Convincing wins for Monkstown, Glenanne and Three Rock Rovers

Glenanne

made the big move in Leinster’s division one as their excellent run of form extended to six wins in a row in all competitions, seeing off UCD 5-0 in Tallaght.

It has lifted them to a share of second place, despite key men Gary Shaw (broken leg) and Rowland Rixon-Fuller (broken collar bone) succumbing to long-term injuries.

Stephen Brownlow, Enda Tucker, Paddy Gahan and Neil Byrne were all on the mark for the Glens, who have fought back from a shaky start to the campaign, earning just one point from their first three games.

It puts them in real contention to land a place in next season's expanded Irish Hockey League, an outcome few would have predicted in preseason.

Monkstown leading way

Free-scoring Monkstown continue to lead the way thanks to a 5-2 win over YMCA. They looked to be en route to a comfortable win after Richard Sykes, Jake Beirne and Fabian Wullschleger made it 3-0 inside 19 minutes.

YMCA got right back into the mix via Jaco Fourie and Jamie Tobin but Gareth Watkins’s pair of goals in the final quarter killed off the tie.

Three Rock solid

Three Rock Rovers gave a strong defensive display to beat

Railway Union

3-0 with Garry Ringwood and Luke Madeley excellent at the back.

It meant a maiden clean sheet for Stephen Dawson who stepped into the breach after Irish international goalkeeper Stephen West picked up a clavicle injury in training.

An early Jody Hosking goal gave them the edge but Railway had plenty of opportunities to get back on terms, hitting the post once while Madeley took one off the line. Jonny Bruton and Harry Morris closed out the result on the counter.

Saturday's deluge saw the Avoca-Pembroke tie and also Corinthian's fixture against Rathgar rained off.

In Ulster, Banbridge made it 13 wins in all competitions with a 5-3 win over Cookstown to continue their perfect start to the campaign.