spot if Pembroke 2nds take points off Railway and with it a playoff match with Three Rock for promotion/relegation.

Division 3: Our Lady’s 1sts won this league, getting promoted along with their 2nds and 3rds with a final day win over TRL 2nds 2-0. Skerries move up to division 2 with them.

Division 4: Avoca bagged the title on a dramatic last day of the season, beating Weston 2-1 with Lynn Beck and Kate Rushe scoring a late penalty stroke. Long-term leaders Genesis drew with Old Alex 2-2 to hand the title to their local rivals. Its Avoca’s third league title in succession.

Division 5: Clontarf won the league on their ‘pink day’ in aid Action Breast Awareness with a 2-1 win over Guinness. They had to wait a few hours for confirmation as Trinity beat Railway Union 3-0 to bag second place and move Railway from first to third.

Division 6 & Division 7: Our Lady’s and Trinity were promoted a couple of weeks ago in div 6 while Three Rock III claimed the div 7 title a month ago. Trinity move up a division for third time in four seasons.

Division 8: Newbridge claimed the title on goal difference with double home victories over UCD (3-0) and Genesis (2-0) ahead of Corinthian.

Division 9: Phoenix Park won this league at a canter thanks mainly to the best away record in any league, winning all nine matches and conceding only once all season.

Division 10: Railway Union claimed the title on the final day of the season as title rivals Malahide could only draw on the final day of the season. They, though, will look forward to division 9 on their new astro pitch at Broomfield and a cup final against Guinness in a few weeks time.

Division 11: Bray won div 11 with a 1-0 win over second placed Swords back on March 8. Swords held onto second spot when they beat Hermes last week.

Division 12: YMCA continued their charge through the leagues, scoring a massive 91 goals and losing just one match (the first team’s only loss in league action in two seasons) and conceding only three.

Division 13: Railway Union and Mullingar still vye for the title with both sides still with two matches remaining

Division 14: Phoenix Park picked up their second league title with a game to spare who, like their first team counterparts, also did not drop a point away from home.