College belatedly bid for last four berth

A rare Irish Senior Cup finals weekend appearance is the carrot for UCC as they finally get a tilt at Ards at the Mardyke tomorrow. The sides’ quarter-final clash was preemptively postponed last month due to poor travelling conditions in Ulster, even though the Cork venue was ice-free.

Senior international Miriam Crowley’s availability is a huge boon to the students, as she has opted out of Ireland’s World League 2 campaign to concentrate on her final year dentistry exams. Ards are the national indoor champions but College have a reasonable record against them, winning 2-1 the last time the sides met in 2011. Elsewhere, Cork Harlequins have a tough assignment away to Cork C of I on their hands as they bid to get their season back on track after the leaders suffered a harrowing 5-1 loss at Catholic Institute last week. C of I have absorbed the losses of some of their teenagers to other clubs, with the likes of Emma Barber and Michelle Egan showing the Garryduff production line is in full swing. Quins had to work hard to break down a resolute outfit before winning 2-0 at Harlequin Park earlier this year, and Eddie Kirwan’s hosts will be quietly hopeful of an upset here. Fermoy’s visit to UL has huge ramifications with the students badly needing three points to avoid getting cut adrift at the bottom of the table. Mark Egner felt his side could have got more from a 1-1 draw in Limerick last week and he will hope another trip to the Treaty city can yield dividends. But UL will be boosted by their penalty strokes win over Muckross in the Irish Trophy where – unfortunately for Munster hockey – they have been drawn away to C of I in the last eight. Bandon host Ashton in another tie that carries some intrigue, chiefly because neither side has a reliable form guide to consult. The west Cork girls ended honours even from their double-header with Fermoy and couldn’t match a Belfast Harlequins side who had excellent basics in the IHT last weekend.

  That same Ulster outfit routed Ashton in round one and although the light blues have plenty of promise in young players like Michelle Barry and Kate Harvey, they have shipped some heavy defeats to Institute, UCC and Quins in recent weeks. In the men’s games, Cork C of I head to Bandon expecting to protect the last remaining 100% record in Munster hockey. Bandon lost 10-0 to the blues in the Peard Cup before Christmas but have got their house in order in recent weeks, nearly holding UCC to a scoreless draw and winning away to Quins B. That it is a double home weekend for them – they play UCC again on Sunday – should aid their cause in terms of having key players available. It’s potential banana skins all round for UCC as they face C of I B on Saturday before going west less than 24 hours later. The ‘Duff seconds pushed the students hard before going down 4-3 earlier in the campaign but with their crossover players – such as Phil Smith and Nigel Buttimer – likely to be in action in Bandon they may not be as strong this time around. C of I B are the third time who are in action twice this weekend, although they’ll be expected to get a result in their Munster Junior Cup semi-final clash with their club’s third team, who play in the division below. UCC B await the winners after they came from behind three times to defeat Limerick 4-3 at Villiers to book a rare Munster Junior Cup final appearance. College’s Kenyan talisman  Felix Opola – one of the top scorers in Munster hockey this season – provided the game’s highlight with a wonderful reverse-stick strike to the far top corner from an acute angle. Women Electric Ireland Irish Senior Cup Rd 3: UCC v Ards, Mardyke, 12.30pm; Munster Div 1: Catholic Institute v Limerick, Rosbrien, 12pm; Bandon v Ashton, Bandon Grammar, 12.30pm; Cork C of I v Cork Harlequins, Garryduff, 1pm; Sunday: Munster Div 1: UL v Fermoy, UL, 3pm. Men Irish Hockey Challenge semi-finals: Cliftonville vs Ballymena, Cliftonville, 2.30pm; Sunday: Catholic Institute v PSNI, Rosbrien, 1pm. Munster Div 1: Bandon v Cork C of I, Bandon Grammar, 2.30pm; UCC v Cork C of I, Mardyke, 2.30pm; Sunday: Munster Div 1: Bandon v UCC, Bandon Grammar, 12pm. Munster Junior Cup semi-final: C of I B v C of I C, Garryduff, 2pm.