The preparations for the national cross country championships took another step forward today with several of the team members competing in the autumn cross country at the national cross country course in Abbottstown. Newly minted Clonliffe Harrier Emily Bolton was a hugely impressive winner of the women’s U/20 race. The men’s team also got a run out with Colm Rooney in particular impressing.
The action at Abbottstown got underway bright and early, the 1st race on the programme was the national cross country 1500 mixed relay. There was a strong Clonliffe team participating led out on the 1st leg by Niamh Kelly, in turn passing on to Fintan Kerins, another new member, young Lorraine O’Connor took the 3rd leg and finishing off with Sean Carrigg. The team all put in strong shifts and finished in 4th position behind national champions DCH, DSD filled 2nd place and Raheny 3rd.
The autumn cross country women’s open included the senior and U/20 women, the seniors running 4 x 1500 laps with the U/20s a lap less. Emily Bolton was a clear winner of the U/20 race, indeed on her final lap she closed up considerably on the lead 3 seniors. Hazel Kenny also got a race under her belt taking 10th.
In the men’s race, over the 2,000m lap Colm Rooney was the 1st of the Clonliffe men home filling 9th position in a time of 24.51, next in 17th was Stephen Cashin, 22nd Sean Heaslip Owens, 35th Eoin Maguire, 38th Niall Carbery. Sean Cronin, had peeled off a lap earlier in the U/20 race to take 6th. The Masters completes the full distance with Cathal McHale 17th, and 5th M35, Tom Sherlock 35th, Niall Sherlock 55th and Fergal O’Shea 89th.
Next up will be the Dublin cross country championships in City West on November 3.
Weekend round up: today in Germany Declan Power took 49th in the Berlin 10k in a time of 34.38. The race was held in wet and windy conditions. Also on Sunday Sean Doran was a comfortable winner of the FASN 5k road race in Dundalk in 15.56. Yesterday, Saturday, Stephen Scullion won the Northern Ireland Masters cross country trials in 24.35, a minute and 1/2 clear of the field. Lee Maginnis was 3rd in the GR8 3.5 mile race in a time of 21.53.