Promising Pembroke face difficult test

Two Irish internationals make their debuts for their new clubs tomorrow afternoon in the Statoil Leinster League, with Mary Logue lining out for Railway Union for the first time against Pembroke Wanderers and Carol Devine making her Hermes bow away to Clontarf.

Logue takes her place in a Railway team further strengthened by the return of Ciara O'Brien and Janet Quinn, who missed last week's defeat by Muckross, but they will be without newcomer Mary Doorly, who needed stitches below her eye after a collision on her debut for the club. Meanwhile Rudi Wortmann, Pembroke's new coach, hopes his team can build on their victory over Genesis in their opening fixture, although he has set what he believes are "realistic" targets for the club this season. "There is definitely room for improvement at Pembroke but we have lots of potential, with some very promising young players. "Our goal is to go a little further in the cups, maybe reach a semi-final, but I'm honest enough with myself and with the players to say we can't win the league this season. They finished seventh last year and all I've said to them is that half way through this season we must at least show ourselves that we can play a good style of hockey - the points will come after that." Wortmann expects Trinity, the club he coached for the past two years, to be the `dark horses' in the league this season under fellow Dutchman Harold de Jong, who he recommended to the club as his successor. "I think they will be good outsiders this year, they could do very well. Zanya Dahl (who moved to Hermes) is a big loss, but in Louise O'Hagan they have one of the best players I have seen so far in Ireland. They could be the team to watch." Trinity play their first match of the new campaign against Glenanne in Tallaght while Loreto's tie against Genesis has been switched from Belfield to Grange Road. Irish midfielder Caitriona O'Kelly is back in action this weekend for Loreto, having returned from holidays, but the team may be without Elaine Goddard and Carol-Ann Byrne, who are both injury doubts.

"We just about beat Genesis 2-1 in the second round of Leinster Senior Cup last year so we certainly won't be taking them for granted on Saturday," said Loreto captain Aoife Pomeroy of their newly-promoted opponents.

The most attractive tie of the weekend takes place at Whitechurch Park where Old Alexandra will hope to give an early boost to their title ambitions by beating champions Muckross. At the same venue, relegated Maids will begin their campaign for a quick return to Senior A when they take on Corinthian on the opening weekend of Senior B.