Greenfields through to Irish Trophy Quarter-Finals.

Greenfields Hockey Club 1 Ashton Hockey Club Cork 1
(Greenfields won 4-2 on strokes A.E.T.)

Greenfields advanced to the last eight of the Irish Cup with a hard fought win, against Ashton Hockey Club from Cork at Dangan on Saturday. The game was decided by penalty strokes.
Goalkeeper Sinead Collins was the hero of the day as she capped a fine all round display with two superb saves in the shoot out after the sides ended extra time on level terms.
Until the latter stages the game never had the urgency of a cup tie but none the less was interesting because the result was always in doubt.

Ashton started very strongly and were unlucky not to have taken the lead in the first seven minutes when first Jenny Coughlan and then Caroline McCarthy forced great saves from Sinead Collins.
However, Greenfields settled down and took the game to Ashton and deservedly took the lead midway through the first half. Alison Ryan carried the ball out of defense and passed to Neasa McGettigan who put through a superb ball which Alma Whelan latched onto and drilled into the left corner for a good score. They continued to pressurize Ashton with good work by Aine Collins on the right and Ailbhe Finnerty on the left but very often gave way possession cheaply, putting themselves under unnecessary pressure.

Greenfields were reduced to ten players for a spell either side of half time when Alison Ryan was yellow carded for a second bookable offence.
Ashton had the better of the second half exchanges but were still lucky not to go two behind when Clodagh Greally went close with a good reverse shot from the left after she carried the ball out of defense and played a one/two with Trish Garrett.
Ashton continued to pile on the pressure and forced a number of short corners with Yvonne Oakley and Ciara O’Toole making breaks from midfield and front ladies Caroline McCarthy and Jenny Coughlan fraying the nerves of the Greenfields supporters.

They went on level terms with just ten minutes left. Yvonne Coakley took a quick free from thirty meters out into the circle and Caroline McCarthy gave Sinead Collins no chance with a good shot to the left.
Suddenly, the match assumed the urgency of a cup tie and the rest of the match was exciting. Greenfields should have wrapped matters up at the death of normal time when a great ball from defense by Aine Collins found Neasa McGettigan in midfield. She passed left to Clodagh Kennedy who drew the Ashton goalkeeper Elaine Redmond and passed into the path of Trish Garrett who was just wide.
On the death of extra time Greenfields had another chance to wrap it up when Mary Healy was denied by the right hand upright.

Greenfields advanced on strokes with Neasa McGettigan, Alison Ryan, Clodagh Greally and Catherine Moore making no mistake. Deirdre Keohan and Jenny Coughlan scored the first two for Ashton before Collins’s magnificent brace of saves.

The Quarter Finals match is in Co Cork, against Bandon Hockey Club, on Saturday February 11th 2012.




Report courtesy of Mike Ryan