All posts in National Championships

Sean O’Leary today won the National Intermediate Cross Country at Dundalk IT. Sean was strongest in a sprint for the line after 10000m to take the title a most worthy winner. With Sean Doran 11th, Liam Roarty 143h, Adam O’Brien 18th, Sean Carrig 24th and Greg Hossenny 28th the team finished 2nd behind North Belfast.

In the Master Clonliffe M65 took gold: Matt Slattery 4th  George Maybury 6th, Eugene McCarrick 10th and Pat Devitt 14th. Both Matt and George also won inter county gold as Dublin beat holders Cork.

The final cross country event of 2018 was today’s National juvenile uneven ages championships and the national novice at a wet, cold, windy and muddy (real cross country!) Navan Racecourse.

The Clonliffe U/19 boys took pride of place today as they completed the set of national U/18, U/20 and now U/19 in three incredible weeks. From the off Efrem Gidey hit the front and although he sat in the pack for the opening 2k he soon took proceedings by the scruff of the neck and steady opened a gap that grew to 50 plus meters at the finish to take the coveted title. Behind him Jordan Byrne was putting in possibly his best ever race on the country to finish 19th, likewise having an absolute stormed was 22nd place finisher Stephen Cashin and the final scorer, recovering from a dodgy start was Ben Guiden who rallied to 27th place and took his 3rd national team gold in three weeks! These 4 were superbly backed up by Daniel Lacey and Ryan Sheridan. Both Jordan and Ben took inter county gold with Dublin.

The U/19 Girls team of Hannah Browne,  Tess Loftus, Aimee Warren and Cliona Cooley found it a tough day but all finished as the team placed 7th.

Unluckiest team of the day were the U/17 boys who lost out on bronze on count back. Evan Foster had a superb race leading the team home with great efforts from Alex Murray, Callum Simpson, Dermot Buckley, Niall Carbery and Manny. Alex was on the Dublin team that took inter county silver.

Likewise the U/17 Girls found themselves in that unlucky 4th place after sterling runs by the whole team of Sarah Bateson, Aoife Hession, Alana Fitzsimons, Katie Halpin, and the Ellas Brown and Cooley. Both Sarah and Aoife won inter county bronze.

Great efforts also by the boys U/15 team of Sean Boylan,Jack Woods, Cillian Sherrin, Jacub Niedziolka, Andrew Gaffney and Ronan Donohue, Sean took inter county gold with Dublin.

Sorcha O’Connor was 42nd in the U/13 race where she was on the Dublin provincial team.

In the women’s novice championship it was great to see a full team lead home in around 21st place by Alannah Cooley after a super run. Great runs also by Ale Hernandez loving the Irish weather, ladies captain Orna McGinley was next in leading by example, Emer Brennan, Laura Kernan and Yvonne McDonagh also all put in gutsy runs.

Finally at the end of a long cold day the novice men where Sean Doran lead the team home after a fine run and took inter country silver for Dublin. Great runs also from Jarlath Jordan, Sean Carrig, Greg Hossenny, Michael Cassidy, Peter Bissett .

Full results not yet available but will be added later.

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It was a good day for Clonliffe Harriers in Abbotstown today for the Nationals with the juniors winning and taking home the Lar Byrne Cup, the U/18s also winning and some fine run in the senior men to see the team back on the podium, after some lean years, taking silver.

The first team in action was the boys U/14s where the team of Christin Finn, 46th, Cillian Keegan 47th, Jonathan Fitzsimons 95, Callum Maguire 137th and Alex O`Connor 154th placed 9th in their first national. Likewise the U/16 girls were taking in their first national and will benefit greatly from the experience. The team placing 11th: 70 Katie Halpin, 71 Aoife Hession, 78 Naoise Cullen, 94 Lara Gallagher, 95 Alana Fitzsimons, 99 Ella Cooley.

The U/16 boys were 12th. Niall Carbery had a particularly fine run to 26th (and won inter county gold for Dublin), 89 Alex Neuroth, 96 Jack Woods, 105 Ronan Donohue, 129 Andrew Gaffney.

In the combined women`s junior/U/18 Sarah Bateson finished like a train in an excellent 38th (27th U/18), Ale Harnandez 49th, Hannah Browne 53rd, Ella Brown 63rd (52nd U/18), Aimee Warren 70th, Cliona Cooley 89th with the team all running well to take 5th place.

The junior men justified the faith placed in them with really top notch runs. Sean O`Leary as always was in the mix from the off and finished an excellent 2nd, and booked his place on the Irish team for Euro Cross, Efrem Gidey battled gamely in 8th, next in two of our U/18 crop both putting in super efforts Daniel Stone 20th and Ben Guiden 23rd. These four combined brilliantly to win the junior title on 73 points to win by a massive 50 plus points. Next in Jarlath Jordan 34th, Jordan Byrne 37th, Daniel Lacey 56th, Stephen Cashin 61st, Alex Murray 62nd, Thomas Baltzar 85th, Ryan Sheridan 109th. There was double delight as the U/18 team of Stone 7th, Guiden 10th, Murray 34th and Daragh Carter 48th, Callum Simpson 50th and Baltzar 57th took National gold. Inter county Sean O`Leary, Efrem Gidey, Ben Guiden took junior gold for Dublin and in U/18 both Daniel Stone and Ben took gold for Dublin.

On then to the senior race where in truth the best we hoped for was maybe bronze, well than maybe bronze was turned into sterling silver by excellent run from the scoring 4 of Cathal Doyle 9th, and 3rd U/23, Euro Cross?, 10th the superb Colm Rooney, 19th Sergiu Ciobanu and 26th Jayme Rossister. Raheny made it three in a row lead home by a superb Kevin Dooney in 1st place, on 41 points, Clonliffe 64 and Clonmel AC 73. Other Clonliffe: 83rd Adam O`Brien, 84th Eoin Taggart, 89th Sean Doran and 95th Tom Sherlock.

It was an excellent day with big field in all races. The juniors can now look forward to the European Clubs in Portugal in early February, Sean O`Leary to Euro Cross and hopefully Cathal Doyle likewise. The senior team will also be galvanized and will look to mount a challenged in 2019. Rust never sleeps!