It was a successful outing to Abbottstown today for the clubs’ athletes competing in the autumn cross country in pretty balmy conditions – sunscreen weather! The autumn cross country has grown exponentially in recent years and is almost a day-long Festival of cross-country running including Dublin juvenile Championships, relays, a national senior 4 x 1500 mixed relay and of course the autumn open races.
The day started with the Dublin juvenile Championships where there were good performances from the Clonliffe boys and girls competing. Lucy McFetridge was 27th U/14 girls, in the U/14 boys Cuan Higgins was 16th and cormac Tynan 29th. U/16s: Hannah Walsh 26th, Ava Aherne 34th and Rachel Ardiff 38th. The U/16 boys team placed 4th (Sean Henry 20th, Joshua Chalmers 21st, Cillian O’Donovan 23rd, Sean Sinopluglu 33rd), also Fiachra O’Donovan 38th, Joseph Laiju 39th, Conor Tynan 44th and Tadgh Cowley 45th.
There then followed the 1st senior 4 x 1500 cross country mixed relay, the history makers for Clonliffe, being the 1st ever team in this event were Niamh Kelly, Jack Maughan, Jenny Johnston and Fintan Kerins, the team finished a credible 6th position. Rathfarnham AC took the plaudits with DCH 2nd and 3rd.
On then to the juvenile relays with very good performances by the Clonliffe teams in action, the U/11 girls finished 27th, the U/11 boys were 12th and 20th, the U/13 boys were 11th and 17th and in the U/12 mixed relay the Clonliffe teams placed 11th, 19th and 22nd.
The autumn open for women included not only the senior women’s race but also junior, Dublin U/18 and masters meaning that was a bumper field but it was pretty difficult for the athletes to see who they were racing against and where they were in their own particular events. In any event the junior women’s team, which was also the Clonliffe team competing in the Dublin U/18 championship all performed very well and took Dublin silver led home by Hazel Kenny 22nd, Ciara Sheehy 29th, Sorcha O’Connor 33rd and Mya O’Reilly 34th. In the senior race the team also performed well, Sarah Bateson was 30th, Hannah Browne 31st, Sarah Hawkshaw 32nd and Jools Hughes 53rd.
The same format applied to the men’s race, the senior race Sean O’Leary had his 1st race since the national road relays last April and performed very well to take 8th place (25.18). Colm Rooney was running his 1st cross country race in 4 years and also ran very well finishing well up in the field, 2nd M 40 (26.03). A good run slso by Cathal McHale 9th M35 and Garett Loy 21st M 45.
In the junior race, incorporated into the senior there were big numbers of Clonliffe athletes taking part with excellent performances by all. Sean Cronin 4th, Leon Brady 14th, Mahed Mohammed 15th, Lorcan Benjacar 17th, Cillian Keegan 19th, Rory Quill 23rd, Devon Morrisey 32nd, Oran McGowan 33rd, William Walsh 35th, Ronan Donohue 43rd, Jack Quinn 46th, Aaron Murray 54th, Jack McDonnell 56th, Harry Lynam the 7th, Finbarr Coughlan 59th. The scoring 4 in the U/18 Dublin championship of Sean Cronin, Leon Brady, Lorcan Benjacar and Rory Quill comfortably took Dublin gold.
To see photos click: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjAYzp4