Emma McEvoy (Dundrum South Dublin AC) and David Scanlon (Rathfarnham WSAF AC) were the winners at the Dublin Senior Cross-Country Championships at Citywest Saggart on Sunday (October 3). Both races were over the 6.5km distance, with the women up first. On a balmy afternoon and with perfect underfoot conditions McEvoy took an early lead and raced away to win in 26 mins 39 secs. Athletes from Dublin City Harriers took up the next four positions assuring them of the team medals. Orla Duffy was second in 27:33, followed by Edel Monaghan in 27:42, Sorcha McAllister in 27:47 and Cliona Murphy in 28:07. DSD finished second team with Maria McCambridge in sixth place, Serena Tuffy 8th and Emma Goddard 20th making up the counting four. Third team was Raheny Shamrock, led by Lucy Barrett in seventh place.Clonliffe Harriers finished fourth and Liffey Valley fifth.
In the men’s race, also ove 6.5km the lead changed quite a few times before Scanlon made his move on the last of the four laps to storm home in 23:39. Stephen Cashin (Clonliffe Harriers) was second in 23:42 and Éanna Ó Bradaigh (Dundrum South Dublin) third. With its four counters in the top ten, Clonliffe Harriers finished first team beating Dundrum South Dublin by just four points. Making up the Clonliffe team were Ian Guiden 4th, Fintan Kerins 5th and the evergreen Sergiu Ciobanu, who had led the race briefly early on, in 10th place. Making up the DSD team were Killian Mooney 6th, Patrick Elliott 7th and Aaron Donnelly 9th. Rathfarnham WSAF, led by Scanlon, finished third team, with Mitchel Byrne 13th, Mark Ryan 15th and David Power 31st making up the team. Liffey Valley was fourth, Crusaders fifth and Raheny Shamrock sixth.
Winning the junior women’s race in some style was Emily Bolton who has recently tranferred from Donore Harries to Clonliffe Harriers. She finished in 16:04. Second was Lorraine O’Connor another new recruit for Clonliffe, in 16:35 while a fighting third was Holly O’Brien of Blackrock AC) in 16:50. With Mya O’Reilly making up the counting trio in 14th place, Clonliffe Harriers was the winning team. Lucan Harriers, led by Saoirse Fitzgerald in fourth place, was second and Donore Harriers third. In the men’s junior race. Sean Quinn (Dundrum South Dublin) was the clear winner in 13:38, followed by Louie Woodger (Metro St Brigid’s) in 13:59 and Ryan O’Neill (Rathfarnham WSAF AC) in 14:00. Clonliffe Harriers, led by Matei Ursachi 6th followed by Sean Cronin, Tom Breslin and Lorcan Benjacar in the next three places, finished first team with Donore Harriers second and Dundrum South Dublin third. Both junior races were over a 4.5km distance.
Further pictures from Dublin Cross Country Championships are at https://www.flickr.com/photos/lindie/albums/72177720321683970/.
At the Leinster Senior Cross-County Championships held at Fairwood Park, Tinehealy. Co Wicklow, on Saturday (November 2) Sarah Mulligan (DSD) finished nineth and Aisling O’Connor (Rathfarnham WSAF) 13th.
STATESIDE
At the Big East Cross Country Championships Marven Park in Leesburg, Virginia, on Friday (November 1) Cormac Dixon (Tallaght AC) finished 16th in the men’s 8km followed by Sean Donoghue (DCH) who was 21st. Dixon was competing for Providence, where he is a freshman, and O’Donoghue for the winning Villanova squad.
