Pegasus face their first real test

BETWEEN them they have scored more than 200 goals this season and conceded less than 20. Their squads boast 12 current senior Irish panellists and another five former internationals. They are indisputably the two strongest teams in the country, making the prospect of tomorrow's Sharwood's-sponsored Irish Senior Cup final at Belfield, between reigning Ulster and Leinster champions Pegasus and Hermes, a mouth-watering one.

While both camps might dispute who should carry the favourite's tag into the game the Belfast side's extraordinary record over the past 18 months, which included a 5-0 win over Old Alexandra in last year's cup final, suggests they should be the ones to bear that burden in their sixth final in eight years.

Pegasus are unbeaten in all competitions since September 1997, when they lost a league game to Victorians, and have won all 24 of their matches this season, scoring 127 goals and conceding just three. They are on the threshold of repeating last season's grand slam, having already won their league and Ulster Shield.

But, by their own admission, it has been all too easy this season and while Hermes are still battling to win an infinitely more competitive Leinster League, Pegasus have hardly had to break in to a sweat in their Ulster campaign.

"You could count on the fingers of one hand the number of times our goalkeeper Donna Hawthorne has got a touch of the ball in any game we've played in Ulster this year," admitted Pegasus midfielder and former Irish captain Jeanette Turner.

Turner concedes that the only time Pegasus were tested this season was by Pembroke (4-0) and Muckross (3-0) in the Irish Cup, and that lack of competition could be their weakness as they prepare to take on a Hermes side that drew 0-0 with them in the all-Ireland League play-offs last season.

Hermes captain Fiona Manning, who is hoping to recover from a sprained ankle in time to play in her seventh final (five with Muckross and one with Hermes, when they won the cup for the first time in 1997), is confident her team can give Pegasus their first real test of the season. "We see ourselves as the underdogs and maybe, because they have been so successful, they might be a little complacent, you never know. They have such a good record in this competition and have been to Europe so many times but for most of our players it's a fairly new experience and it's created such a buzz in the club. "We're an attacking team and we have the likes of Jenny (Burke) and Mary (Logue) - that's our strength, we like to play at a good pace and keep going at teams and Pegasus just haven't faced that this season. They probably haven't had to defend too many short corners either and we see them as a reasonably strong part of our game, so hopefully we can put them under a bit of pressure there."

While Turner feels Hermes suffer from defensive frailties, she has the highest respect for their attacking players, not least Kilkenny's Caitriona Carey, widely regarded as the finest prospect in Irish women's hockey. "I don't think they're as good as us defensively and that's probably their weakest link but their midfield and forwards are very good. Mary Logue and Jenny Burke are obviously going to be threats and then there's Caitriona Carey e EVER to come out of Irish ladies' hockey - she has so much class. "Having said all that Pegasus will not be going down to play to suit Hermes, we will be playing the game we've been playing all year. If both teams produce their best then I don't think there's going to be very much in it - it certainly won't be a repeat of last year's scoreline. I am confident, though, that we are capable of winning the final if we play well on the day," concluded Turner.

Manning picks out the midfield duel between Turner and Hermes' Daphne Sixsmith as one that could have a significant bearing on the outcome of the match. "Jeanette's one of the toughest players I've ever seen, she's probably the closest thing we have in hockey to Roy Keane. "I remember playing with her for Ireland and she'd pick up injuries that would leave any one else rolling around on the ground - but she'd just pick herself up, blood pouring out of her, and carry on. She's like a robot. But we have Daphne and she revels in that kind of battle. If they are marking each other that could be a really important contest."

Few games in recent years have generated as much anticipation as this one and by 2.30 tomorrow afternoon Pegasus will either have underlined their sheer invincibility or Hermes, also on course for a grand slam this season, will have staked their claim for the title of best team in Ireland.