Ashton determined to end six-year famine

Ashton School go into today’s Munster Senior Schoolboys Cup final at Garryduff (2.30pm) against Bandon Grammar School hell-bent on returning the balance of power to Cork city after a six-year famine. The west Cork nursery ended a nine-year period of Ashton dominance in 2004 and have since gone on to claim five consecutive titles, but the city school’s coach David Hobbs is hopeful of a return to the glory days. Hobbs is vice-captain of the current Irish senior international side and has more than a century of caps under his belt, and is now a teacher at his alma mater.

He was part of a ‘golden era’ that also featured international team-mates John Jermyn and Karl Burns, and claimed Ashton’s only two Irish Schools trophies in 1998 and 2000, and he is now looking to replicate that success as a coach. To do so, he will be looking to younger brother Dan, who skippers the side and is already a top-notch drag-flicker – as evidenced most recently by his hat-trick for Cork Harlequins in their Munster Senior Cup final win over Bandon. Other key players for Ashton include Stuart O’Grady, Ireland U18 squad member Andrew Daunt and vice-captain Peter Catchpole, all team-mates of their coach at Cork Church of Ireland. “It should be a good game as both teams have been playing a high level of hockey recently in the John Waring Cup, and both made the semi-finals of the Irish Schools earlier on in the year,” said Hobbs. “We haven’t won the Munster cup for the last number of years, but the team has been training hard and playing well so I’ll have full confidence in them going into the game. “I’ll be looking to some of the older, more experienced players to step up, play well and create opportunities for us.” Ashton had to overcome tougher opposition in the last four, eventually seeing off Midleton College 4-1, while Bandon Grammar had a facile 8-0 win at Villiers. But it is the west Cork side who arguably possess a psychological advantage, having defeated their rivals 2-1 to avoid the wooden spoon at the John Waring a fortnight ago. Neither side covered themselves in glory at that competition, with Bandon Grammar well-beaten by St Andrew’s and Banbridge while Ashton suffered at the hands of Wesley, though they did claim a noteworthy 2-2 draw with eventual winners Cookstown High. There is further motivation for the Bandon boys, coached by Denis Pritchard and Darren Platts, to make it six cup wins on the trot. Their senior girls have already won out in Munster, and if the boys can reciprocate that achievement it will give the school an unprecedented cup double.

Mercurial Irish U16 international Darren Sweetnam is the lynchpin of the Bandon side, and has a license to roam. He will be determined to exert more influence on this occasion having been laid low by illness during the John Waring. Karl Lynch, younger brother of Irish senior international Jason and an Ireland U18 squad member himself, provides the calming influence at the back for Bandon Grammar. Skipper Andrew Scannell capably holds the midfield, while Fionn O’Leary has proven himself to be a valuable goalscoring outlet for club and school this term. ASHTON: C Shemeld (GK), D Doherty, S O’Grady, D Hobbs (capt), W Brownlow, P Catchpole (vice-capt), A Daunt, N Gokul, M Welch, S Swanton, P Sweetnam, M Buttimer, M Holland, R Sweetnam, R Lynch, D Wolfe. BANDON GRAMMAR: B Corcoran (GK), K Lynch, S McIloy, T Gray, N Leeming, D Sweetnam, S Sullivan, J Robinson, A Walsh, F O’Leary, S Miller, T Bateman, B Scott, C Duggan, M Coombes, A Scannell (capt).