MEN'S HOCKEY/Interprovincial Championship: The weekend's interprovincials at Lisnagarvey's ground should help Irish coach Dave Passmore select his squad for next month's international matches against Scotland.
Tuesday's announcement that Ireland will face the Scots in a three-match series between November 24th-26th at Instonians' ground in Belfast should add some spice to the tournament which Ulster have won in three of the last four years. Leinster have not taken home the Regiment Cup since 2001.
Paddy Brown, the Ireland captain, again lines out with Ulster in the hope that his side can retain the trophy they won emphatically last year. Having drawn 2-2 with Leinster on the Saturday of last season's tournament, Ulster hit two against Munster on the Sunday to no reply.
Again all three provincial squads have a familiar look, with most of the Munster contingent coming from Cork Harlequins and C of I. Of the 18 players, only Bandon's Paul O'Leary and Pembroke's Conor Harte are not from the two Cork powerhouses.
Leinster have a number of seasoned internationals making the trip, but not quite as many as the holders, who have a squad packed with internationals.
Leinster, however, have a lively forward line that could cause the other two provinces some difficulty. The Pembroke pair of Justin Sherriff and the prolific teenager Alan Sothern could do damage to any side, and with the back-up of Joe Brennan, Stephen Butler, Fingal's Eamon Bane and Peter Blakeney, Leinster, under the guidance of former Ireland captain and goalkeeper Nigel Henderson and Craig Fulton, will be looking to upset the odds.
Munster, as usual, have a squad brimming with flair, although goalkeeper Ian Hosford has limited experience at this level. The team rest today and then face Leinster on tomorrow, before another showdown with Ulster on Sunday. Leinster meet Ulster in the opening match tonight at 7pm.
Two of the Scotland matches are capped fixtures, the first being a development match, with Passmore planning to use the fixtures to nurture young talent, some of whom were blooded at full senior level during the summer.
"The men's athletes have been working on a hard period of physical development, so I expect to see significant improvement from the China matches where at times we lacked physicality," he said. "The matches will be an important part of the selection of the squad that will travel to South Africa in January, so I plan to rotate the squad. Both teams were not at full strength at the Celtic Cup, so I am keen to see how we compete against a team traditionally about the same level as ourselves."
LEINSTER: C Henderson (Corinthians), I Walker (YMCA), E Bane (Fingal), J Brennan (Glenanne), A Haughton (TRR), R Gormley (Pembroke), T Lewis (Pembroke), A Sutton (Corinthians), S Butler (Glenanne), A Giles (Pembroke), Ezra Handleman (TRR), G Shaw (Glenanne), Graham Shaw (capt, Glenanne), M Darling (TRR), P Blakeney (TRR), J Sherriff (Pembroke), A Sothern (Pembroke), G Watkins (Monkstown), A Walker (YMCA). Coach: C Fulton.
ULSTER: G Lennox (Banbridge), J Moore (Annadale), A Barbour (Cookstown), P Brown (capt, Instonians), M Gleghorne (Loughborough), T Cockram (Lisnagarvey), M Irwin (Instonians), J Jackson (Loughborough), I Lewers (Annadale), E Magee (Banbridge), G McCabe (Banbridge), S McCandless (Banbridge), J Quigley (Annadale), S Redpath (Annadale), D Robb (Annadale), M Watt (Grange). Coach: A Smyth.
MUNSTER: I Hosford (C of I), J Black (Harlequins), J Hobbs (Harlequins), A Chambers (C of I), A Pritchard (C of I), C Harte (Pembroke), D Hobbs (capt, C of I), J Jermyn (C of I), M Black (Harlequins), J Bruton (C of I), R Gash (Harlequins), P Lombard (Harlequins), S Nicholson (Harlequins), P O'Leary (Bandon), D Eakins (Harlequins), B Lynch (C of I), J Lynch (C of I), D Egner (Harlequins). Coach: D Pritchard.
Tonight: Ulster v Leinster, 7pm, Lisnagarvey.
Saturday: Leinster v Munster, 12.30, Lisnagarvey.
Sunday: Ulster v Munster, 12.30, Lisnagarvey.
