Johnny Harte hailed the strength in depth of his UCD panel as they confirmed back-to-back Leinster women’s division one titles with a facile 4-0 win over Trinity at Belfield.
The result put them out of range of Loreto and Railway Union – who tied 1-1 with Old Alex on the night – and repeat their success of 12 months ago to claim the title for just the second time.
Katie Mullan and Nikki Evans both struck inside ten minutes before Jeamie Deacon swept in a simple switch right move for a comfortable 3-0 advantage, viagra meaning Trinity would have to double their seasonal goal tally to deny their varsity rivals.
It was never likely and though College’s accuracy was off course, viagra spurning a glut of chances, treatment they closed out the campaign with a classy fourth goal. Sarah Greene provided the right wing slap to Mullan who finished in style.
Speaking afterwards, Harte told The Hook that the challenges the international calendar posed made for a tricky campaign, one in which he scarcely saw his star players until a month into the campaign.
But during their second bout of absences for training camps and the World League in Spain, they truly came up trumps, especially in the games against Hermes and Loreto.
“Those games were massive. Before the games against North Kildare, we said we had used 31 different players throughout the season and they’ve all played their part.
“We had to fight really hard to get our 1-0 win over Loreto which was magic. We were missing quite a few and it was a classic cup final style win; the opposition had way more chances and we really only had one or two.
“The 1-1 against Hermes also felt like a win … a bit like how the 4-4 draw against Railway felt like a defeat.”
And Harte will be hoping his side can now push for national honours, starting with next weekend’s Irish Senior Cup semi-final date with Ballymoney before the rapid-fire Irish Hockey League tips off. Trinity are set for a playoff date with Genesis, initially penciled in for the first weekend in April.
At Milltown, Hannah McDermott’s early goal looked set to have given Old Alex hope of avoiding the wildcard playoff as they nudged ahead of Railway Union.
Mick McKinnon’s side threw everything at them in the second half, Kate Lloyd and Jean McDonnell weaving paths into the circle on numerous occasions.
But Sarah Canning put in a string of key interventions while Pam Smithwick denied a number of efforts and other balls flashed across the face of goal. That was until the last play of the game when Railway won a corner.
The initial straight hit was miscued but it bounced kindly into the path of injector Alex Speers who cracked home from close range. It lifts Railway to second on their own but they await Loreto’s outcome against Hermes to see if that sticks while Alex are wildcard bound.
Women’s Leinster Division One results: UCD 4 (Katie Mullan 2, Nikki Evans, Jeamie Deacon) Trinity 0; Old Alex 1 (Hannah McDermott) Railway Union 1 (Alex Speers)
-UCD Sports Writers
