Ireland suffer another setback

Women's Hockey: It's hardly been an encouraging start to 2006 for the Irish senior team which has now lost all six of its games, scoring just twice, since beginning the build-up to April's World Cup qualifier in Rome.

The latest defeat came in the bronze medal play-off against Azerbaijan at the four nations tournament in Durban on Saturday, Ireland's second 2-1 loss in three days to the team that will be their final pool opponents in Rome.

After a week of intensive training and four games in six days the last thing the team needed was for the play-off to go into extra-time, not least with the temperatures topping 90 degrees.

But after Elaine Bromell had given Ireland a fifth-minute lead from a penalty corner Azerbaijan levelled eight minutes before the break, and that is how the score stood at full-time. Golden goal extra-time didn't, though, stretch beyond five minutes when Dilfuza Mirzaliyeva converted a penalty stroke that decided the match.

If performances, rather than results, are what count in these build-ups then South African coach Jenny King managed to put something of a dampener on what had been Ireland's best display of the week, in their 2-0 defeat to the hosts on Thursday.

Furious about her team's display, in which they converted just two of 10 penalty corners and "missed three sitters", King, speaking to the local press, dismissed Ireland as "not a strong team" and said that a "a similar showing (by South Africa) at the Commonwealth Games would be disastrous".

The Irish will thank King kindly for her words of support and take their leave of South Africa today.

Their next trip abroad, when they travel to Argentina next month for another four nations tournament, will be even more daunting - they will play the World and Olympic champions, Argentina and Germany respectively, and the United States.

Fiona Ferguson, who made her debut in Durban, will not be available for the World Cup qualifier because it clashes with her wedding.

Back home Railway Union and Old Alexandra advanced to the semi-finals of the Leinster Jacqui Potter Cup, beating Loreto II and Loreto III respectively, yesterday - but Railway needed penalty strokes to go through after their game ended 1-1.

UCD play Corinthian and Pembroke Wanderers II meet Hermes in the remaining quarter-finals which will be played this evening.

Cork Harlequins got the better of Church of Ireland in the first round of the Munster Senior Cup, with two goals from Karen Bateman helping them to a 3-2 win at Garryduff.