National Festival Shines as U21 Interpros Make Their Return
May 20, 2026
What a brilliant weekend of hockey at Rathdown School, as the return of the U21 Interprovincial fixtures for both the Men’s and Women’s sections took place alongside the Girls National Festival. It was an extremely positive weekend with a fantastic atmosphere around the grounds throughout.
U21 Interprovincial Fixtures
We were absolutely delighted to see the return of the U21 Interprovincial fixtures for the first time in six years, with all provinces welcoming the return of this important stage within the development pathway.
In the Women’s section, Leinster, Ulster and Munster competed across the day, while the Leinster U18 Girls also took part in friendly matches. There were some fantastic performances and highly competitive encounters throughout. Leinster began the day with a strong performance against the Leinster U18 side in a competitive friendly, with great quality on display from both teams. The squad then faced Ulster, producing an excellent display to secure a 2–0 victory. Their final game against Munster was another extremely competitive contest, with both defences performing strongly as the game finished 0–0.
In the Men’s section, the Leinster U21 side also produced some excellent performances as they faced Ulster, alongside matches involving the Leinster U18 side. The encounters between Leinster and Ulster proved to be hugely entertaining, with both teams creating chances throughout the games. The opening match finished 2–2 following an end-to-end contest, while the second game followed a very similar pattern with more high-quality attacking hockey on display. Once again, the sides could not be separated as the match finished 3–3.
Girls National Festival
What a brilliant day at the Girls National Festival, as 280 players were welcomed to Rathdown School for a memorable day of development hockey. Leinster, Leinster South, Munster, Ulster and Connacht all came together to compete in a series of matches throughout the day.
The standard of hockey on display was excellent throughout, but one of the real highlights of the festival was the atmosphere around the grounds and the opportunity for players to create new friendships and connections through hockey. Alongside the matches, there were plenty of photographs, interviews and moments shared across the day, making it another hugely successful National Festival.
Attention now turns to the Boys National Festival, which takes place this Sunday.
We would like to thank all the fantastic players, coaches, volunteers, parents, guardians and supporters who played such an important role throughout the weekend. As always, a massive thank you to our dedicated sponsors AerCap for their continued support of the programme and for helping events like these continue to grow year on year. Finally, we would also like to thank Rathdown School for the use of their outstanding facilities and their warm hospitality throughout the weekend.
The Boys National Festival takes place this Sunday, beginning at 10:30am, with more build-up to come throughout the week.
It promises to be an action-packed weekend at Rathdown School as our Leinster teams return to action..