Press Release - 19/10/1997
East Antrim Hockey Club
19 October 1997
For further information, contact:
Stephen Swann
Press Release Officer - East Antrim Hockey Club
34 Carnmoney Road, Newtownabbey, BT36 6HP
078 0316 7731
stephen@eastantrim.co.uk
EAST CRUISE TO ALL-IRELAND STAGE OF CUP
East Antrim 1st XI took on a Parkview 3rd XI at the Valley Leisure Centre in the 2nd round of the Irish Junior Cup last weekend. As with all games were the quality of opposition is not quite what a team is used to playing against, it became apparent that the East Antrim players were finding it hard to get themselves motivated for the game.
The game was barely five minutes old when East Antrim realised that Parkview were not going to cause any threat on Johnny Hamill's goal. The first goal to the home side did not take long to come when a shot from Alan Burgess rebounded of the goalkeeper only for David Caldwell to be the quickest to react and slot in his fourth goal of the season.
Team skipper, Stephen Swann, began to believe in a safe passage to the next round of the cup for his team. Unfortunately, it would not be a safe passage for himself. After just less than 15 minutes of play, Swann was carried of the pitch with a twisted knee. A visit to the hospital later that day confirmed that Swann would be out of action until the new year.
With the East Antrim club stretched as far as players were concerned, there were no substitutes available. The team battle on with just ten men, but never got into the full swing of things. The 1-0 scoreline at half-time did not look comfortable enough, but no-one needed have worried.
Alan Burgess, who had already scored in every game he had played this season, kept his goal-scoring record alive. His dribbling skills were too much for the Parkview defence as he extended the East Antrim lead to 2-0. Within moments, Neal Hermon should have got onto the score-sheet after some excellent work by David Caldwell. Nathaniel Bane also proved effective on the left wing, but it was Burgess who scored the 3rd goal from a penalty corner.
With the game safe, and only minutes remaining, Burgess completed his first hat-trick for the club in magnificent style. The final score of 4-0 was a pleasing result for what has been the teams most lacklustre performance of the season. The third round of the Irish Junior Cup sees teams from both north and south of the border going into the bag for the draw.
After the match, Swann remarked "It would be quite nice for the team if we were to be drawn to play a team in Dublin - that would be a quare weekend. Unfortunately, it looks like once again, I'm going to miss the match through injury"
Man of the match award went to Alan Burgess for his hat-trick which sees him score his ninth goal in just his sixth match of the season.
East Antrim 1st XI team : J Hamill, R Hughes, S Swann (captain), S Wallace, C Picken, D Caldwell, Adam McDonald, A Murphy, A Burgess, N Hermon, N Bane.
Junior Teams Undefeated
East Antrim 2nd XI visited the idyllic grounds of Stormont for their Junior League 4 match against Civil Service. Both team had been promoted the year before, but it was a vastly different East Antrim team that took to the field - a team expecting to be beaten.
Simon Hunter, 2nd XI captain, had an outstanding game in the visiting team's goals, while Brian Reid, sweeping, also had an excellent match. Together, they managed to prevent Civil Service from scoring.
New boys, Bob Waters and Peter Darragh, were proving worthy of their places in the East Antrim midfield. Unfortunately for the Glengormley men, the goals look like they might be hard come by this season. Despite the fact that they failed to score once again, it is another point on the board in what could be a very difficult season ahead.
Darren Martin took his 3rd XI to local derby rivals, Mossley, with a view to extending his team's unbeaten run. Despite losing his vice-captain, Paul Leitch, and "The Two Ronnies", Kennedy and McDole, the team performed admirable at a venue which has not been a happy hunting ground for the East Antrim club.
3rd XI debutant, David Menaul scored his first goal for the club when pushed into the unfamiliar position of left winger. But Mossley seemed to have the upper hand and always threatened Michael Jackson's goal. The loss of Leitch was evident as Mossley hit the target on three successful occasions. With the scoreline at 3-1 to Mossley, it was the turn of George Armstrong, on his long-awaited return to action, to resurrect the teams flagging hopes.
Two converted penalty corners by Armstrong brought the game back to a final score of 3-3. The 3rd XI have now drawn every Junior League 7 match this season.
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