Glenanne hit 11, while Rovers are just glad to win

MEN'S HOCKEY ROUND-UP:WITH GLENANNE winning 11-1 and YMCA beating Fingal 6-2, there was little but one-way action as well as many goals over the weekend in the Leinster Senior League.

While goals have increased over the years, 20 scores in just two matches is quite a tally. UCD, again finding life at the top of the food chain difficult, shipped a tough one-way score, while Fingal were also treated to a lopsided game by YMCA.

Of all the weekend’s results, though, Three Rock Rovers’ narrow win over Railway Union would have caused the biggest smile of the day as it is only their second win of the season. While the Grange Road club prevailed by just one goal, it will be seen as some relief to have finally gotten another win.

Two goals from Gary Ringwood and one from Ross Canning was plenty to take Rovers upwards on the league table. While seventh place is not where they want to be, it’s a little further from the relegation zone, where they have spent long enough.

Weston, who went down 2-0 to Corinthians, and UCD continue to struggle and seem unable to move out of those bottom rungs as clubs continue to find the change from Division Two to Division One almost impossible to straddle. UCD have conceded 55 goals and Weston 37.

That cannot be good for morale and the question is whether clubs are better off competing in the lower division, where they would be winning games and competing rather than struggling every weekend and shipping huge scores on a regular basis.

As the table stands at the elite end, Glenanne’s goal spree has shot them to the top again on 26 points, with YMCA in second place with 25 points and Pembroke in third also with 25 points.

In Division Two, Dublin University’s game with the Rathgar Chiefs was preceded by a minute’s silence following the death of former international JV Luce last week. A strong supporter of hockey in Trinity, the sports hall on campus was named in his honour a few years ago. He was 90.

LEINSTER SENIOR LEAGUE: Division One: Fingal 2 (M Ryan, D Bane) YMCA 6 (J Bruton 3, D Robinson, J Tobin, M Richardson); Railway Union 2 (P English 2) Three Rock Rovers 3 (G Ringwood 2 pens, R Canning); Corinthians 2 (M Hicks, C Pelow) Weston 0; Glenanne 11 (J Kane 3, S O'Donoghue 2, E O'Malley 2, J Brennan, G Shaw, F Van der Weji, D Shaw) UCD 1 (B Dobson).