Meredith plea for business big-hitters

Andrew Meredith has called on Irish businesses to dig deep to support hockey after the senior men narrowly escaped relegation from Europe’s top tier.

Late goals from captain John Jackson and Stuart Loughrey rescued a desperate situation for Ireland, as they salvaged a 3-3 draw with relative minnows Czech Republic on Sunday to avoid the drop.

It was a far cry from their performances against some of the sport’s powerhouses earlier in the tournament.