Yesterday morning saw the 2026 Women’s Indoor Championships get underway at the Antrim Forum with six clubs competing in this season’s edition.
Reigning champions Ards proved to be the team to beat once more with maximum points after day one, whilst Coleraine emerged as their closest rivals as they also sealed three wins.
Kicking off the tournament, newcomers Portadown sealed a 5-0 win over local hosts Antrim Hockey Club with goals from Rebekah Lennon, Brianna Gregg, Lara Wilson and Emma McEntee (2), sealing a comfortable win for the side.
Meanwhile, Coleraine and Ards both got wins in their opening ties, beating Randalstown and Queen’s University 4-0 and 6-1 respectively to join Portadown at the top of the group.
In the second round of fixtures, Coleraine upset their EYHL opponents as they beat Portadown 3-0.
Kia McCartney’s seventh-minute strike broke the deadlock before a brace from Ruby Caddoo rounded off the win for the side, who played two divisions below Portadown in the outdoor game.
The win saw Stephen McCartney’s side move to six points with one game left in the day, when they would face another EYHL side in Queen’s University.
Meanwhile, Ards maintained pace with Coleraine, as they thrashed Antrim 12-0 to move top of the group via goal difference.
Alyssa Boyd struck twice in the opening five minutes of the clash to give her side a quick start before Alana Thornton extended the lead to 3-0.
Boyd then completed her hat-trick before half-time, but it was in the second half that her side showed their dominance in the tie.
Two goals in a minute from Maddie Leathem saw the side quickly make it 6-0 before Emma Reid, Rebecca Beggs, Frankie Brown and Ellen Fitzpatrick (3) all got on the scoresheet to round off an emphatic 12-0 victory for the record champions.
That result was quickly followed by a 10-0 win for Queen’s University over Randalstown, with both Jodie Simmons and Megan Cochrance amongst the goals, netting nine goals between them, alongside a strike from Chrissy Hopkins to get their first win of the competition.
Meanwhile, Ards made it three wins from three as they sealed another comfortable win, beating Portadown 7-1 to finish the day top of the group.
However, the final game of the day saw Coleraine maintain pace with the leaders as they came from 3-1 down to beat Queen’s University 5-4.
Simmons, Cochrane and Hopkins all got on the scoresheet once more to give their side a reasonable lead at the half-time break, with Karis McIntyre’s strike keeping her side’s slim chances alive.
Just two minutes in the second half, Coleraine reduced the deficit to two goals when Kia McCartney got her third goal of the tournament, but it was soon chalked out once more as Megan Cochrane got her second of the game straight from the restart.
With less than ten minutes remaining on the clock, Georgia Millar struck to once again give her side a route back into the tie, and just two minutes later her side were level when Beth Monaghan got her first goal of the competition.
As both sides pushed for a winner, momentum was on the side of Coleraine as they completed their comeback, as Ruby Caddoo struck in the 29th minute to give her side a 5-4 lead.
Her side held on in the final moments to take all three points, a result which sees them second in the table, only behind Ards on goal difference.