Only the Mens 2nds and the Ladies 2nds and 3rds were brave enough to play today.

South Antrim 0-5 Bangor 2nds

South Antrim Ladies 2nds 2-0 Mossley Ladies 4ths (E.Rennie, L.Fitzpatrick)

South Antrim v Belfast Harlequins

South hope to end a their recent slump in this encounter. These two sides met a few weeks ago, with Quins coming out well on top. Quins are in a battle for 3rd place and will be giving everything to win, South are in a different sort of battle, fighting to stay clear of the tail end of the table. A 3pm home game for the Lisburn men.

Boys U13, U11 & U9 Blitz Day

Sunday 31st January Fixtures
First games pass back 2pm.

South Antrim 2-6 Newry (L.Marshall, M.Getty)

Saturday saw Newry Hockey Club make the journey to Lisburn to face South Antrim. After a 2-2 draw earlier in the season, a tight game was expected with South hoping to pick up the three points. Both sides traded possession early on but it was the visitors who made the breakthrough. A simple crashed ball into the circle was dealt with poorly by the south defence resulting in a Newry forward scoring after numerous rebounds. As South grew more into the game, they suffered another blow as Newry scored their second in almost identical fashion as another crashed ball in was mistrapped. The Newry forward made no mistake firing home. South however, responded quickly. James Brown and John Semple combined neatly down the right to find Paul Maguire on the edge of the D. A tricky baseline run saw him bypass the Newry defence, allowing him to find Matthew Getty unmarked in the D who made no mistake in slotting the ball home.

The second half saw south come out fighting. Spells of possession in the Newry half saw South win three short corners, none of which were converted. South were made to pay for this, as against the run of play Newry won their first short corner, and scored.  South started to push much higher up the pitch soon after, leaving themselves vulnerable to the counter attack, which Newry took full advantage off.  Newry’s’ 4^th and 5^th came from quick attacks up the pitch after South turned over the ball high up in the visitors half. South however continued to push on and Lee Marshall got their second by using impressive ingenuity to bamboozle the Newry defence from a free at the edge of the circle. Once he made it into the D he made no mistake in slotting the ball past the Newry keeper. In the final moments, when the game was lost Newry got their 6^th, again from a clinically executed counter attack.

South Antrim 2nds 3-7 Glenanne 2nds (D.Hutchinson, M.Conn x2)

Last Saturday South Antrim seconds made the trip to Dublin to face Glenanne, for the quarter final of the Irish Junior Cup. The very young South side started brightly going toe to toe with their vastly more experienced opponents, some of whom have played in the newly formed IHL this season. The Lisburn side were defensively solid, marshalled by the youthful centre back paring of Phil Spaughton and Matt Fraser. Also in the early stages the forwards were causing the Dublin sides back line problems as Neil Wilson and James Brown took the game to the home team. 10 minutes in the home side broke the deadlock with a well worked goal down the South Antrim left. Soon after Glenanne doubled their lead after a well executed short corner. Despite being two goals down at the break the Lisburn team still felt like they were very much in the game but realised the next goal was crucial. Unfortunately Glenanne realised this too and caught South Antrim cold from the restart with a goal. This seemed to knock the wind out of the travelling teams sails as the Dublin side piled on the pressure and they were duly rewarded with a fourth goal. This 4th goal stirred the away team into action. And in this period the Lisburn side got their first opening of the half. James Brown picked up on a well weighted through ball and as he was taking it round the keeper he was fouled and the umpire awarded a penalty stroke. Midfield dynamo Darren Hutchinson stepped up and dispatched the stroke to the keeper’s right beating him for pace and placement. South Antrim didn't rest on their laurels, they pressed on in search for a second goal. They made inroads down the left side of the pitch through Nathan Gamble, linking up well with the pacy veteran Chris Arnott. And it was through this combination that the Lisburn team won the short corner that set up their second goal. The initial drag flick was well saved low to the goalkeepers left but the rebound was coolly finished by Mark Conn at the right hand post. At 4-2 Glenanne and coaching staff were growing more and more concerned with South's increasing influence on the game. This lead to minor personnel alterations which had the desired effect for the home side as they scored two quick goals effectively killing the tie off with 10 minutes still left on the clock. Credit to the young Lisburn team they kept attacking, and their endeavors payed off when Mark Conn got his second goal as he cut along the base line and lifting it over the on rushing keeper and tuck the ball inside the far post. In the dying minutes Glenanne got a seventh goal when the away team had lost concentration after a staggering amount of effort and energy expelled during the 70 minutes. The defence were slow to react to a quickly taken free but at the top of the circle and an open forward deflected a crash ball home. South Antrim can be pleased with their performance against a very strong Glenanne side. They can also take great pride in getting to the quarter final of such a prestigious cup competition. Thanks have to go to South's eager supporters who made the 200 mile round trip.

South Antrim 3rds 2-2 Annadale 4ths (J.Deane, C.McCandless)

South Antrim 3rds played Annadale in a top of the table clash. South went a goal down in the first ten minutes due to an error at the back. South Antrim overpowered Annadale with superb play down the right hand side through Gary Hylands, Nathan Alistar and Kurt Gamble but could not find a goal. Half way through the second half Annadale made it 2-0 with a short corner. Down but not out, with 5 mins to go John Deane smashed in from around the flick spot and in the dying seconds Callum McCandless poked in the winner to ensure South Antrim did not lose this top of the table clash and kept Annadale at bay.

South Antrim 4ths 6-2 Mossley 4ths (A.Hamilton Junior x3, B.Brittain-Dissont, A.Smith, S.Glenn)

South Antrim 4ths face Mossley 5ths at home in a match with only one league place between the two teams. The first half was unsurprisingly very even, with both sides trading blows. Mossley scored after an unlucky deflection left a Mossely attacker with only the keeper to beat, which he did. However, South battled back to 1-1 with Junior Hamilton scoring with a neat finish in the box leaving the keeper with no chance. Mossley mustered another goal of their own shortly after from a short corner to retake the lead. South Antrim, not to be outdone, promptly won a short of their own and Junior got his second of the match.

The second half was a completely different affair and South began a memorable second half with a quick goal after Stuart Glenn beat a man inside the circle and calmly pushed the ball into the bottom corner past a helpless keeper. Junior then went on to round off his hat-trick with another cool finish in the D as we are accustomed to seeing on a regular basis. Bryce Brittain-Dissont got another goal for South with a decisive finish after some scrappy build up play. However the goal of the match came from marauding sweeper Alan Smith who ventured up the pitch playing a one-two and receiving his return ball on the right side of the D. After killing the ball with his first touch, Alan crashed the ball into the net in the finest of finishes to give South an unassailable 4 goal lead.

South Antrim 5ths 3-8 Portadown 3rds (N.Mills, I.McElhinney, G.McCormick)

South Antrim 5ths had a miserable Minor Cup outing, losing 8-3 to an impressive Portadown 3rds, Ian McElhinney, Gary McCormick and Nick Mills got the goals.

South Antrim Ladies 2nds 3-6 Holywood 2nds (L.Boomer x2, R.Young)

The first half of the game saw the teams play a game of Ping Pong with goals flying in everywhere! At 3-3 Holywood started to put pressure on the South defenders gaining another 3 goals before the final. Morgan Muir got the Dame of the Game trophy.

South Antrim Ladies 3rds 0 -3 Grosvenor Ladies 4ths

The girls stepped their game up in the first half today and it looked like the 3rds were on their way to some points. Unfortunately Grosvenor, realising they were going to have to do something, managed to turn things around and notch up 3 goals. Player of the match was claimed by Danielle Heasley

WEEKEND ROUND UP

South Antrim 1-7 Belfast Harlequins (J.Brown)

Unfortunately the guys started 2016 just as they finished 2015, with a big defeat away to Quins. James Brown scored for South with a flick into the roof of the net following a well worked short corner. South's defence were left exposed and poor marking let Quins pick out passes in the circle, allowing for easy deflected goals and tap ins, 5 of them to be exact, and 2 drag flicks added to their woes.

South Antrim 2nds 0-7 Lisnagavery 2nds

The 2nds also got a whipping today at the hands of league leaders Garvey 2s. A defeat was expected if truth be told, but Ian Glass is happy with the perfornamce.

South Antrim 3rds 1-2 Newry 3rds (G.Glass)

One run ended and one continued, unfortunately not the one that mattered. South 3rds lost for the first time this season but still hold on to top spot for the time being. George Glass continued is his goal scoring run with a peach today.

South Antrim 4ths 3-2 Derg Valley 1sts (C.Ullmann, A.Hamilton Jnr, A.Collins)

Captain Fantastic Graeme Alister spared the club from a whitewash of defeats this weekend as his side return as valiant heroes from Tyrone. Cameron Ullmann, Archie Collins and Alan Hamilton Junior scored.

South Antrim 5ths 1-2 Belfast Harlequins 3rds (I.McElhinney)

It all seemed to be going to plan for the 5ths when Ian McElhinney scored early on. However, at half time Quins made few impact subs and suddenly South were on the back foot and conceded twice, funny that.

South Antrim Ladies 1-0 Cooke Ladies (S.Neill)

The girls were a bit miffed about the preview I wrote. I like to think of it as inspiration. They were determined to prove me wrong and they did just that, putting on a complete display of hockey with fine goalkeeping from Heather Neill, superb defending and ruthless attacking. Steph Neill scored South's goal.

South Antrim Ladies 2nds 3-6 Banbridge Ladies 4ths (R.Young, E.Rennie, L.Boomer)

Scoring wasn't the problem for South 2s in this game, keeping them out was. A day to forget as Ban put 6 past them.

South Antrim Ladies 3rds 0-5 Owls 2nds

The girls had their chances but couldn't score. Still, learning experience, onwards and upwards!

South Antrim 1-7 Belfast Harlequins (J.Brown)

Another bad day for the Lisburn men, this time at the hands of Belfast Harlequins. Quins were just 3 points ahead of South prior to the game, so it was expected to be an even game but it turned out to be anything but. South went down early on from a drag flick into the side netting and went a further goal down when a crashed ball in to the circle deflected off two sticks to nestle perfectly at an attackers stick for the simplest of goals. Heads dropped and the confidence left the young South side. With players shying from the ball, options were limited for passing, meaning turnovers in midfield. Once Quins stole the ball back, they broke at speed and were clinical in the circle, choosing to pass for simple tap ins instead of the riskier shots. The game was lost by half time when South were five down.

A stern talking to and South came out with some fight in the second half. They had a few decent chances to score, with Ward Phillips coming closest, just failing to get the telling touch on a John Semple cross. Unfortunately, the fight didn’t last long as a turnover in the centre of the park lead to an overload of attackers in South’s circle, Quins made no mistake in burying their sixth. James Brown scored a consolation goal for South when he netted from close range following a neat short corner. Quins got their seventh in the final minute via another drag flick. A dismal display from the young, inexperienced South side. They are going to have to learn quickly if they are to stay in the Premier League.

South Antrim 2nds 0-7 Lisnagarvey 2nds

The men’s 2nd XI suffered a heavy defeat to unbeaten league leader, Lisnagarvey 2nds. Despite the score line of 7-0, the effort and commitment of the players cannot be doubted. Even though South found themselves 1-0 down in the opening 5 minutes they played with no fear against youth internationals and Garvey 1sts squad players. Garvey had a lot of the possession during the first half and managed to score a further 3 goals. South also had their chances in the first half but failing to capitalise on it thanks to some terrific saves from the youth international goalkeeper. Determined not to go down without a fight, South came back into the second half strongly. South enjoyed a lot more of the possession. The midfield and the forwards linked up brilliantly to win a short corner for South. Garvey went down to a three man defence for the short corner as one of the Garvey players broke the line early. The goalkeeper again stood strong to deny South with a goal. After a great bit of build-up play South had the best chance of the game with a deflection effort from the veteran striker Neil Wilson but yet again the youth international goal keeper made a terrific save. During the last 10 minutes of the game Garvey managed to score another 3 goals.

South Antrim 3rds 1-2 Newry 3rds (G.Glass)

South Antrim 3rds travelled to Newry for the late hit off time of 4pm, made later when the game was delayed for 20mins to allow Newry 3rds to make up their numbers from players returning from an earlier away game. It started all South with early pressure telling as George Glass netted to put the Lisburn side a goal up. They failed to capitalise and add more goals before Newry’s bench warmed up and came on. From then on, the game ran away from South and they were on the back foot for long periods. It took to the second half for Newry’s dominance to pull through, the weakened South side tired and with little on the bench to call to for rest, mistakes started to happen. One such mistake allowed Newry to equalize and then they stole all the points when they drilled home a second.

South Antrim 4ths 3-2 Derg Valley 1sts (A.Collins, C.Ullmann, A.Hamilton Jnr)

South Antrim 4ths made the long travel to Omagh with an understrength team to play Derg Valley 1sts. With both sides cagy in the first half South played some nice hockey with no real chances and a brief moment of poor defending let Derg Valley take the lead in a fairly even first half. Some halftime adjustments allowed South to adapt and come out stronger. Soon they got their equaliser through some fine work by Archie Collins with a crisp hit from the right side of the circle leaving the goalkeeper with no chance. Buoyed by the equaliser South scored a brilliant team goal starting on the half way line with some exquisite passing leading to Archie Cousins playing a great pass to Alan Hamilton Junior who finished, as we all know he can, with a deft shot into the bottom corner. However, South sat back on their lead and allowed Derg Valley to get an equaliser of their own following a deflected shot that left Andrew Wallace wrong footed and with no chance. South knew the game was their’s for the taking and Cameron Ullmann drove into the circle and hit a strong, off balance shot that caught the goalkeeper off guard and allowed South to grab the late winner.

South Antrim 5ths 1-2 Belfast Harlequins 3rds (I.McElhinney)

Having beaten Harlequin's 3rds earlier in the season South 5ths were looking to start the new year with a win. However, with a much changed Harlequins side taking the field and some of the regular 5ths playing for the 4ths, it was not too be.  South started brightly and were a goal within five minutes. Having won a free in the Quin's final quarter Gary McCormack switched the ball across to Maurice Bell. He fed the ball to Ian McElhinney whose reverse stock strike found the back of the net. Quin's threatened with their centre midfielder dominating the play but young Sloan in nets kept the score 1-0 at half time. However, two minutes into the 2nd half, indecisiveness in the south defence let Quin's through to equalise.  Quin's pressed and won a series of short corners but with Wallace turning a drag flick round the post and Sloan palming another away Quin's couldn't capitalise. However, another defensive error was South’s undoing, as Quin's took the lead. With time running out young Ben Faulkner was through on goal but was taken down from behind by the Quin's defender to win a short corner but couldn't convert.

South Antrim Ladies 1-0 Cooke Ladies (S.Neill)

The girls were a bit miffed about the preview I wrote. I like to think of it as inspiration. They were determined to prove me wrong and they did just that, putting on a complete display of hockey with fine goalkeeping from Heather Neill, superb defending and ruthless attacking. Steph Neill scored South's goal.

The South ladies started the match with many opportunities and some unlucky finishing. Cooke had their chances too, but Heather Neill made great saves and Allison Marsden kept the defence tight and organised, preventing Cooke from claiming any goals. There was great play from Morgan Muir and Charis Rogers hassling down the right line, constantly challenging Cooke's defence. At half time both teams were yet to make it onto the score sheet. At the start of the second half both sides started strong but the South girls used their skill to their  advantage and worked well between themselves before breaking through to pass to Steph Neill who found the back of the net giving the South girls a 1-0 lead. Cooke tried to fight back, but south kept strong and finished on a high. A 1-0 win and 3 vital points. Player of the match was Heather Neill. Thank you to Catherine Faulkner for umpiring.

South Antrim Ladies 2nds 3-6 Banbridge Ladies 4ths (R.Young, E.Rennie, L.Boomer)

Scoring wasn't the problem for South 2s in this game, keeping them out was. A day to forget as Ban put 6 past them.

South Antrim Ladies 3rds 0-5 Owls 2nds

The girls had their chances but couldn't score. Still, learning experience, onwards and upwards!

South Antrim v Belfast Harlequins

After an indifferent first half of the season South will look to kick on and grab some more wins to secure their position in the Premier League. South can go within 1 point of Quins with a win and will be in with a chance as Quins have had a few up and down results of their own. Leading scorer Chris Henry (7) will be dying for another goal to keep ahead of fellow forward Paul Maguire (5). This is an away game at Deramore, 2.30pm hit off.