Jermyn back with a bang as C of I stun Three Rock

John Jermyn made a goalscoring return to the Cork Church of Ireland line-up as he inspired an experimental line-up to a 2-0 win over hosts Three Rock Rovers in the pre-season Tempest Trophy at Grange Road tonight. The 26-year-old, who spent the last year playing in Holland with HGC, rifled home a trademark drag-flick from his side’s sole penalty corner seven minutes from time to seal victory, after Ben Dobbs had given them a 55th minute lead. C of I opted to give some of their young guns a run-out, with Jermyn and Andy Chambers the only two players over the age of 18. But this clash was all about the return to club action on home soil for Jermyn and another Irish hockey star who had succumbed to wanderlust, Peter Blakeney.

Blakeney, who rifled more than 50 goals in around half as many games for Trinity a couple of seasons ago, has spent the past nine months sharpening his forward’s craft alongside Olympians Kiel Brown and Bevan George at the Western Australia Thundersticks in Perth, claiming the Australian Hockey League in the process. He was unfortunate to see a goal chalked off tonight, while another effort struck an upright, but the Leinster and Irish champions were otherwise wasteful, failing to find the backboard despite having the lion’s share of possession and eight penalty corners. That allowed the Cork side to hit them on the break, and they finally found a way thought on 55 minutes, when Dobbs supplied the finishing touch after Malcolm Coombes had worked his way to the endline. Jermyn’s flick eight minutes later sealed the result in a game that was notable for its application of the EHL rules, some of which will be in force when the Irish Hockey League gets underway in October. This included quarters instead of halves, while players were also allowed hit frees to themselves, which was used with varying degrees of success. Visiting Scottish outfit Kelburne humbled YMCA 10-1 in the tournament’s opening game, with 16-year-old prodigy Josh Cairns grabbing four in a facile win. A side laden with seven full internationals led 5-0 by half-time, and the Dubliners could only stem the tide via a second-half consolation strike from Warwick Armstrong. Tempest Trophy, Day 1 results Kelburne 10 (J Cairns 4, J Christie 2, M Christie, G Hall, I Scholefield, C Nelson) YMCA 1 (W Armstrong). Three Rock Rovers 0 Cork C of I 2 (B Dobbs, J Jermyn) * * A big thanks to Stephen Findlater for the eyewitness account from Grange Road! * *