International stars, fresh off the plane from South Africa, will be rested meaning squad management is once again a battle for the weekend with Loreto short four stars while the students miss Chloe Watkins.

In her absence, Jeamie Deacon has taken on a powerful role while Deirdre Duke and Anna O’Flanagan make up a forward line with hunger in the circle, banging in 20 goals between them this term.

Loreto’s source of goals is more direct, their corner machine their go-to method should the Rathfarnham venue escape the frost which has caught hold a couple of times this season already.

Railway’s firepower is a big cause for concern for Glenanne, the Park Avenue hosts with an incredible seven of the province’s top 14 scorers, five of whom are available for the tie.

Dean Maguire’s side is a determined one with Susan Byrne aided by a gritty defence but taming the likes of Kate McKenna, Jean McDonnell and the emerging Kate Lloyd could be too tough an ask.

Trinity will be looking to back up their victory over Three Rock with three points at home to Pembroke on the Santry sand to go into next Tuesday’s colours festival in upbeat mood as well as close the gap on the top five.

They currently reside in a no-man’s land between the IHL places and five clear of the relegation battle leaving their season with latent potential for a fifth place push.

Goals are still the main missing element but Kylie Deverell is getting a taste and a secure defence controlled by Vera Taaffe and Jessie Elliott will give Pembroke problems. Rachel McKeon in midfield and youngsters Avril Dooley-O’Carroll and Olivia Smartt will be among those to lead their target of a slight upset.

Hermes have been most affected by international absentees and it played a part in Corinthian grabbing a point in the first league meeting earlier this term. Six still out leaves the reigning champions out of contention at the moment but valuable experience has been garnered by Sadhbh Hoban-Logan, Vicky Walsh and Laura Pinder in their high profile absences.

The reds, though, are in hot form and bullish about their chances after another big win last Sunday, besting Old Alex, with belief high they can rise again on Saturday.

Old Alex, meanwhile, waited until the very last touch of the game to beat Three Rock Ladies with Emma Russell striking late to dash the Grange Road side’s hopes.

The Irish Junior Cup has seven Leinster hopefuls vying for the crown with Hermes and Railway’s derby a highlight along with the local tussle between division two high-flyers Pembroke and UCD. Division three side Dublin Uni travel to Cork to play Bandon, former school of Trin player Jessica Kingston but the students have shown few nerves against higher division opposition as they showed in last year’s run.

Women’s Leinster Division One: Corinthian v Hermes, 2.30pm, St Columba’s College; Loreto v University College Dublin, 2.15pm, Beaufort; Old Alexandra v Three Rock Ladies, 3pm, Milltown; Railway Union v Glenanne, 2.45pm, Park Avenue; Trinity v Pembroke, 4.30pm, Santry
Division Two: Genesis v North Kildare, 2.30pm, Belfield

Women’s Irish Junior Cup, second round: Hermes v Railway Union, 1.30pm, St Andrews; Cork Harlequins v Loreto, 1pm, Harlequin Park; Ballymoney v Cork C of I, 1pm, Joey Dunlop Centre; Galway v Corinthian, 1pm, Dangan; Pembroke v UCD, 3.30pm, Serpentine Avenue; Dromore v Pegasus, 2.30pm, Ferris Park; Bandon v Dublin University, 1pm, Bandon GS; Randalstown v Catholic Institute, 1pm, Antrim Forum

David Cole’s shoulder has opened the door for Richard Sykes to step up to the Irish panel for the second Spanish training camp, giving the Town three days in which to come up with a new corner go-to man and a considerable rock in their defence.

With switch-left, and forward talisman, Gareth Watkins also gone it robs some more of their scoring prowess – 19 goals between the pair – while creator-in-chief Stephen Cole is also out.

He is awaiting an MRI scan following a collision with Peter English after which Monkstown lost much of their spark, allowing Railway to come back and grab a draw.

Dave Fitzgerald’s international commitments have been eased somewhat by the arrival of Irish U-18 keeper Mark Ingram from Railway earlier in January but, with Frank Ryan and Gavin O’Halloran also unavailable, the sky-blues are scrambling.

Rovers’ plight is less severe though Stephen West has been one of their standouts this year with cover hard to come by between the posts while Garry Ringwood has scored two in two since returning to the forward line, replacing Peter Blakeney.

All the ties this weekend have an air of unpredictability about them. YMCA are another sides with a rake of absentees with David Robinson joined on the long-term list by Andy Walker with a broken bone in his hand, robbing them of a pair of Leinster provincial regulars.

With Nick Burke now in France, their date with Railway is suitably tricky. Railway have the first semblances of injury issues, themselves, after scarcely a bruise in the first half of the season.

Mark English missed last week’s game with a neck issue, as did Eoin MacArtur with concussion, but both might return. Fiachra Maher’s groin, however, is a concern and kept him out of the majority of the date with the Town last time out

It is now or never for Clontarf when they meet UCD at the bullring on Saturday with a loss all but condemning them to tenth and a second successive yo-yo between the divisions.

On the plus side for Gareth Borland’s side is that two of the students more effective operators are absent with Conor Motyer and Shane O’Donoghue abroad but there is class in the likes of Patrick Shanahan, Keith Kenning and David Watkins that needs to tamed.

Aussies Maverick Yow and James Gurbiel, along with Rob Kelly, are central to their hopes but Andy Poynter is likely to miss the guts of the rest of the season with international cricket commitments, as he was named in the Ireland side to go to South Africa and then Dubai later this month.

Fingal and Glenanne usually provides plenty of drama with sparks often flying but the Glens will be hoping to keep their wits about them to profit from any slip from the two sides ahead of them. Joe Brennan remains on the recovery trail but they have found new scoring outlets this term with Richie Shaw (seven) and Jonathan Kane (ten) stepping up to the mark.

The Airport side’s half-court game frustrated Pembroke last time around and may be put into effect again, looking for the pace of Tom Manning and Adrian Sweeney to work the channels.

Corinthian and Pembroke, meanwhile, is a tie with potential to thrill as both prefer the open, flowing style. Davy Carson will aim to use his unique range of skills against his former club and can count himself unlucky – along with opponent Alan Sothern – not to get a call to Paul Revington’s latest selection.

Pembroke continue to be without Mossie Elliott and Timmy Hill but Patrick Good is back on the training paddock and contesting a place. Corinthian hope to add Neil Young after illness.

In division two, the rollercoaster continued in midweek with Weston hoping for the side that battled effectively in midweek to snatch a draw at Sutton rather than the one that capitulated against Avoca.

A third away day within seven days is tough going but Rathgar have lost twice at home in-a-row to see their promotion challenge falter as a half-dozen absentees have taken their toll.

The latter of those losses was to Mullingar who can now look to the remainder of the season with a monkey off their back. Chris Bull’s return and some other injury returns have buoyed Michael Gibson-Brabazon’s men and they will hope to catch an in-form Trinity off guard.

Suttonians will go top with any sort of result against Portrane in Glasnevin as Avoca are on the bye weekend. The Neville Davin Cup tips off on Sunday with plenty of evenly matched ties.

The Irish Junior Cup second round also takes place this weekend with five Leinster sides surviving thus far. Pembroke and Corinthian’s derby is the highlight from a local perspective.

Men’s Leinster Division One (Saturday): YMCA vs Railway Union, 1.15pm, Milltown; Clontarf vs UCD, 2pm, Mount Temple; Monkstown vs Three Rock Rovers,3pm, Rathdown; Fingal vs Glenanne, 1.30pm, ALSAA; Corinthian vs Pembroke Wanderers, 1pm, Whitechurch Park

Division Two: Portrane vs Suttonians, 1.30pm, Holy Faith, Glasnevin; Dublin University vs Mullingar, 12.45pm, Grange Road; Rathgar vs Weston, 2pm, High School

Neville Davin Cup (Sunday): Avoca vs Dublin University, 3pm, Newpark; Portrane vs Mullingar, 1pm, The Maws; Rathgar vs Weston, 1pm, High School; Suttonians vs Navan, 4pm, Sutton Park

Men’s Irish Junior Cup (Saturday): Lisnagarvey v Bandon, 1pm, Comber Road; Newry v Banbridge, 4pm, Newry Olympic; TRR v Bangor, 2.30pm, Grange Road; Pembroke v Corinthian, 1.30pm, Serpentine Avenue; Raphoe v Cookstown, 1pm, Royal and Prior; Annadale v YMCA, 1pm, Lough Moss; Suttonians v Cork C of I, 3pm, Sutton Park; Kilkeel v Antrim, 4pm, Kilkeel HS

The tie had already been delayed by half an hour as a pre-game hailstorm made the warm-up impossible and, with Ireland flying back home later in the day, the second downpour meant any further thoughts of finishing the tie were off the agenda (picture courtesy of Hockey IPT).

In the 35 minutes played, Belgium drew the first saves as Emma Gray made one stop while Lieselotte van Lindt Alix Gernier’s tame corner shots were comfortably cleared.

Lisa Jacob drew a good save from Nadine Khouzam as the volume of water made play slow and sticky. Belgium hit the front from their third corner in the 18th minute when Sofie Gierts hit home corner.

As the thunder began to rumble near the ground, Ireland got level as Nikki Evans got on the end of a pass in the D in the 29th minute to level matters with a fine reverse-stick effort before the heavens opened once more.

In doing so, Evans became Ireland’s first forward to score since Aine Connery netted against India before Christmas. It was also the only goal from play of this tour after Cliodhna Sargent clattered home two corners and Michelle Harvey flicked in another.

On the six game trip, results yielded a 2-1 win over South Africa, three 1-0 losses and a 1-1 draw, also against the hosts to go with this abandoned result. Next on the agenda for Ireland is a three-day training camp in Beerschot on February 25 before the Olympic qualifier begins on St Patrick’s Day.

Ireland: Emma Gray, Nikki Symmons, Sinead McCarthy, Cliodhna Sargent, Audrey O’Flynn, Lizzie Colvin, Emma Smyth, Nicci Daly, Aine Connery, Lisa Jacob, Megan Frazer
Subs: Michelle Harvey, Miriam Crowley, Nikki Evans, Chloe Watkins, Emma Clarke

These competitions are nearly all at the semi-final stages now with perennial contenders Wesley and St Andrew’s through at all four levels to the A final four stage. At senior level, they are followed through by Sutton Park while St Columba’s will play off against Newpark for second place behind Wesley in Pool 2.

In the Juniors, eight wins from eight outings see Andrews through with either Sutton or High School joining them. In Pool 2, St Columba’s topped their group with a perfect record ahead of Wesley, courtesy of their 2-1 win in the group stages.

Again, Andrew’s bossed their Minor pool while King’s Hosptial need two wins to prevent either Sutton from making it into this set of A semi-finals. Wesley will be joined probably by Mount Temple from the other side of the draw with Columba’s and Dundalk outsiders.

In the U-13 competition, St Andrew’s will be joined by either St Killian’s or KH while Wesley and Andrews B or Newpark have eyes still on the prize.

In the cups, Columba’s have continued their good year with victory over Dundalk in round one of the Senior Trophy and await the winner of High School and Sutton Park in the semi-finals. Kilkenny are on top of the draw and will play either King’s Hos or St Killians.

Wesley and St Andrew’s await the finalists of the Trophy in the Senior Cup semi-finals but have been busying themselves in the South of Ireland schoolboy competition, facing off in a round-robin against Cork sides Bandon and Ashton.

Andrew’s won out against their Dublin rivals 4-0 last week and look the main contenders this year while Wesley drew 3-3 with Ashton in one of their other ties.

Columba’s will also spy a spot in the Junior final having made it past the challenge of Dundalk and Mount Temple in the opening rounds of the competition and are now in the semi-final. With Wesley and St Andrew’s both in the top half of the draw with Kilkenny and Sutton Park for company, it makes that section of the draw a potential minefield.

In the minor competition, the quarter-final stage is set to be played in the coming week while at U-13 level, St Andrew’s have powered through three rounds of competition to reach the semi-finals, getting the better of U-13 C sides Whitechurch and Taney before undoing Dundalk in the quarters.

** For all the league tables, click here; if you have any further results, reports of photos from any schools games, please email hookresults@yahoo.com

Senior Hockey Trophy, semi-final draw: Kilkenny vs King’s Hospital/St Killians; High School/Sutton Park vs St Columba’s
Final: March 14

Junior Cup, quarter-final draw: Newpark/St Andrews v Sutton Park; Wesley v Kilkenny; King’s Hospital vs Sandford Park/St Killians
Quarter-final result: Dundalk 1 St Columba’s 7
Final: March 14

Minor Cup, quarter-final draw: King’s Hospital v Drogheda GS; Wesley vs St Columba’s; Mount Temple vs St Andrew’s; Newpark vs Sutton Park
Final: March 21

U-13 Cup, quarter-final draw: Wesley v Newpark; Headford v St Killians; Kilkenny vs John Scottus/King’s Hospital/High School
Quarter-final result: St Andrew’s beat Sutton Park
Final: March 14

League final schedule:
February 29: Junior A (3.40pm), Junior B (2pm) – both at Wesley College, Ballinteer
U-13 A (3.20pm), U-13 B (2pm), U-13 C (12.45pm) – all at St Andrew’s College, Booterstown

March 7: Senior A (4.30pm), Senior B (1.30pm), All-Ireland playoff (3pm) – all at Newpark
Minor A (3.40pm), Minor B (2pm) – both in St Columba’s College

Combined with a last-gasp win over Muckross in the league, courtesy of Saoirse O’Donoghue’s goal for a thrilling 3-2 success, it puts the Rathgar school still in contention in two competitions.

They showed their Premier class to get the better of Senior One side Our Lady’s Grove in round one before facing an intense battle with Mount Sackville, normal time ending 0-0 while no further goals accrued in extra time.

But a brilliant performance in goal by Lia McCann saw High School win the penalty one-on-one shoot-out 4-1 and advance to the final eight.

There, they met King’s Hospital – victors over St Raphaela’s in round two – in Palmerstown, a tie in which both teams started strong with both sides creating many opportunities. The visitors were the ones to eventually break the deadlock when Jenny Long whipped in a cracking shot into the backboard.

And her side looked more likely to snatch a second but Kings Hospital continued fighting and defending well to stay in the game until a last second goal helped High School to victory on a 2-0 scoreline.

Meanwhile, St Andrew’s were among the major contenders to fall in the last week in a truly remarkable tie with Wesley College. It went to the 14th round of penalty one-on-ones, one of the innovations brought into the competition this term, using the format from the European an Irish Hockey Leagues.

Normal time had ended 2-2 after Lauren McGrane has initially handed Wesley the lead only for Andrew’s to bounce back and lead at 2-1. Anna May Whelan levelled matters to force extra-time and subsequently penalties.

Aisling Naughton notched a third hat-trick of the season for Mount Anville to see them through to a quarter-final date with Wesley, meaning another of the league semi-finalists will fall by the wayside. Naughton’s treble came in a 4-0 success over Holy Child, Killiney with Julia O’Connell also on the mark.

Leinster Senior Schoolgirls Cup, quarter-final draw: Teresians v Loreto Dalkey/Loreto Beaufort; Rathdown v Muckross/Alexandra College; Kings Hospital 0 High School 2; Mount Anville v Wesley College – to be played by February 4

The plan is to host a tournament which will see competitions at three levels, over-40’s, 45’s & 50’s. This will be subject to the level of interest from would-be participants. The tournament will be hosted in Ulster at the end May 2012.

The first Leinster training session will be held on February 12 in Sutton Park School from 3pm to 5pm. It’s a great opportunity for players at these age groups to and renew old acquaintances and a few rivalries, and show what you can still do.

Those interested in playing or who may have queries about the event, please make contact with any one of the following:
Stewart Atkinson (087 9876102), Frank Byrne (087 8207078), Peter Conway (086 2744238), Paul Kennedy (087 6815802) or Colm O’Hare (087 9475755).

Injury to his central panel was a rarity in 2011 but leaves the Irish boss with a string of concerns ahead of next month’s Olympic qualifiers in Dublin. Drag-flick expert John Jermyn is one such worry while skipper Ronan Gormley, who suffered a knee injury in the series against the Netherlands, have both been rested for the Valencia trip as a result.

With David Cole also out due to his broken shoulder, sustained in a school’s match a day after returning to Ireland from the initial Spain trip, it leaves spaces for a couple of defenders in the panel.

To that end, Richard Sykes and Brian Doherty both fit the bill as defenders with corner skills to fill the gap while utility man Bruce McCandless is available after injury and has the edge in experience. On the goalkeeping front, Ian Hughes steps out with Stephen West moving up as number three keeper following Iain Walker’s shoulder surgery last week.

Centurion Phelie Maguire has been added to the panel as part of a half-dozen players taking the place of a quartet of the Alicante selection for the latest 26 player panel.

On the trip, Ireland will play five matches against sides ranked higher in the world; Spain twice (world number five) and Belgium three times (eleventh).

Electric Ireland, meanwhile, were unveiled on Monday as the title sponsor of the FIH Olympic Qualifying Tournament – the only direct Olympic Qualifying tournament taking place in Ireland across any discipline.

Electric Ireland have been long term supporters of the national women’s hockey team and Chief Executive of the Irish Hockey Association, Angus Kirkland, was thrilled about the increased association.

“The fact that they are now extending their involvement with Hockey and their recent sponsorship of Team Ireland for the Olympics is testament to their commitment to sport. We are looking forward to staging this prestigious event with Electric Ireland at our side and both our National sides, are working hard towards their goal of qualifying for the London Games and to be a part of Team Ireland this summer.”

Ireland (Valencia, February 4-13): David Ames (Beeston), Jonny Bell (Lisnagarvey), Peter Blakeney (Three Rock Rovers), Chris Cargo (Reading), Peter Caruth (Annadale), Tim Cockram (Lisnagarvey), Mitch Darling (SCHC), Brian Doherty (Beerschot), David Fitzgerald (Monkstown), Paul Gleghorne (Instonians), Conor Harte (SCHC), David Harte (SCHC), John Jackson (Braxgata), Stuart Loughrey (Loughborough Students), Jason Lynch (Royal Racing Club Brussels), Eugene Magee (Dragons), Phelie Maguire (Hurley), Geoff McCabe (R.S. Tenis), Bruce McCandless (Banbridge), Andy McConnell (Hurley), Shane O’Donoghue (UCD), Ian Sloan (Cookstown), Richard Sykes (Monkstown), Gareth Watkins (Monkstown), Michael Watt (R.S. Tenis), Stephen West (Three Rock Rovers)

Match schedule:
February 6: Ireland v Spain, 12pm
February 8: Ireland v Belgium, 12pm
February 9: Ireland v Belgium, 12pm
February 12: Ireland v Belgium, 4pm
February 13: Ireland v Spain, 12pm

** Match schedule may be subject to change

With both sides employing half-court games in the first half, chances were tight with Weston restricting the host to overhead balls while Lynch drew a good save from James Murtagh from the best chance of the half.

The second half proved more open and free-flowing with both sides pushing on. Weston went 1-0 up with a good long corner move which, after a couple of one-twos, saw the ball crashed across goal for Daryl Carey to slide in and deflect on his reverse.

Suttonians levelled five minutes later when Mick MGuinness’ crash ball fell to Conor Gillett at the top of the circle who hit open side into the corner. With plenty of chances at each end, Harry Spain fired Sutton into the lead for the first time, a precision drag to the bottom corner with ten minutes to go. But Weston responded with a corner of their own with Lynch nailing his effort for the draw.

The point lifts Suttonians level with Avoca at the top of the heap after 11 games while Weston are five off top with a game in hand.

Ireland were denied their first win of the Investec Tri-Nations series as Nicolene Terblanche’s goal five minutes from time cancelled out Michelle Harvey’s early opening goal.

A lively opening saw Audrey O’Flynn’s drag flick blocked down while Emma Gray was also called into duty early on with a double save from Jade Mayne before Ireland capitalised when South Africa were reduced to ten.

Kathleen Taylor was shown green and, from the resulting penalty corner, Harvey showed her drag-flicking ability when she rattled the back board to give Ireland a 1-0 lead.

It was an advantage which they held until the break despite strong South African pressure. They also kept out a corner early in the second half while Lisa Jacob, on the counter, caused a number of problems, too.

The play ensued between the two 25s with both midfields keeping very busy but it was the hosts who got the next real chance, forcing Gray into a superb stick save from Marsha Marescia’s shot.

But South Africa’s persistence finally paid off with just five left on the clock thanks to Tarryn Bright’s long pass picking out Nicolene Terblance who found space to level the sides.

Commenting after the game, Irish head coach Gene Muller said: “It was a solid defensive performance and we were dangerous in attack. These matches have been good for us, challenging all the way and ideal for our Olympic Qualifier preparations”

Ireland have one final match in this series which takes place on Thursday, February 2 at 3pm (Irish Time) in Randburg against Belgium.

Ireland: Emma Gray, Nikki Symmons, Sinead McCarthy, Cliodhna Sargent, Audrey O’Flynn, Lizzie Colvin, Emma Smyth, Nicci Daly, Aine Connery, Lisa Jacob, Nikki Evans
Subs: Michelle Harvey, Miriam Crowley, Megan Frazer, Chloe Watkins, Emma Clarke