WOMEN'S HOCKEY:WITH SO many players on duty in the under-16 and under-18 interprovincial tournaments at Grange Road over the weekend there have been a string of league postponements, with just two first division matches going ahead in Leinster and none in Munster or Ulster.

Both UCD and Trinity open their league campaigns tomorrow, with UCD, the Irish Senior Cup holders, away to champions Railway Union and Trinity away to Bray.

There is one Irish Senior Cup game scheduled for tomorrow, Glenanne hosting Ulster Elks in Tallaght. The first-round game has been brought forward a week because of the Glenanne men’s team’s trip to Barcelona next week for the European Hockey League.

Ulster, meanwhile, will attempt to retain both their under-16 and under-18 interprovincial titles at Grange Road, the province seeking their ninth under-18 title in 10 years and their sixth under-16 in eight.

While hosts Leinster, should put up a strong challenge in the under-18 event, with a squad that includes Ireland A internationals Gillian Pinder and Chloe Watkins, Connacht will hope to build on the success of their under-16 triumph two seasons ago. They include several of that winning panel and 10 players from Coláiste Iognáid, the school that beat Foyle to win the Kate Russell Cup last season.