Cross country was the flavour of the weekend but trail and road running still feature. Lindie Naughton reports. 

After Ireland’s historic victory last year, the English winning streak resumed at the 34th annual British and Irish Masters’ Cross-Country International, hosted by Scotland at Tollcross Park in Glasgow, Scotland on Saturday (November 11).

In a closely fought competition, England were the overall winners with 72 points, while Ireland with 63 points beat host nation Scotland by a single point for second place.

With four team wins from the eight races (W40, W45, W55, W70) and three second places, Ireland retained the overall women’s team title by three points, with England second. The Irish men with three second plavces (M35, 45, 75) and five thirds (M40, 50,55,60 ,70) finished third overall behidn Scotland and England.

Photo: Lindie Naughton

Individual overall winners were Teresa Doherty (Finn Valley AC) in the women’s over 35 6km race and also first 45 and Declan Toal of North East Runners in the M50 8km race.

Age group winners along with Doherty were Dymphna Ryan (Dundrum AC) W40 (who was also second overall behind Doherty), Annette Kealy (Raheny Shamrock AC) W55, and Pauline Moran (Mayo AC) W65 of the women and Joe Gough (West Waterford AC) M70 as well as Toal of the men.

Taking second places were Aileen Arthur (SLOT AC) W35, Natasha Adams (Letterkenny AC) W45, Niamh O’Sullivan (An Riocht AC) W60, Margaret Glavey (Mayo AC) W70, and Pauric McKinney (Inishowen AC) M55.

Finishing third were Mari Johnston (Sligo AC) W55, Eileen Kenny (Athlone AC) W70, June Comiskey (Raheny Shamrock AC) W75 and Ciaran McGonagle (Letterkenny AC) M45.

Photo: Lindie Naughton

The teams battling it out

Northern Ireland took the W35 team title ahead of the Republic, with Catherine O’Connor, Sarah McNutt (Lagan Valley AC) and Judith Storm (City of Derry Spartans) packing well to finished 3rd, 4th and 5th. Northern Ireland was also third W50 team led by Karen Wilton (Jog Lisburn RC) in ninth place. Elisoa Crawford (North Belfast Harriers) finished second in the W50 race, with the team third. In the W60 race, marathon woman Mary Slocum (Ward Park RC) finished third. Of the men, Scottish-based Steve Cairns was third M55.

Northern Ireland will host the 35th international next year.

Special congratulations to Irish company MyRunResults, led by Ronan Wogan of Raheny Shamrock AC, who travelled to Glasgow to time this popular event.

Local Cross Country

Veteran athlete Michael Harty of East Cork AC won the men’s title in a time of 33 mins 39 secs at the Munster Senior Cross-Country Championships at Turnpike, Two Mile Borris, Co Tipperary on Sunday (November 12).

Harty, who had opted out of the Irish team for the masters International in Glasgow, finished eleven seconds ahead of Jake O’Regan from St John’s AC, with Declan Moore of Bilboa AC third. Harty was leading East Cork to the team title, ahead of Ennis TC and Moycarkey Coolcroo AC with only three teams competing. Tipperary was first county ahead of Cork and Clare.

Ciara O’Neill of Leevale AC won the women’s race, with her clubmate Lisa Hegarty second and Noemie Leduc of Grange/Fermoy AC third. Dundrum AC was first team ahead of Ennis TC, with only two teams finishing. Tipperary was first team ahead of Clare.

In the Dublin area, a record 200 women have already signed up for this year’s Women’s Meet and Train Winter 3km Cross-Country League, with 117 finishing Sunday’s opening round of the league at Tymon Park – the ‘go to’ venue for almost all cross-country races in the greater Dublin area at the moment.

Sophie McGovern of Brothers Pearse AC, running as an individual, pushed the pace from the start and was rewarded with a comfortable victory in 11 mins 49 secs. Her clubmate Rebekah Vickery was second in 11:53 with Emma Finlay of Esker AC third in 12:06 . Making up the top six were Jeanie Watson (Crusaders AC), Tara Burke (Sportsworld AC) and Brid Ní Chonaill (Raheny Shamrock AC).

Teams in action – as well as those mentioned – included Blackrock AC, Dundrum South Dublin AC, Donore Harriers, Rathfarnham WSAF AC, Love2Run, Waterstown Warriors, The Wolfpack and Lucan Harriers.

Roads

Sergiu Ciobanu of Clonliffe Harriers was the winner of the Thomas Kent 10km in Castlelyons, Co Cork on Sunday (November) 12) with Shona Heaslip of An Riocht AC second and first woman.

Ciobanu, who had helped Clonliffe Harriers to team victory at the Dublin Marathon a fortnight earlier, finished in 31:50, with Heaslip clocking an excellent time of 33:05 behind him. Third and second man in 33:19 was Anthony Mannix of Cork TC. Second woman was Lizzie lee of Leevale AC in 35:34.

Evan Fitzgerald of Clonmel AC was a comfortable winner of the Brickey 5km, in Co Waterford with a time of 15 mins 29 secs. Second and first M40 in 17:26 was Raivis Zakis of host club West Waterford AC. First woman was international race walker Kate Veale of West Waterford AC in 19:11. Second woman and first W45 was her clubmate Eveleen Drohan in 20:16.

In Co Donegal, Letterkenny AC took the top two places at the Remembrance 10km in Stranorlar. Danny Mooney won the race in a time of 32.43, with Eoghain McGinley second in 32.46. First woman was Leoni Cooke of host club Finn Valley AC in 37:50.

Winners of the Polish Independence Run 10km in St Anne’s Park on Sunday were August Benedicto in 35 mins 36 secs and Monika De Almeida of Athlone IT AC in 43:37.

Photo: John Walshe

A day earlier in west Cork, it was the Eyeries 5-Mile. John Walshe reports.

The Eyeries 5-mile was an exciting finale to the four-race Beara Autumn 5-Mile Series with overall victory going to Bobby Tangney from Kenmare by a margin of just one second. With Donal Coakley – winner of the first three events – out injured, going into the Eyeries race Patrick McCarthy had 19 seconds to spare over his Kerry rival.

However, over the hilly five-mile circuit, Tangney’s fifth position on the day in a time of 30:29, one place ahead of McCarthy in 30:49, decided the outcome. Siobhan Holland from Eagle had an easier overall victory, her fifth position added to her third in Glengarriff, first in Allihies and second in Bere Island (six days after a marathon PB of 3:11:55 in Chicago) was enough to take the title.

Individual victory in Eyeries went to Barry Twohig (St Finbarr’s) in a time of 27:17, second was Tommy Arthur (Kenmare), 27:43, with John Longan (St Finbarr’s) third in 28:20. Local Rachael O’Shea, running for the Cork TC, was first of the women in 32:56. Unattached runner Michelagh Murphy was second in 34:50 with Sorcha Kearney (St Finbarr’s) taking third spot in 34:52.

Mountains

Killian Mooney of DSD AC was the winner of the Powerscourt Ridge (16km, 1000m) mountain race held on a sunny winter morning on Saturday (November 11) in Co Wicklow.

Mooney was followed home by international orienteer Colm Moran of Rathfarnham WSAF AC and Mark McAdden. Irish international mountain runner Sarah McCormack, who is based in Ambleside in the English Lake District, was first woman. Emer Perkins was second and Aoife McCavana third.

Road relays

UCD won both men and women’s titles at the Irish Universities Road Relays, held as is traditional at the Maynooth University campus on Friday (November 10).

First up were the women, with the UCD quartet of Renee Crotty, Danielle Donegan, Aoife Coffey and Roise O’Reilly clocking a time of 33 mins 39 sec for the1-2-2-1 mile relay. Second was DCU A in 34:26, while third in 34:56 was Trinity College Dublin.

In the men’s 1-2-3-2-1 mile race, UCD finished in 42 mins 41 secs, with DCU second in 43:15 and University of Limerick third in 43:37. Making up the team were Mark Milner, Jonas Stafford, Darragh McElhinney, Cian McPhillips and Luke McCann.

McElhinney ran 14:07 for the three-mile leg – the fastest of the day. Fastest on the final mile leg was Luke McCann with a time of 4 min 39 secs. Fastest time recorded on the two-mile legs was a 9 mins 18 sec clocking from Sean McGinley of DCU with 9:18. A total of 41 teams ran in the men’s race with 26 in the women’s race.

Stateside

Sligo AC’s Michael Morgan and Abdel Laadjel of Donore Harriers will line out in next Saturday’s NCAA National Cross-Country Championships in Charlottesville, Virginia after strong runs at the NCAA North-East Championships at Van Cortlandt Park, New York on Friday (November 10).

Morgan finished sixth in 29 mins 51.2 secs and Laadjel ninth in 29:55. Last month, Laadjel had also finished ninth in the Big East Championships, where Morgan was 11th.

Not so lucky was Louis O’Loughlin, like Laadjel a member of Donore Harriers. He competing for Auburn University in the NCAA South Regional Championships at Gainesville where he finished 51st of 171 finishers.

Also qualified is Sophie O’Sullivan of Ballinamore Cobh AC competing for the University of Washington, whose team finished third in the NCAA West Region Championships.

O’Sullivan in 17th place was second counter for the team. A fortnight earlier, she had finished sixth and and made it a home win for her team in the Pac-12 Conference cross-country, hosted by University of Washington.