Things are incredibly tight at the top of the women’s Division 3; the league was split after Christmas, and just five points now separate the top four teams, while fifth-placed UCC could yet be the king-makers as they play catch-up.
Cobh have the donkey work done, having played 12 of their 13 games, earning 27 points from a possible 36 – a remarkable feat for a newly-promoted side.
A 4-0 away demolition of Clonmel is their stand-out result so far, and Katie Murphy has hit seven goals during the campaign while Noelle Walsh and Liz Clifford have evenly shared out 12 between them.
Cobh's Mari Moynihan gives chase against Clonmel at Midleton College.
However, Tadgh Murphy’s troops were held to a 2-2 draw by fellow contenders C of I last weekend, and are just a point ahead of second-placed Clonmel, who have a game in hand.
The Tipperary outfit, under the tutelage of new coach Fergus O’Brien, have seen Leanne Fogarty, Jacqui Stokes and Barbara Ryan in particular get among the goals, and they also have an Irish Hockey Challenge semi-final against Kilkenny to look forward to.
The major issue for the top two is that they must now spend most of February playing a waiting game as they are not in action again until the 25th/26th. Tipperary are chasing hard in third place, on 24 points, with C of I next on 22 points but with another game in hand.
That means fifth-placed UCC will have a major say in the destination of the title – and with three games in hand and an eight-points gap between them and Cobh, the students can still win it themselves.
Their mid-month home game with Tipperary will therefore tell a lot, and the picture should become somewhat clearer by close of play on the 26th – Cobh’s final league encounter comes at home to College, while C of I and Clonmel face off at Garryduff.
College, who came down from Division 2, started the season badly when crashing to Cobh at home, but under the dual coaching influence of Paidi Hartnett and Brian Attridge, things have started to come good for captain Ciara O’Connell and her cohorts.
Coming from two down to earn a draw at home to Clonmel has proved a vital result, while Cathy McCarthy’s sextet of goals – mainly coming from skilful deflections – have been vital to their cause. They will also hope to welcome back broken wrist victim Daragh Hill for their final four matches against the sides above them.
That leaves five sides battling it out at the other end of the table, with Belvedere best-placed to finish top of that pile as they have a three-point lead over nearest challengers Dungarvan, albeit with a game more played than everyone else.
Clonmel's Jacqui Stokes and Barbara Ryan in action on the grit pitch in Dungarvan. Picture: Caron Duffy
Maria McSweeney captains a side that is nothing if not balanced, after three wins, three losses and three scoreless draws before Christmas.
Sarah McCoy’s battling qualities and the dependable Edel Murphy and goalkeeper Emma Lydon have come to the Ballincollig outfit’s rescue on numerous occasions this term, while four-goal Jen Murphy tops the scoring charts.
Dungarvan have once again utilised their familarity with their grit pitch to useful effect this term, despite seeing injury and travel-related departures afflict a panel that reaches Munster and Irish cup finals last term.
They’ve mixed the good, such as a 2-2 draw in Tipperary, with poorer results such as a shock 3-2 loss away to basement side UL, but shored things up in earning 1-1 draws with C of I, Waterford and UCC before the split.
A fascinating relationship has developed between Dungarvan and Clonmel in the Irish Hockey Challenge, too; the Co Waterford side won in extra-time in last year’s semi-final, and they were drawn together again this season in round one.
“They won in golden goal extra time. It was bittersweet revenge for what we did to them last year,” explained Dungarvan’s Munster Junior representative Roisin Briggs. “Although it is hard to take, we wish them all the best in the competition as they supported us all the way to the final last year.”
Full-back Martina Landers, netminder Lucinda Shrubb and skipper Sharon Duggan have been the side’s stand-out players, while youngsters Abbey Griffin, Olivia Phelan and Anne-Marie Tutty have helped plug the gaps left by absentees.
At the bottom, it’s a three-way mini-league between Waterford, Ashton and UL to avoid the drop. 18-year-old Trevor Gray has taken the coaching reins of the students, adding organisation and motivation to a side that features largely new faces compared to previous years.
The 3-2 win over Dungarvan remains their stand-out result although a 0-0 draw in Waterford could also prove valuable come the season’s end. Laura O’Kane dominates the defence from full-back while Inka Wümkes has made great strides on the left wing since taking up the game as a beginner four months ago.
Thanks to Claire Stack (Cobh), Dawn Grace (Clonmel), Roisin Briggs (Dungarvan), Maria McSweeney (Belvedere), Ciara O’Connell (UCC) and Elaine O’Flynn (UL) for their help in compiling this report. The Division 3 league table can be viewed here, with cup fixtures/results available here. Caron Duffy’s photos from the Dungarvan v Clonmel Irish Challenge quarter-final game can be seen here, with thanks to Clonmel LHC.
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