The third major national cross country meeting of the season took place on Sunday at the ALSAA complex near Dublin Airport. There was a thirteen race programme to decide the Woodie’s DIY Intermediate, Juvenile B, Masters and Celtic International schools championships. The well laid out course took the runners along the mostly flat playing fields of the airport sports complex. But the three days of rain leading up to the event made running more difficult as the day passed. It’s no exaggeration to say that going which a racing correspondant would term heavy would be described in any number of terms during and after todays races by cross country runners.
The master womens race was the best performance by Meath runners today. The county team took top spot and the Na Fianna members of the county squad combined to take second place in the club competition. Both teams were led home by Mary Hanley who put in a great effort to finish sixth overall in a race won by Annette Kealy, Raheny Shamrocks. The next Meath finisher was Ursula Byrne, Dunshaughlin AC who had her best ever run to finish ninth in a national championship. The great effort by Mary Hanley for her club was enhanced by the addition of this years great find Imelda Clarke who is a novice in experience but a master in ability. The Na Fianna lineup was completed by Brigid Clarke, Maggie Higgins, Margaret Neary and Ann Marie McCluskey. The other members of the county squad were Mary Watters, and Ann Tobin.
There was a lot of experience at the forefront of the mens masters team. The county team included such seasoned cross country campaigners as Tommy Maher, M45, Noel Hanratty, M55. They were well to the fore in their individual age groups with Maher claiming the bronze in the M45 and 6th overall.Noel Hanratty was just 10 seconds off the bronze when fourth in M55. Paddy Mangan and Mark Leacy put in great performances for Meath’s cause.
There were just two Meath athletes in the intermediate womens race. Sharon Monaghan put in a strong run to finish 16th while Linda Fahy was 31st. Linda Fahys Dunshaughlin colleague Shauna Moore earned her first international vest when selected to run in the Celtic International race. The promising Dunshaughlin runner was eleventh in the Under 20 womens event.
In the final race of the day the underfoot conditions were akin to a bad day at the national ploughing championships. The twelve previous races had taken their toll. The county team finished 5th on 250 points in the mens intermediate race. The top Meath placed runner was the improving Loughlin Campion in eighteenth place. The St Andrews athlete has just moved up from the junior ranks and passed up on taking part in the Universities Indoors at Nenagh on Saturday to run for the county intermediates. The recently formed Slane Athletics club had an auspicious start with club founder Ronan Wogan acquitting himself very well in the national intermediate with twenty first place. Dunboyne AC entered a club team in this race and former hurling ace Neville Reilly swopped sliotar for slither to lead Morgan McDonagh and veteran clubmates Phelim Glynn and Sean Kinane around the tough ten kilometre course. The other Meath runners were Kevin Reilly, 54th;Robert Caffrey,66th.
In the under 17 boys Celtic International the top Irish finisher was Andrew Coscoran in fourth place. This is the latest great result from the Star of the Sea athlete who has proven to be a star of the country this winter. In the juvenile B championships which preceded the adult races the boys under 11s were third in the inter counties and second in the under 13s.
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