A JEANETTE TURNER penalty three minutes from time saved the Irish women's hockey team from their second defeat to Italy in two days at a rain soaked Belfield yesterday.

However, having already beaten the Irish in the first of the weekend's internationals on Saturday, the draw was enough for the visitors to clinch the Sharwood Trophy which was presented to Italian captain Carla Cotelli at the end of the match.

Yesterday's performance by the Irish was a vast improvement on Saturday's display when they were outplayed for long periods of the match by a team nearing the peak of their form as they prepare for October's World Cup preliminary tournament in Trinidad.

Ireland, on the other hand, had not played a competitive match since they met Wales in April. The Italians took advantage of their lack of match fitness to secure a 3-1 victory - with goals from the impressive Sonia Scalia, Tatiana Nicoletti and Alessia Giulianelli - and only their second defeat of Ireland in 11 internationals.

Ireland's only goal on Saturday came from Mary Logue and it was the Muckross star who was her team's outstanding player in yesterday's match. A fine run up the right from the 29-year-old led to a penalty corner in the second minute and for the next quarter of an hour the Italian defence was put under the kind of pressure the Irish rearguard had to endure the previous day.

However, the home team could not make the pressure pay and it was the Italians who took the lead, against the run of play in the 16th minute. Scalia, the star of their four-match Irish tour, produced another dangerous run into the circle and when her shot was saved by Alison Vance, 15-year-old Stefanio Tosco was there to score from the rebound.

The goal left the home team deflated and it wasn't until the latter stages of the second half that were able to put their tiring opponents under a sustained period of pressure again. Their reward came when, with four minutes to go, more fine play from Logue won them a penalty corner. In the ensuing scramble the umpire awarded a penalty against goalkeeper Elena Rivetti for lying on the ball and captain Jeanette Turner stepped up to cooly slot the ball away.

After the match Logue admitted the team was relieved to have avoided their second defeat in two days against a team they would usually expect to beat.

"We trained very hard during the summer but we didn't play matches and that was the real difference between the two teams this weekend," said Logue.

Logue will travel to Edinburgh with the Irish squad in a fortnight's time for matches against Scotland and France.