Garvey players on Ireland duty

Local hockey, through Lisnagarvey players, Timmy Cockram and Jonny Bell, took a large boost last weekend.
Lisnagarvey's Jonny Bell in action. Pic by Rowland White/PresseyeLisnagarvey's Jonny Bell in action. Pic by Rowland White/Presseye
Lisnagarvey's Jonny Bell in action. Pic by Rowland White/Presseye

Both played for Ireland in the first Investec international tournament at the highly impressive Lee Valley, Olympic Park in London and almost saw their team win a major trophy.

Having finished second behind the hosts England with a win over South Africa and a draw against Scotland which included a Timmy Cockram goal, they faced England again on Sunday in the final.

Ireland had already lost to their old rivals by 4 goals to 2 on Friday and so were far from favourites to take the trophy but they gave a great performance to push the world number five team to a 2-2 draw and eventually lose after a shoot-out.

England took an early lead but Ireland stood their ground and equalised through a superb Eugene Magee strike in the 36th minute. It looked all over for the men in green when England scored midway through the second half but the determined Irish side shocked their opponents with an excellent equaliser in the dying seconds; the goal coming from Mitch Darling.

The shoot-out proved too much for Ireland as they missed two efforts, being beaten 4-2 leaving England to take the accolade.

Both Timmy Cockram and Garvey skipper Jonny Bell played a large part in this impressive performance by Ireland being present on the pitch for long periods of the 70 minutes and the pair must have been very satisfied with their contributions on a very special weekend for Ireland.