Having received a bye into the quarter-finals of the Sharwood's Irish Senior Cup, following the withdrawal of Bandon from the competition, holders Pegasus can put their feet up this weekend and await the outcome of tomorrow's seven remaining second round ties and Sunday's draw for the last eight.
Old Alexandra, the team Pegasus beat in last year's final, should still be on a high after Sunday's league win over Hermes when they face Portadown at Milltown. If current form is anything to go by, the Leinster side should overcome their Ulster opponents, who are struggling near the bottom of Section One this season. Portadown do, however, have in their ranks one of the country's most promising young players in forward Jill Orbinson, who was recently called up to the Irish senior squad, as well as former Irish goalkeeper Alison Vance, who retired from the international scene this season. In all there are four Leinster v Ulster ties in the second round, with Muckross taking on Belfast side Victorians at Rathdown tomorrow and Hermes and Glenanne travelling north to play Ards and Coleraine, respectively. Having lost their player of last season, Tamara Stronge, to Pegasus, and without the services of the unavailable Caroline Craig and Joanne Menown so far this campaign, Ards aren't quite the force they were when they finished runners-up to Pegasus in the league last April. But, with home advantage, they should prove a difficult hurdle for Hermes, the 1997 cup winners.
While Coleraine received a bye into the second round, Glenanne were forced to work mighty hard for the right to join them, after their first round tie against Railway Union went to a replay and extra time before they prevailed. Perhaps the biggest single threat to the Dublin side's hopes of repeating last season's achievement, when they reached the quarter-finals, will be one of the Ulster League's top scorers, Coleraine's player-coach Caryn Bentley. While her team has struggled, the South African international does at least hold the distinction of being the only player to have breached the Pegasus defence all season, when she scored both of Coleraine's goals in October's 6-2 league defeat.
The Munster Senior League's top two, Harlequins and Church of Ireland, both have home ties tomorrow, with Harlequins meeting Belvedere for the second week running at Farmer's Cross (they drew 0-0 in the league last Saturday) and Church of Ireland playing Trinity in Garryduff. The round's only all-Ulster tie takes places at the Olympia Leisure Centre, where Collegians and Randalstown meet.
