Limerick get off the mark in style

Women’s Division 1 UL 1 (Rachelle Nyhan) Limerick 3 (Jenni Lyttle 2, Gillian Quigley)  It’s exactly the start John Meyler would have wanted as Limerick began life in Division One with a fine away win over a UL side that may need a little longer to get back up to pace after a truncated pre-season. Former Munster U18 captain Jenni Lyttle was the hero for the girls in pink, plundering two short corner goals to put the Villiers girls in control before Gillian Quigley nabbed a third to put the result beyond doubt. Lyttle’s first had a whiff of good fortune about it but she was emphatic second time around, punishing a UL side shorn of playmakers Laura Peters and Jean Devoy who garnered plenty of shorts and circle entries but found Anne Marie Byrne an immovable object in the Limerick goal. UL did get one back late on, a neat short corner switch battered home by Rachelle Nyhan with 10 minutes to go, but it proved to be purely academic. they’ll need to pull their socks up next week away to Ashton while Limerick will go into their first home game of the campaign against C of I with renewed confidence.

Catholic Institute 11 (Eimear Cregan 5, Christine O’Shea 3, Naomi Carroll 2, Aoife Kenny) Bandon 0 A somewhat chastening experience for a very young Bandon side, but they’re unlikely to face a tougher test this season than a trip to a hungry Institute side looking to get back in the groove. The champions had this sewn up by half-time when leading 5-0, last year’s top goalscorer in Irish club hockey Eimear Cregan having already notched a hat-trick while co-captain Christine O’Shea had notched two from the unfamiliar position of centre midfield. Cregan got two more and O’Shea completed her treble before Naomi Carroll got in on the act with a brace to take it to double figures and Aoife Kenny’s bullet finished off the scoring with 15 minutes to go. Things don’t get any easier for Bandon as they have Quins next up – albeit at home in west Cork – while Insta are the odd team out in round two’s fixtures so have next weekend off. UCC 3 (Sarah Sullivan 2, Rachel O’Hanlon) Ashton 0 UCC’s freshers took centre stage as Paidi Hartnett’s new-look side got their season off to a fine start, showing the benefits of a pre-season weekend in Galway where they won comfortably against NUIG and Avoca. Sarah Sullivan, on her full debut since joining from Bandon, put the students one up at the break and she doubled their advantage in the second period before Rachel O’Hanlon, a new signing from C of I, put a gloss on things. Ashton showed that it may take them somewhat longer to gel having undergone a reasonable amount of squad upheaval in the summer, and a home tie with UL next time out represents a big opportunity to get points on the board.

Cork Harlequins 8 (Yvonne O’Byrne 3, Lesley-Ann Daunt 2, Rachel McSharry, Cliodhna Sargent, Orlagh Cotter) Fermoy 0 Yvonne O’Byrne isn’t often on the scoresheet for Quins – let alone three times in one game – but the 20-year-old gave a true captain’s performance as her side romped past new girls Fermoy. O’Byrne struck twice from corners and once from play while Lesley-Ann Daunt got her season off to a flyer with a double and Rachel McSharry, Cliodhna Sargent and Orlagh Cotter claimed the others. It was hardly the beginning new Fermoy coach Mark Egner was after and a clash with UCC next up – albeit at home – means the tests are coming thick and fast for his charges. Men’s Division 1 Cork C of I B 0 Cork Harlequins 5 (Mark Black, David Egner, Paul Lombard, David Eakins, Darren Farrell)  Quins finally revealed the potential solution to their goalkeeping conundrum as 15-year-old Midleton College student Jack Ryan enjoyed an eventful debut between the posts. With regular netminder Chris Daunt headed for Sweden in November, Quins needed a goalkeeping fix and they’ll hope Ryan, who impressed hugely with Munster U16 last term, earning an Irish trial and the U16 Player of the Year gong despite being relatively new to hockey, can step up to the plate. He gave away a penalty stroke when illegally preventing Ben O’Mahony from shooting but dusted himself off to save Phil Sweetnam’s effort, one of a handful of fine stops. That was good as it got for the hosts as Quins shared out the goals between Mark Black (corner deflection), David Eakins (penalty stroke) Paul Lombard (play) and some second-phase corner corner strikes from David Egner and the returning Darren Farrell.

Of concern to coach Phil Oakley, though, will be the news that talismanic defender Jason Black is out for the foreseeable future after badly injuring his finger in an accident at home. Cork C of I 5 (Stephen Sweetnam 3, Richard Lynch, Gary Wilkinson) Cork Harlequins B 0 A nervy start to the campaign for C of I, who were held scoreless until the break by a resolute Quins seconds before finally cutting loose in the second period. Stephen Sweetnam’s hat-trick underpinned the hosts’ effort on Friday night, while Richard Lynch and Gary Wilkinson showed few ill-effects of their 6-3 friendly defeat to UCC in Ashton School colours 48 hours earlier to round off the scoring.