The rub of the green fell to our mens 1sts and 2nds this weekend as they both recorded wins in their Leinster Cup finals!!

The mens 2nds took on Fingal on Sunday in the Railway Cup final. It was a case of youth versus experience as our side took on some of the older heads in Fingal. Experience initially looked to win out as Fingal took the lead from a corner. Rovers responded well with a corner themselves to bring the game to 1-1 at half time. After going 3-1 down with ten minutes remaining however all looked lost. The lads put Fingal under relentless pressure for the remainder of the game however, winning a few corners and shooting wide on numerous occasions. They defied the odds however and came back to equalize in the last two minutes!
Extra time ended in deadlock, as did the first round of strokes. After the first round of sudden death though Stephen Dawson proved to be the match winner as he saved Fingals 7th effort, ensuring victory!

The 1sts had an easier run in their Mills Cup Final on Patricks Day as they overcame UCD 4-2. Two early Peter Blakeney goals, one a slick team effort, had the lads 2-0 up before UCD pounced on defensive uncertainty to bring it to 2-1 at half time. JB and Joe killed off the tie in the next 15 minutes with an open play goal and a stroke to bring it to 4-1 before UCD got a consolation 2nd close to the end.

It marks the 2nd piece of silverware for the lads in what has been a fruitful season so far, and ensures the cup returns to Rovers after a 17 year absence. The win also handed Peter McConnell the final medal needed for his collection!
Pics courtesy of sports file and Adrian Bohem can be seen below, as can video goal highlights from Taz
http://www.sportsfile.com/id/845347/
http://irishhockeyphotographers.zenfolio.com/p72696936
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDXwSJiduiY&feature=youtu.be

Earlier in the day the stars of the future were undone by Monkstown 4-3 in the u16 Cup final. They started well courtesy of Daragh Walsh and appeared to boss most of the possession before Monkstown woke up and began attacking with intensity. They got 4 quick goals and looked to be cruising before our lads began their comeback. Scoring 2 in the last 10 minutes made for a tense finish but time was not on their side as they finished 4-3.