First test for new format

Ireland’s premier hockey league gets a new lease of life this weekend after undergoing some major structural changes.

The Irish Hockey League is heading into its fifth season since replacing the All-Ireland Club Championships in 2008. There have been tweaks here and there as it finds its feet, but this season sees a raft of significant alterations come in at once.

The IHL will retain its format of two pools of six teams, leading into semi-finals and a final. But whereas these rounds used to be dotted throughout the season, each club’s five games will instead be squeezed into the next four weekends.