Crunch time for Quins’ title retention hopes

Cork Harlequins’ hopes of retaining their Munster men’s title will likely rest on their crunch clash with Cork Church of Ireland at Farmer’s Cross tomorrow (12.30pm). Phil Oakley’s men are gunning for a third straight title but have ceded the initiative to C of I this season, as Simon Wolfe hit a last-gasp winner in the sides’ last meeting in January before Quins dropped a point to UCC for the first time in around a decade, drawing 3-3 with the students.

Quins still hold a two-point lead over C of I and the sides will also have to meet once more in the league, meaning nothing is set in stone. But the Garryduff men have two winnable games in hand, both against Bandon, and have a 100% record this season so far, therefore they hold all the aces. Furthermore, Quins will be alarmed at conceding four goals to their second team before eventually running out 6-4 winners on Tuesday night. Ireland U18 hitman Gary Wilkinson will be a big loss for C of I though, as he is missing due to exam commitments. UCC’s league campaign has all but petered out and they will use their final games, against C of I B tomorrow and Quins B next weekend, as warm-ups for their upcoming Irish Hockey League wildcard playoff tie against Leinster’s Corinthian, a winner-takes-all tie with IHL qualification on the line. Bandon fly the flag for Munster in the Irish Hockey Trophy, their trip up north to face Campbellians being something of a journey into the unknown. Colin Kingston and Philip Peters are among their youngsters who have shown up well in recent weeks and victory is not beyond their grasp. Farmer’s Cross is also the venue for the first in what could be a seismic double-header between Catholic Institute and Cork Harlequins’ ladies. Both sides are battling it out in the league with UCC and meet again here in eight days’ time, but first up is a Munster Senior Cup semi-final (2.30pm). Institute are flying right now, handing out big beatings — including a 5-1 rout of Quins — to all and sundry in recent weeks. The Leesiders are badly missing Cliodhna Sargent — on World League 2 duty with Ireland in Spain — but have enough quality to do some damage to Ger O’Carroll’s hopes of guiding her charges to a third successive league and cup double. The weekend’s other major clash comes on the national stage. Cork C of I and UL have both posted excellent results in the Irish Hockey Trophy thus far, but were unfortunate – from a Munster point of view – to be drawn against each other in the quarter-finals. They lock horns at Garryduff at 1.45pm tomorrow, with C of I starting as favourites based on league results so far this season. In UL’s favour, however, has been their excellent cup performances this season. An away win over Suttonians and a dramatic penalty strokes victory over Muckross has got them this far, while they shocked Bandon in the Munster Plate last weekend. C of I’s confidence will have taken a dent after last week’s heavy defeat to Institute but they have game-changers dotted throughout their side, Ali O’Regan in particular, and will be fancied to earn a semi-final berth on hime turf. On an otherwise quiet weekend for the women’s top tier, Ashton host Fermoy in the Munster Senior Plate semi-finals, with Alan Dobson’s girls sure to be seeking retribution against the north Cork outfit, who stole two points with a late goal in a 1-1 league draw last Saturday. Men: Munster Div 1: Cork Harlequins v Cork C of I, Farmer’s Cross, 12.30pm; Cork C of I B v UCC, Garryduff, 3.45pm. Irish Hockey Trophy quarter-final: Campbellians v Bandon, Campbell College, 1.45pm. Women: Munster Senior Cup semi-final: Cork Harlequins v Catholic Institute, Farmer’s Cross, 2.30pm; Munster Senior Plate semi-final: Ashton v Fermoy, Ashton School, 12.30pm. Irish Hockey Trophy quarter-final: Cork C of I v UL, Garryduff, 1.45pm.