Three Rock trio rested for Argentina clashes

Irish hockey’s high performance director Dave Passmore has opted to rest a trio of Three Rock Rovers stars for a super camp to take place ahead of the double-header with Argentina later this month. Mitch Darling, Peter Blakeney and Phelie Maguire have been excused from the two-day camp, to take place on October 25 and 26, to allow them to have uninterrupted perparation for their club’s EuroHockey League (EHL) campaign. As a result, four players – Annadale’s Peter Caruth, Simon Todd of Mossley, Cookstown’s Colin Donaldson and Monkstown shot-stopper David Fitzgerald have been promoted from the Ireland A squad. Passmore, who is in charge of the team on an interim basis while the Irish Hockey Association (IHA) deliberate on who his successor will be, said the camp was intended to bring the squad up to speed ahead of the clashes with Argentina in Dublin on October 29 and 30. The squads for the games will be announced on October 28. “This will be a high-intensity camp to ensure we can get the team up to the physical and mental speed of matches in the short time we have before the Argentina games,” he said. “Players should be keen to impress, with the new coaching announcement imminent.” Ireland men’s super camp squad: D Harte (GK, Pembroke Wanderers), D Fitzgerald (GK, Monkstown) I Walker (GK, YMCA); K Black (Cookstown), K Burns (Cork C of I), T Lewis (Pembroke Wanderers), R Gormley (Pembroke Wanderers), J Jackson (Loughborough Students), M Black (Cork Harlequins), G Shaw (Glenanne), S Butler (Glenanne), J Jermyn (Cork C of I), D Hobbs (Cork C of I), E Magee (Banbridge), T Cockram (Lisnagarvey), M Watt (Grange), A Sothern (Pembroke Wanderers), J Lynch (Lisnagarvey), J Brennan (Glenanne), C Harte (Pembroke Wanderers), G McCabe (Banbridge), D Ames (Cookstown), J Quigley (Annadale), P Caruth (Annadale), C Donaldson (Cookstown), S Todd (Mossley). Injured: M Gleghorne (Instonians), M Ruddle (GK, Cork C of I), A McConnell (Three Rock Rovers) Rested: P Maguire, P Blakeney, M Darling (all Three Rock) Unavailable: G Lennox (GK, Banbridge)