Pegasus and Hermes' seemingly relentless march towards winning their respective league titles continued uninterrupted at the weekend, with both picking up maximum points in matches in which their closest rivals would have hoped to see them falter.
Pegasus registered their eighth win in nine league games when they crushed defending league champions Randalstown 4-1 in Belfast. Jeanette Turner (2), Claire McMahon and Kim Mills got the goals which should give Pegasus a significant psychological advantage when the two teams meet again in next Saturday's Irish Senior Cup semi-finals.
League leaders Ards beat Collegians 5-0 to retain their four point lead over Pegasus but with four games in hand the Belfast club remain strong favourites to recapture the title they relinquished last year. In Leinster, goals from Jenny Burke and Aoife Byrne gave Hermes a 2-0 win over a Glenanne team that had taken points off Old Alexandra and Muckross in their previous two outings.
Muckross kept their hopes of winning their seventh successive Leinster League title alive by beating Pembroke Wanderers 4-0 but Loreto's challenge all but ended at Beaufort on Saturday when a late goal by Trish Conway gave Old Alexandra a 2-1 win over the league's third placed team.
Hermes remain six points ahead of Muckross with just four matches to go and, intriguingly, they play the title holders in the final game of the season at Belfield (on February 21st).
Before then away they have matches away to Genesis, Railway Union and Old Alexandra while Muckross will need victories against Loreto, Clontarf and Trinity if the Belfield match is to be a title-decider.
In Munster UCC warmed up for their Irish Senior Cup semi-final against Old Alexandra next week with a 5-0 win over Lansdowne in Limerick. The students remain two points clear of Harlequins who were indebted to a late goal from Joyce Kehilly which gave them a 1-0 win over Bandon in Cork on Saturday.
In the Irish Junior Cup quarterfinals Kilkenny gained revenge for their defeat by Pegasus II in last year's final when they beat the Belfast side 2-0 at Scanlon Park. Deirdre Keher , whose father Eddie won a hurling medal or two in his time with Kilkenny, scored both goals and they take their place in the semi-finals along with Enniscorthy, who beat South East rivals Wexford 1-0, Pembroke Wanderers II, who had a fine win away to Portadown's second team, and Old Alexandra II who had a comfortable 4-0 victory over Cork's Church of Ireland II in Dublin.
