Pegasus soar clear

Pegasus cruised to their third successive All-Ireland league title in Cork yesterday, beating hosts Harlequins 4-0 to add to Friday's 6-0 win over Loreto, and thus clinching their place in European competition next season. Apart from the first half of their game against the Leinster champions, who restricted them to one goal and created several chances themselves, it proved to be one of the Belfast side's more comfortable victories in the tournament and sends them in to next month's European Club Championships in Edinburgh in good spirits.

Their title was all but assured on Saturday when Harlequins lost 2-1 to Loreto, which left the Irish Cup holders needing a seven-goal win yesterday to pip Pegasus to the title. If it was an unlikely result before the game, it became an all but impossible target after just 11 minutes when Pamela Magill converted a penalty stroke for Pegasus, awarded after the ball was stopped on the line by a Harlequins foot.

Two goals in five minutes from Claire McMahon, both following well-worked corners, made it 3-0 at half time and it was five minutes in to the second period before Harlequins had a shot on goal. Donna Hawthorne saved that effort, a corner strike from Karen O'Brien, and O'Brien was denied again soon after.

Carol Welch cleared a Kim Mills shot off her own line, but the Irish forward completed the scoring minutes from the end when she drilled the ball through a crowded circle, beating the unsighted Sharon Hutchinson.

There wasn't much Hutchinson could do either when she conceded goals from Orla Ryan and Sarah O'Meara in the 13th and 39th minutes against Loreto on Saturday, both as a result of slick corner routines.