2022

Frank Hayes’ fields in Conna are very familiar to us in Carraig Na bhFear AC as a regular venue for East Cork and county championships, with a choice of course options it has held some excellent races over the years. However, when the news broke that it was chosen as the venue for this year’s National uneven and Novice Championships it felt a bit like the building of Knock Airport! Traffic from the length and breadth of Ireland descending on a narrow boreen and parking for hundreds of cars and buses in a sodden farmers field in December, how does that work? ‘Build it and they will come’ (Field of dreams!), and they certainly did in their droves. As we parked adjacent to the course without barely touching a brake en-route, the day had a surreal feel of East Corks meets Nationals, the familiar set-up of tents, coffee shops, chip-vans and portaloos but without the queues! Following on from recent championships in Rosapenna Golf Club, Santry Park and Gowran Park it was interesting to see an objective view of the more traditional agricultural course setting, the following is from St. Senans AC: ‘What a sensational day of racing today in Conna, Co. Cork for the All- Ireland Uneven Ages and Novice Cross Country Championships. It was good old fashioned cross country running today. A tough course on a continuous gradient with plenty of twists, turns and sharp bends. Event hosts, St. Catherines did a superb job. The parking and course stayed relatively intact despite the torrents of rain recently. With Fintan Reilly on the microphone and camera’s projecting the event onto the Athletics Ireland YouTube channel, the breath-taking competition could be heard echoing out over the loudspeakers into the surrounding countryside and out to the worldwide audience that streamed the event’. Couldn’t have said it better myself, well done St.Catherines!

Carraig Na bhFear AC had a few athletes who unfortunately had to withdraw due to illness and injury, but we still had ten athletes involved from U11 to U19. Cathal Walsh was first into action in the U11 boys race running up in age. Cathal had taken the 9th place on the Cork team in the Munster’s but certainly had ambition to improve on that and had put in some quality extra training in preparation. He was duly rewarded with a 44th place finish in a field of 160 runners and was the 6th scorer on the Cork team who won team bronze, just edged out of the silver position by Mayo by a margin of 3 places. Congratulations to Cathal on an excellent National medal and season.

Our U17 boys’ team of Aidan Maher, Cathal Whooley, Bobby O’Riordan, Brian Hawkins and Luke Mullins put in solid performances which resulted in a 12th place finish in a competitive field. No medals on the day as the Cork team found themselves outside of the team positions on home turf. The prize of Irish singlets always brings that extra level of intensity and a fast sub-3minute first kilometre for the leaders at the top of the course took its toll on the following 2km laps. With the uphill stretches now quite sticky, many athletes feeling a long season in their legs. Another learning day and all our athletes can take pride in putting in maximum effort.

Rebecca Kelleher had missed out on a national medal by seconds in Donegal and although running up in age this week showed intent from the start with a well- paced first lap. Even with the race winner Avril Mellerick not eligible to score for Cork, the U19 Cork girls’ team had 42 points to spare over Dublin in winning team gold so scoring for Cork was a big ask but Rebecca put in a storming last lap to finish as 5th Cork scorer and win a well- deserved National Medal. A top twenty individual placing a brilliant result for Rebecca. Similarly, Timmy Hawkins had missed out on a medal by 4 seconds in Donegal but saved the best for last with a 30th place finish overall and was 5th scorer for the Cork team who won team silver. David Maher who was wearing the blue of Munster was 7th Cork scorer on the day, very unfortunate to not secure a medal. Rian O’Luasa, running up in age put in a fine run to finish 52nd in the country, well done to the 3 lads in this race.

Other news: In the Cork Post Primary Schools Cross-country challenge in Riverstick, Robyn Maher (Loreto Fermoy) and Anna Mullins (St. Angelas) finished in 21st and 25th places respectively from 119 finishers in the First-Year girls 1k race. Good running from the girls in a very competitive race won by National Champion Freya Bateman. Anna was 3rd scorer on the St,Angelas team who took the bronze medal.

Waterford Half Marathon: Alan Davis and Helen Roche made the trip East for this very popular race which boasts good food, a finishers medal, and a coveted WAC hat! A late change to the course not affecting race performance as they finished in 1:47:20 and 1:43:10 respectively. Great running!

Look Ahead: We will have good representation in Ennis next Sunday 11th for the rescheduled Munster ‘B’ Championships in Clarecastle GAA grounds. Best of luck to all competing and thanks to the parents and coaches who will be hitting the road yet again in support of the athletes. There will also be Carraig Na bhfear singlets on show in Newmarket for the annual ultra-fast 5k, not a race for the faint-hearted with 25 runners under 16 minutes last year.

Report by Richard Hawkins

Photo by Michelle Whooley

The re-scheduling of the Munster ‘B’ Cross-country championships to the 11th of December in Clarecastle GAA grounds was initially disappointing, but our members quickly regrouped and took to the roads to get some good racing in. We had no less than ten Carraig Na bhFear members in the field of 282 runners in nearby Glenville for their annual 4-mile road race. As always, the reports were of a well- organized race with plenty of refreshments afterwards and a handy travel mug for all finishers giving great value for the entry fee. Our first finisher was Cian Dunne from the U15 group with an excellent time of 27:07. Mary Fitzgerald was next home in 29:08 winning her age category. Don Sheehan made a welcome return to racing followed closely by Orlaith Merritt, Sam Dunne outkicking dad Tony, Aidan Cooney, Gearoid Fitzgerald, Aoibhe Dunlea and Denise Maher. Very well done to all, great to see the club singlets out in force.

West Muskerry AC held a novel 5k and 10-mile race on Sunday taking advantage of the pristine surface of the new Macroom bypass before it opens for traffic. Conor Kelly built on his recent good form to run a new pb of 18:16 to finish in 7th place in a field of 187 runners. Congratulations to Conor on a fine race!

Elaine Akinkoulie made the trip to Dublin for the Clontarf half-Marathon, not quite managing to slip under the radar! Excellent running by Elaine finishing in 2:13.09!

The indoor track season made an early return with the first NIA live event of the season. Ciaran Nugent has been putting in the hard work over the winter and a 400m sub-50 secs pb of 49.87 to take 2nd place in heat 6 a very encouraging start to his campaign. We look forward to seeing more from Ciaran in the coming months

Other news: Carraig Na bhFear AC and East Cork division were involved in the hosting of a successful workshop in Midleton, ‘Training for the midlife woman’. The event was well attended with over 30 attendees including 7 from our own club. The course was both informative and social with very positive feedback from the morning.

Look Ahead: All roads lead to Conna next weekend as St. Catherines host the National uneven age and Novice cross-country Championships. The course is prepped and looking good, the weather thankfully looks to be favourable, and we wish our divisional neighbours the very best of luck on the day. We will have athletes from U11 to U19 competing in what should be a great day of racing on familiar terrain.

Report by Richard Hawkins

Photo by Belinda Sullivan Photography

Carraig na bhFear AC planted the club flag in its most Northerly position to date, Rossapenna Golf Club in Donegal the venue for the Nation Juvenile Even-Age, Junior, and Senior cross-country championships. Rosapenna sits in Sheepshaven Bay, relatively protected from the full force of the Atlantic by the peninsula of Rosguill to the East and Horn Head to the West. A magnificent setting and certainly the quality of the course and a superb local effort in organizing a very well- run event justifying the decision to host the Championships outside of the more traditional Dublin setting. The fast, sand-based course a welcome reprieve from the muddy fields of Munster ensured some very fast racing with a long hilly drag in to a stiff breeze providing the necessary difficulty factor for cross-country.

Carraig na bhFear AC had eight athletes participating for club, county, and province on the day. In the girls combined U18 and junior race Rebecca Kelleher pushed hard from the start showing the form of old with Aine Sheridan pushing her all the way, Aine running up in age coming through by just one second to take the 6thscoring place on the Cork U18 bronze medal winning team. Rebecca was an agonizing one second off both 5th and 6th place on the Cork team, a super effort from both girls and very well done.

In the boys U18 and Junior race just 24 seconds separated our first 4 athletes home, all running super-quick times for the 6k course. Eoin Quirke finishing in 20:23 was followed home by Aidan Maher, both boys winning county team silver medals with the Cork U18 boys team. Next home was David Maher in the Junior race with Timmy Hawkins finishing just 4 seconds behind the 6th scorer on the Cork team. Timmy, like Rebecca will look forward to the uneven age championships in Conna to have another crack at securing a national medal. Cathal Whooley running a fine time of 22:29 up in age and Rian O’ Luasa notching up another strong performance at National Championships completed the boys U18 team who finished 6th Club team overall. A great effort by all the lads on the day competing well in the highest standard field assembled in many a year, won by the very talented Nick Griggs.

In summary, a very enjoyable days competition for the travelling coaches, parents, and supporters. The grassy mounds on the links course making ideal vantage points to see some of the top names in Irish athletics currently. We look forward to seeing how Conna matches up as the venue for the uneven Championships in 2 weeks’ time, the best of luck to St.Catherines in hosting the race.

Other news: The Cloyne 4k series made a welcome return and we had 3 members taking part. With 294 finishers, Conor Kelly’s’ 19th place finish in a time of 14:24 a very impressive finish. Great to see Jennifer Goggin Walsh making a welcome return to competition after injury with son MJ finishing in the top half of the race in 18:58.

Parkrun: Willie Walsh was first home in the Glen River Parkrun in 19:04, doubling up as the rabbit for Timmy Colbert to take a minute off his PB in 19:08. Timmy looking in great form ahead of the Nationals in Conna. Second female home was debutante Hannah Coffey in a superb time of 24:58 in JW11-14 category. There are currently two junior parkruns in the Cork area in Cobh and Ballincollig with a third one due to start shortly in Ballinlough. The 2k distance an ideal race sharpener for the younger kids and indeed Cathal Walsh took the opportunity to run in Ballincollig where he was first across the line in 8:02. Well done Cathal who will make his debut in a Cork singlet in Conna.

Look Ahead: The final open cross-country race of the season takes place in Killarney next weekend with the running of the Munster ‘B’ championships. Plenty of Carraig na bhFear AC vests will be on show on the day, best of luck to all competing, Our club is also involved with the East Cork division in hosting the ‘How to train as a midlife Woman’ workshop in Midleton on the 26th of November which will prove to be a very practical and informative event.

Report by Richard Hawkins

Photo by Michelle Whooley

The final day of the Cork County cross country season took place in Riverstick on November 13th and in the case of Carraig Na Bhfear AC, the best was certainly kept until last as both our mens and womens teams cruised to team gold in the Novice ‘B” races. The persistent early rain briefly subsided for the running of both races which were combined with the Intermediate grade at the standard novice distances of 4k for women and 6k for men, a fair challenge for all given the stern test that Riverstick always poses. A changed course from the recent novice race included some up and down zig zags with tight turns which saw more than a few athletes lose their footing, with some sticky muddy sections and swamp-like pools (albeit with good underfoot conditions) it was a tough but well thought out course.

In the womens race Siobhan Walsh led the field of novice women with strong running but was likely unaware that this was the case given the intermediate athletes in the race also. Katie Walsh was one of the athletes who succumbed to a tight turn but quickly recovered to keep in touch with Siobhan before eventually using her track speed to kick for home and take the County title with Siobhan taking second place and a memorable individual silver medal. Great running by Eileen O’Riordan, Helen Roche and Orla Gorman, all taking valuable places from the 2nd to 4th place teams to round off a fine team performance, every place counting as only 11 places separated the first 3 teams. As with the mens team, we had two squad members this year in Eileen and Orla who are competing for the first time in cross country bringing depth to our adult teams who have had a very successful year. The growth of our membership and those stepping up for teams has been a highlight of the year.

to all on an excellent county title!The mens team scored a comprehensive victory from the 6 participating teams, Daire O’Sullivan winning individual silver to lay the foundation for the victory. Tadhg Crowley making his debut for the club in cross country led a group of four before pulling away, however not quite creating enough daylight between himself and Willie Walsh. Willie, always tough to beat in a sprint finish but even more so in his natural habitat of leg-sapping mud after the final climb, Willie pipping Tadhg on the line but 5th and 6th places respectively for the club putting the title within reach. Joseph Daly completed the team scoring in 4th place, great to see Joseph regaining his fitness through the season with a strong finish. Jack Ahern, Conor Kelly, and Dave O’Riordan completed the mens squad,congratulations

Thomas Kent 10k: This popular 10k took place on Sunday also, hosted by St. Nicholas in Castlelyons. Conditions were challenging but a well-organized and enjoyable race as always with 397 finishers. We had 3 athletes taking part including 2 new members which again is very welcome. Aidan Cooney was first home in 52:35, Denise Maher bang on the hour mark and Reene Browne dipping her toe back in to racing after a 4- year absence looking forward to building on a solid performance in hopefully less difficult conditions!

Park Run: Great running on Saturday by our U18 Boys crew at the Glen River parkrun. Timmy Colbert was first member home, finishing 3rd overall in a smashing time of 20:10, a parkrun PB for Timmy.

Rian O’ Luasa was next across the line, despite some footwear troubles finishing in 22:11 and 11th place. Michael Mullins made his parkrun debut and a fine first outing saw him complete the course in 24:39. Luke Mullins was also in action on the morning. Luke had an incredible performance during the week at the Run in the Dark 5K, smashing out a huge new PB of 19:26!! Luke did this while beating dad Dave Mullins in a sprint finish. This was also a cracking run for Dave as he broke 20 minutes for the first time. Tired legs for Luke but what a brilliant week for him!

Look Ahead: Next weekend is certainly one of the highlights of our club year with the running of the National Senior, Junior, and Juvenile even ages cross country championships. We will have 9 athletes and a supporting crew of coaches and parents making the long trek to Rosapenna Golf course on the Donegal coast. It promises to be a great day of racing with all our travelling athletes competitive at this level. Best of luck to all! Also, entries close this Friday for the Munster ‘B’ cross country championships in Killarney. This is the final open competition of the 2022 club cross-country season and we hope to field as many teams as possible in the day.

Report by Richard Hawkins

Photos by Michelle Whooley

Limerick racecourse was the venue for the Juvenile uneven age Munster cross country championships on Sunday 6th November. Riverstick as a venue for Munsters day one seemed like the ultimate test but incessant rain on a course like Limerick raised the difficulty level another notch, so much so that the men’s Senior race was shortened by 2k to 8k to ensure a fair challenge. The1k and 2k laps consisted of a long uphill trek and alternating sections of mud and surface water. However, our athletes in Carraig Na Bhfear AC are at home on grass and we had several seasons best performances as our juveniles vied for medals and places in the National finals in Cork in December.

Cathal Walsh was our first athlete competing, running up in age Under-11 boys. Cathal had an excellent run finishing in 28th place out of a field of133 and also was placed as the 9th Cork athlete home so hopefully will feature in a Cork singlet in the National finals which will be a great experience to top a great season for Cathal. Ellie Cafferkey was our sole entrant in the U13 girls race in only her second start of the season. Another great effort from Ellie finishing in 51st place from 123 competitors.

Our first team of the day lined out in the U13 boys race. MJ Walsh first home and was followed closely by Paul Colbert, Sam Browne and Harry Browne. Great running lads! Our U15 girls were short for a team on the day but undeterred, the girls drove on with good runs from Robyn Maher, Anna Mullins and Jessica Akinkoule. Cormac Fennessy and Dylan Mulcahy finished well up the field in 39th and 53rd places respectively in the U15 boys race, great effort from the lads.

Our first medals of the day came in the U17 girls race, Aine Sheridan finishing in 10th place to win an individual bronze medal and a team gold with Cork in the inter-county competition. Laura Moore had her best race for Carraig finishing in 12th place running up in age to win an individual bronze medal and was just one place outside the scoring positions for Cork. Congratulations

to both girls who will represent Munster and Cork in the Nationals.

Congratulations also to our U17 boys team who finished as 4th team to secure their place in the National finals. Aidan Maher with an excellent 8th place finish to win an individual bronze and team gold with Cork leading the boys home. Timmy Colbert was next home with a 25th place finish, just reward for some good training of late, and was followed closely by Cathal Whooley, Bobby O’Riordan, Brian Hawkins, Luke and Michael Mullins.

Rebecca Kelleher had a great finish in the U19 girls race to move up to 9th place and win an individual bronze medal and was also 6th scorer for Cork although unfortunately it was only 4 to score in this competition. In the U19 boys race, Timmy Hawkins finished in 10th place overall winning individual bronze and securing a gold team medal with Cork. David Maher finished as 7th Cork athlete and will represent Cork in the nationals with Rian O’ Luasa the 3rd Carraig athlete home in 26th place overall.

In summary, another good day out for the club with all systems go as the coaches plan the final touches to the training programs to ensure the athletes bring their ‘A’ game to Nationals.

Other News: The club facilitated a very successful ‘Coaching teenage girls’ workshop in the Vienna Woods hotel, fantastic to see all places filled in what is a very important initiative.

Park Run: Siobhan Walsh was 4th woman home in the Tramore Valley Parkrun in a fast 21:12, great running by Siobhan in preparation for the upcoming County Novice ‘B’ championships.

Look Ahead: WE expect to field Mens and Womens teams in the County Novice ‘ B’ Championships in Riverstick. Best of luck to all competing!

Report by Richard Hawkins

Photo by Michelle Whooley

8/11/22

On Bank Holiday Monday Carraig Na Bfhear AC hosted the Cork County Juvenile ‘B’ and masters cross-country championships on the lands of the Buckley family in Ballinahina. The relatively flat course was running firm underfoot the previous day, but heavy rain overnight made for increasingly muddy conditions and some tricky corners as the course cut up. The weather held up well and the availability of chip timing on the day was a godsend as the Juvenile races were ran in record time, allowing the athletes to complete their races and head home before the weather deteriorated. We had a strong turnout of athletes on the day and some great racing.

Our U9 girls team set the standard for our other teams with a storming performance to take team gold. Isobelle Walsh placed 2nd overall winning a silver individual medal and just 2 seconds separated Caoimhe Browne, Kate Lynch and Siofra Nott in 7th, 8th, and 9th places. Well done Girls! Our U9 boys also put in a super team performance with Royce Bangura just outside the individual medals in 7th place but was rewarded with a team silver medal with John Forde, Tadhg Buckley and Sean Ryan all finishing strongly. Congratulations, just rewards for a great effort this season!

U11 Girls: In one of the biggest fields of the day, good running and finishing by Sarah Nyhan, Faye Donovan, and Maeve Drinan. Unfortunately, one shy of a team but great to see the Carraig singlets doing well in a big mix of clubs competing. U11 boys: This was the biggest race of the day with no less than 71 competitors and 10 teams finishing! The 7-strong boys team of Finn Dunne, Eoin Cafferkey, Jack Hourigan, Ronan McDonagh, Eoin Cashman, Arron O’Sullivan, and Joseph Foley all battled well and will no doubt go from strength to strength.

U13 Girls:Congratulations to the team of Ellie Cafferkey, Hannah Coffey, Allie Philips, and Emma Johnson who won the bronze team medal with a total of 73 points. A superb run from Ellie Cafferkey laid the foundation, Ellie was in 8th place after 700m but was unrelenting in driving through the field to finish in 2nd place and the individual silver medal! The U13 boys were not to be outdone, also claiming team bronze! MJ Walsh finished in 5th place winning an individual bronze medal and was well supported by Sam Dunne, Jamie Hourigan, Ronan Mulcahy and Sean Cooney for the team prize.

U15 Girls: Anna Mullins was our sole competitor in this race, good running by Anna in 15th place overall. In the U15 boys race Cormac Fennessy (4th)and Dylan Mulcahy (6th) won individual bronze with Ben Murphy running well to earn the lads our second team gold of the day. The U15 and U17 boys were combined over a 2.5k distance which made for a better overall race, in U17 Brian Hawkins (3rd), Michael Mullins (4th) and Peter Hawkins (5th) all winning individual bronze and earning another gold team medal for Carraig, brilliant guys!

The final race of the day was the Masters men with 65 taking to the start line, the course by now a veritable mud-bath and a gruelling 7k plus to negotiate. Willie Walsh was first Carraig home in 13th place overall winning an individual category silver in one of the most competitive age groups. Dave O’Riordan was next home, the new boy in his age category edged in to 4th place by an agonizing one second margin, well done Dave! Dave Mullins, Richard Hawkins and John Maher completed the Over 50’s team who retained their team bronze from 2021.

In summary, a very enjoyable and well hosted event by Carraig Na Bhfear AC. A lot of unseen work goes on in the background with planning, course layout, traffic and course stewarding, management of the shop etc and indeed the worst of the weather hit as we were dismantling the course and tents after the event so great credit and thanks due to all who contributed and turned out to race for the club on the day. Thanks also to Michelle Whooley for capturing the day so well with some wonderful photos.

Other News: The largest event in the Irish Athletics calendar took place on Sunday with the return of the Dublin Marathon. Carraig had good representation on the day with 4 athletes taking part. Hard to believe it was a marathon debut for club PRO Tadhg Crowley. Already a seasoned runner, Tadhg was typically calculated by easing into the race giving himself every opportunity to get the best out of himself and a finishing time of 2:53:35 an excellent marker and certainly the experience will pave the way for many more sub-3-hour marathons. Helen Roche was typically steady and finished in a super time of 3:44:41. Michelle Kearney was next home in a solid 4:28:29, well done Michelle. Last but certainly not least was Martin Hurley the Marathon master completing his 28th in 4:54:17! Martin drew on all his experience to manage n injury at mile 21 to maintain his momentum while many around him were faltering, huge congratulations to all.

Park Run: Timmy Colbert was first home in the Glen River Park run in a fast 20:33 for the hilly course. Well done to Timmy who is finding good form ahead of the upcoming Munster and National cross-country races.

Look Ahead: The club are running an athletics camp for the younger members over the mid-term, best of luck to all involved. We look forward to the Munster Juvenile Uneven age cross-country championships on Sunday November 6th, the venue pending confirmation due to the intended venue of Limerick racecourse being unavailable.

Report by Richard Hawkins

Photos by Michelle Whooley

1/11/22

The Munster Cross Country Championship series kicked off in the Cork County Board owned Riverstick course last Sunday. Thankfully the forecasted rain failed to materialise sparing additional misery being heaped on athletes who had to give maximum effort to negotiate one of the toughest courses in ireland. The course was in good shape with the drainage systems working well in the preceding weeks deluges, but it is a course that divides opinion. It has everything from a sharp descent, a series of short-up and downs, a sticky double-traverse of the lower section followed by a long uphill drag. Thankfully, the gradient allows for different loops of increasingly difficulty which cater for the different age- groups but it certainly takes everything the athlete has to give with many struggling to recover afterwards. The Munsters are a big step up from county competition so it was heartening to see so many Carraig Na Bhfear athletes who can compete at that level. A good day for Cork teams who used home advantage to take the lions share of the inter-county team medals.

Our promising under 10 boys team were in early action, a massive field of 140 athletes with no fewer than 18 teams finishing but the lads were in the thick of the action eventually finishing in a very creditable 11th position. Led home by Cathal Walsh who had a super run finishing in 9th position winning an individual bronze medal and scoring on the gold medal winning Cork team. Cathal was ably supported by Finn Dunne, Royce Bangura, Sean Ryan, Eoin Cafferkey, Conor Bolger and Eoin Cashman, all running very strongly.

Robyn Maher was our sole entrant in the U14 girls race, a good run from Robyn to finish in 59th place, great race experience for Robyn who is running very well this year. Cian Ryan had an excellent, steady run in the U14 boys race finishing in 15th place overall and winning team gold with the Cork team. Well done to both our u14’s.

Our U16 girls team of Faye O’Riordan, Theresa Dorgan, Laura Moore and Aoife Martin finished as 4th team overall on the day. Faye ran a very brave race to finish as she picked up an injury but still finished in 16th place with Theresa and Laura all finishing in the first 10 Cork athletes who would traditionally be selected for the Cork team in Nationals, a very creditable achievement.

We had 3 athletes in the U16 boys race, Brian Hawkins picking his way through the field to finish with a flourish in 37th place, followed closely by Dylan Mulcahy and Peter Hawkins. A lot more to come from these lads.

Our U18 girls picked up our first team medal of the day taking the silver. Aine Sheridan with her best race of the season so far finishing in 5th place winning an individual bronze medal and scoring for the gold medal winning Cork team. Fine running also from Rebecca Kelleher, Mary Dorgan and Leah Dunne went above and beyond what would be expected from an athlete to battle through significant discomfort from an injury to finish for the team.

The Boys U18 race was as competitive as always with Carraig again taking the silver medal from a strong Nenagh Olympic team. Eoin Quirke and Aidan Maher were the first 2 Carraig athletes home taking individual bronze medals and gold team medals with Cork. Timmy Hawkins and Cathal Whooley completed the scoring, well supported by Rian O’Luasa, Bobby O’Riordan and Timmy Colbert.

Our final outing of the day was our U23 athletes who were competing in the combined mens U23 and Novice race. Daire O’Sullivan finished in 16th place overall winning a gold team medal in the Novice race with the Cork team. Jack Ahern in 75th place and Joseph Daly in 78th place overall completed the Carraig line-up, great running on a very tough 6k course!

Park Run: Great to see some of our members out at the Park Runs this morning. Flooding meant that both Mallow and Ballincollig were cancelled but no such issues for Glen River parkrun and Tramore Valley. At the Glen, John Maher led our athletes home as he finished in 11th spot in a time of 24:18. Allie Phillips was next over the line in a brilliant 16th place (3rd female runner) and a time of 26:10, closely followed by mum Eileen O Riordan in 20th place (26:41). In Tramore Valley Park, Siobhan Walsh was in action clocking a very rapid time of 21:14 to finish 1st female (23rd overall) with an age grading of 72.45%. Brilliant running everyone!

Look Ahead: A big day for Carraig Na Bhfear AC as we host the county Juvenile ‘B’ and Masters competitions in Ballinahina on Bank Holiday Monday 31st October. We hope to have a good turnout of club athletes in all competitions. On Sunday 30th we will keep a close eye on the Dublin Marathon results where coach Martin Hurley will hope to complete an incredible 28th marathon while Club PRO Tadhg Crowley is taking on his first race at the distance but has been meticulous in his preparation and is primed to smash it! Best of luck to both Martin and Tadhg, we look forward to hearing the war stories!

Report by Richard Hawkins

Photos by Jo Martin

25/10/22

The cross-country season exited the honeymoon period abruptly in Ballynoe on Sunday, a typically well thought out and challenging course in East Cork coinciding with incessant rain and blustery squalls made for the toughest challenge yet this season. Fifty-five brave souls from Carraig na Bhfear AC took on the course which had long uphill drags compounded by increasingly sticky conditions underfoot as the course churned up. However, such were the performances it was evident that the hard work put in over many weeks was paying off as our athletes thrived in the tough conditions. Credit also to our coaches and parents leading by example, toeing the line for the Novice races having been already endured the inclement conditions for many hours.

U9’s : Isabelle Walsh with an excellent 14th place led the team of Katie Lynch, Siofra Nott, Caoimhe Browne, Elise Quinn and Ruth O’sullivan to a 7th place team finish. Great spirit shown by these girls who gave their all. In the boys U9 race, Sean Ryan, Royce Bangura and Denis Hourigan were in the thick of the action, unfortunately short one for a team on the day but the experience will stand these lads in good stead for future races.

U11’s ; Great credit to Faye Donovan who was our sole entrant in the girls race and represented the club with distinction, well. In the boys U11 race, a solid 7th place team finish for the team of Cathal Walsh, Finn Dunne (with a top 20 finish!), Jack Hourigan and Eoin Cashman. Unfortunately, Cathal was tripped in the early stages and although feeling the pain as he got to his feet at the rear of the field he bravely worked his way through the pack of runners to finish in 12th place despite running up in age. Cathal will bank this experience and no doubt will help him to climb to even loftier heights with his team mates in support, very well done!

U13’s : Lucy Davis, Mary-Kate Dawson, Allie Philips and Emma Johnson packed together yet again finishing in 8th place, strong running by these girls who made good gains in the second half of the race. MJ Walsh with a top twenty finish was ably supported by Sam Dunne, Paul Colbert and Jamie Hourigan. The lads finishing as 4th team, the cruellest of positions but edging ever close to a team medal which will surely come for this promising team.

U15 : An absolute stand-out performance by the girls team in this race. Faye O Riordan has battled back from injury, improving week by week to take individual bronze in 3rd place with a powerful run. Theresa Dorgan finished in 10th with Robyn Maher running her best race ever in 12th with Jessica Akinkoulie and Aoife Martin completing the gold medal winning team. Very well deserved for a lot of hard work put in by these girls over the last year. In the boys race, Cian Ryan had a very good 7th place finish up in age, Cormac Fennessy and Ben Murphy getting a good race under the belt in their season opener.

U17 : Aine Sheridan led the way in the girls race with an individual bronze in 3rd place. Laura Moore and Leah Dunne took 8th and 9th places and deservedly took home a gold team medal. The boys U17 team of Aidan Maher (individual medal in 4th place), Bobby O’Riordan, Timmy Colbert and Luke Mullins won team Silver with Togher AC taking gold.

U19 : Another bronze podium position in the girls race for Rebecca Kelleher, Mary Dorgan also running well in 5th place. The boys going one better with Timmy Hawkins and David Maher winning silver and bronze individual medals, Rian O’Luasa and Aaron Sheehan completing the a hat-trick of gold medal winning teams on the day

In summary, great numbers out in difficult conditions. We are particularly delighted with our youngest squads, the first time in several years where we are fielding competitive teams at county level in all ages, the future is bright!

Novice Women : The 4k novice race was a first outing for Carraig at county level for many of the team who have had a very successful year so far. Katie Walsh was first home in a creditable 12th place overall, Siobhan Walsh, Eileen O’Riordan, Jennifer Kearney, and Orla Gorman finishing as 5th team ahead of familiar rivals Midleton AC and Grange/Fermoy. Great running by all.

Novice Men : The course was nicely cut up by the time the men took to the start line. With 87 starting, progress was difficult at times with groups forming trying to negotiate tight corners and maintain momentum. Carraig fielded a team of 8, our largest novice team for some years. Daire O’Sullivan was well in the mix, finishing in 4th place overall in his debut at Novice level. Well supported by Willie Walsh, Jack Ahern (making his cross-country debut in style as 3rd Team scorer), Joe Daly, David O’Riordan, Conor Kelly, Tony Dunne and Liam Colbert. Certainly one of the toughest races in memory, great credit to all who battled through.

Report by Richard Hawkins

Photos by Michelle Whooley

11/10/22

Typically fine conditions heralded day one of the County Cross country races with the staging of the Juvenile even-age, Junior, U-23 and Senior races in Carrigadrohid, hosted by West Muskerry. A familiar location but a new course layout. With a maximum lap size of 1.5k with some hilly switchbacks always making for easier viewing with the athletes in sight but possibly a tougher course for the older groups contending with several hills on each lap.

First off were our under 10 Girls, the team were Sarah Nyhan, Siofra Nott, Caoimhe Browne and Ruth O’Sullivan. All 4 girls ran really well, especially on the hilly section in the second half of the race finishing a very credible eight team in a packed field. Next up were the under 10 boys, we had 7 athletes in this team who were Cathal Walsh, Finn Dunne, Eoin Cafferkey, Sean Hughes, Sean Ryan, Royce Bangura and Eoin Cashman. Again, this was a packed field, and all the team ran exceptionally well and were seventh team overall. We did get an individual medal where Cathal Walsh charged home in the final third of the race to finish 5th in a pack of 10. Credit to our under 10 squad who all performed extremely well on the day, and for many it was their first county championships.

Our Under 12 girls team of Hannah Coffey, Mary-Kate Dawson, Aoibhe Dunlea, Allie Phillips and Emma Johnson packed together well, all finishing well up the field of 86 runners as they crossed the finish line as 7^th team. Paul Colbert was our sole representative in the U12 boys race but did himself proud finishing in the top half of the field in 30^th place overall.

Our 14 girls continue to improve with Anna Mullins, Robyn Maher and Lucy Davis all running fine races but unfortunately were short a 4^th scorer on the day but great credit to these girls for their efforts. The U14 boys had a good 6^th place finish, Cian Ryan winning an individual medal with little separating the finishing pack. Sam Dunne had a good run finishing in 28^th place well supported by Sam and harry Dunne who are a great addition to the squad this year, Harry showing a quick turn of pace to take some places in the finishing straight. More to come from this group.

Just 2 runners for Carraig in the U16 girls but Faye O’Riordan (8^th) and Laura Moore (9^th) showing they will be a threat in the coming races as they are getting stronger week by week.

The combined U18 and Junior womens race was a very competitive affair over 4k. Carraig won team bronze in Junior and Silver U18 with Rebecca Kelleher (12^th), Aine Sheridan (13^th), Mary Dorgan (16^th) and Leah Dunne (22^nd) getting their season off to a solid start.

In the final juvenile race of the day Carraig fielded a team of 9 athletes, an incredible turn-out in a total field of 22 athletes in the combined U18 and Junior mens race. A typically high standard of racing in what is one of the strongest counties in the country at these ages. Eoin Quirke returning to form after a long injury winning an individual medal in 5^th place and leading the team in retaining the John Hegarty Memorial Junior mens cup and U18 title. Aidan Maher continuing to show good form in 7^th place with Timmy Hawkins (8^th) and David Maher (11^th) completing the Junior team scorers. Some great pacing on show in this race also, Carraig were 2 places down to Leevale going into the last lap but with Timmy Hawkins taking 2 Leevale scalps and Cathal Whooley taking another 2 (almost 3!) it turned the race on its head with Carraig Na Bhfear AC having a 4-point gap in the end. Cathal was also 4^th scorer on the U18 team and was ably supported by Bobby O’Riordan, Timmy Colbert, Rian O’ Luasa and Luke Mullins, all taking home some bling! Brilliant lads. Thanks as always to Michelle Whooley who was our on-duty photographer capturing the day so well and the coaches for their hard work and feedback for the report.

Other activities: A busy weekend for our adult members with a diverse variety of activities on show. In the Quest Killarney adventure race, we had 3 participants. Liam Aherne finished first overall in the 65k dual race (Cycling and mountain running) in a very impressive 2hrs 40mins for the 65k distance with almost 8 minutes to spare from his nearest rival despite being in 3^rd place going in to the final run. Darragh O’Keeffe took on the Kayak also in the 55k Sport race finishing 269^th from 496 starters in 3hrs 38mins. Finally, Colm Crowley featured strongly in the 83k expert race, some excellent cycling and kayaking but unfortunately injury prevented Colm taking on the run legs. Very impressive endurance shown by the 3 lads, well done!

London Virtual Marathon: Another marathon clocked up for Caroline O’Donovan, although walking this one, a time of 5hrs 42mins an incredible time for the distance!

Glen River Parkrun: In the most challenging of the city parkrun courses, this week saw the battle of the Chairmen, current Chairman Willie Walsh gearing up for an untypically late start to his cross- country season next week by clocking a solid 19:15 to finish in second place overall, nicely poised for the upcoming Novice XC. Former Chairman Philip Coffey running a very solid 24:55 for 15^th place overall, great running by both men.

Janssen BHAA 6k: Two of our members assuming leadership roles in this race early race on Sunday morning in beautiful sunny conditions in little Island. Michael Mulcahy finished in 12^th place overall in a fast 22:54, holding off his Dell Technologies team-mate Stephen Geoghegan to lead the team to 1^st place in the mens ‘A’ Team race. Richard Hawkins led his Janssen team-mates to 1^st place in the ‘C’ mens race and taking 2^nd individual place in the M50 category.

Report by Richard Hawkins

4/10/22

Day 2 of the East Cork Cross Country Championships took place on Sunday 25th on the land of Dave and Louise Mullins in Whites Cross. A perfect day for racing, a faster course than the previous week but certainly no less effort showing on the faces of the many competitors. We had very positive feedback on the organization of the races which is a credit to all club members involved. The East Cork series this year gave many young athletes their first taste of cross-country competition as well as preparing the more seasoned juvenile and adult runners for the challenges that lie ahead making it an invaluable resource and great fun!

U9 to U11: Girls under 9 were the first off with all our young athletes competing for the very first time in their own age group. We had a team of 5 - Kate Lynch, Caoimhe Hughes, Siofra Nott, Caoimhe Brown and Elise Quinn. The team brought home the first of many team prizes, claiming a silver medal on their first outing together. Next up were the boys under 9, again a team of 4 competing as a team together for the first time, all running well claiming the bronze team medal. The team were Royce Bangura, Aidan Walsh, Denis Hourigan, and Tadhg Buckley. The girls under 11 team put in a great effort as they had 1500m, looking stronger as the race progressed. They were Sarah Nyhan, Laoighse Nott and Faye Donovan. Finally, for Martins’ group it was the turn of our largest team of the day. We had 11 athletes competing in the U11 boys race, many of whom were running up an age. The team were Cathal Walsh, Finn Dunne, Jack Hourigan, Sean Hughes, Luke Ahern, Jack Foley, Ronan McDonagh, Sean Ryan, Fionn Buckley and Daniel Donovan. All 11 had a fantastic race, again all seemed to get stronger as the race went on, all making light work of the hills as they won the Team Gold medal in style. Congratulations to all our young athletes, you did yourselves and your coaches proud!

U13 to U15: Great effort from our runners again, starting with a super silver team medal for the Girls U13’s. Hannah Coffey, Lucy Davis, Allie Philips, and Emma Johnson with a total of 45 points, great individual performances from the girls pushing hard throughout the course. This was followed up by the Boys U13 team. Sam and Harry had some timely support that helped secure a great bronze medal for the team. Harry and Sam Brown, Paul Colbert, Jamie Hourigan, and Daniel Murray with a total of 48 points. Again, some great running from the lads pushing all the way to the end. Next were the Girls U15, an experienced bunch of runners producing a great silver team medal. Very well done to Robyn Maher, Anna Mullins, Siofra Boyle, Aoife Martin and Faye O’Riordan, they were only 3 places off the gold with a total of 33 points. Faye had a fine run pushing hard from the start to take an individual silver medal. In the Boys U15 race, Cian Ryan was our only runner and showed his great running ability by taking an individual gold, particularly after an injury that impacted his training, a great effort by Cian and a positive result under the belt when coming back.

U17 to U19: Our U17 girls team of Aine Sheridan, Leah Dunne, Laura Moore and Lucy Lynch took the silver medal with Midleton AC taking the gold podium position. Aine going well also to take individual bronze in a tight finish. In the Boys U17 race Carraig filled the podium with Aidan Maher(1st), Cathal Whooley (2nd) and Bobby O’Riordan (3rd). The lads were ably supported in taking team gold by an impressive squad of Timmy Colbert completing the scoring, Luke and Michael Mullins and Brian Hawkins. Well done to the lads! A full podium again for the U19 girls with Rebecca Kelleher taking gold, Mary Dorgan silver and Lily O’Riordan the bronze medal, again finishing as first team. The Juvenile competition was concluded with the U19 boys’ team of Eoin Quirke, David Maher, Rian O’Luasa, Aaron Sheehan and Timmy Hawkins winning Team gold with individual gold and silver for Eoin and David.

In summary, a fantastic 2 weeks of competition for our juveniles with impressive numbers lining out. Carraig Na Bhfear retained the Jerry Russel trophy for best juvenile boys’ clubs but missed out on the Maureen O’Connell trophy for best girls’ juvenile club by the narrowest of margins to Midleton AC. Congratulations to Midleton AC and all clubs who participated, a high level of competition drives us all on!

Last but certainly not least were the adult Novice races. Katie Walsh won the individual Womens race with a well-timed finish, Katies second individual title and leading home a team that’s gone from strength to strength over the last year to team gold with 5 points to spare from Midleton in second place. Siobhan Walsh running strongly again and just finishing outside of the medals in 4th place, pushed on by Eileen O’Riordan, Evelyn Mullins, Orlaith O’Gorman, Isobel O’Meara, Seanna Connolly, and Cliona Hurley. Well done to our womens team, reclaiming the bragging rights from the men!

The final race was the mens novice over 6km. An impressive 10 runners for Carraig all contributing to a hard-earned bronze medal. The 4 scorers on the day were Joseph Daly, Paul Ryan, Conor Kelly and David O’Riordan, adding his 3rd medal to his seasons tally! Dave Mullins, Don Sheehan, Liam Colbert, Alan Davis (making his cross-country debut!), John Maher and Cillian Hall all putting in great performances. It was fitting that the race and championships concluded with the finish of the day, John Maher holding off St. Catherines AC’s Kieran Murphy in a gruelling battle to the line, no quarter asked or given. This epitomised the spirit of cross-country where individual battles are going on throughout the course with athletes digging deep for places.

Thanks to the coaches and helpers over the weekend, to Dave and Louise for a fantastic course as Carraig Na Bhfear AC played their part in a successful series of races that will set us up for the coming months of competition. Thanks again to Michelle Whooley and jo Martin for fabulous photos and coaches Dave and martin for assisting with the report.

Other Business: We were represented in the Charleville International half marathon on Sunday by Richard Hawkins and Helen Roche. A perfect morning for fast times on a flat course with little wind made for a top-class competition. Richard ran a big pb of 1:31:49 but such was the standard it was only good enough for 25th place in his category! Helen, enjoying a group run with friends still running an impressive 1:50:54 to finish well up in her category.

Look Ahead: Competition goes up a notch this weekend with the start of the Even-age juvenile and Senior County championships hosted by West Muskerry. Best of luck to all our athletes competing.

Report by Richard Hawkins

Last Saturday saw the belated kick-off of the Cross-Country season with the running of the rescheduled day one of the East Cork Championships. It was certainly worth waiting for, beautiful weather and a fine course near Dungourney with sweeping views of East Cork. Plenty of hills balanced with opportunities for recovery made for a tough but fair course, an ideal start to the season. Carraig na bhFear AC had an excellent turnout with many debutantes getting their first taste of cross-country!

Our Girls Under 10 had a team of 6, most of the team were running up in age and it was their first ever cross- country race. They all competed well and had great satisfaction in claiming the bronze team medal. The team consisting of Isabelle Walsh, Caoimhe Hughes, Caoimhe Brown, Evelyn O'Mahoney and Maggie Cronin. They bunched well as a team, Isabelle was first home, followed by both Caoimhe’s with Maggie finishing fourth for the team. Next on the line were our Boys Under- 10 where we had 8 athletes on the team, who were Cathal Walsh, Finn Dunne, Sean Ryan, Eoin Cashman, Royce Bangura, Ronan McDonagh, Fionn Buckley and Tadhg Buckley. This was a very good race for the boys who came away with the silver team medal. We also had 2 athletes in the top 5 in Cathal and Finn with Eoin, Royce, Sean and Ronan following closely behind. It was great to see our 2 youngest teams winning medals and good potential with the numbers in the squads.

A great start from the U12 Girls coming in 3rd for the team medals with a total of 64 points, a good bunch of runners including Mary Kate, Hannah, Emma, Allie, Ellie and Aoibhe all running well in what would be considered a challenging course. This was followed up by the Boys U12, unfortunately other sporting commitments meant the boys only had 2 brave warriors Paul and Daniel who ran very well for the club.

Next up were the Girls U14 with Anna, Lucy, Aoileann, Jess and Robyn who all ran great races, winning the bronze team medal with a total of 48 points. The Boys U14 had brothers Sam and Harry taking on the course and running strong races, unfortunately the lads without team back-up on this occasion to help them out.

The girls U16 took the gold team medal with some super running from Faye, Laura, Aoife and Siofra with a total of 33 points, super running by the team.

In the Boys U16 race we had an Individual bronze medal from Brian Hawkins, smiling all the way to the finish line, well done Brian!

Rebecca Kelleher and Aine Sheridan won silver and bronze medals in both U18 the girls and ladies Junior 3000m which was a combined race. Similarly, the boys U18 and Junior Mens was a combined race over 4500m, 3 laps taking in the full breadth of the course. The team of Aidan Maher, Timmy Hawkins, Cathal Whooley, Bobby O’Riordan and Timmy Colbert all taking home team medals as Carraig took team gold in both races. Aidan also winning individual silver and bronze and Timmy Hawkins taking an individual bronze.

The Ladies Senior and Masters race over 4 kilometres was as competitive as ever, brilliant to see some new additions to the cross-country squad. An impressive team performance from Siobhan Walsh, Eileen O’Riordan, Orlaith O’Gorman and Seanna Connolly winning Silver in both the Senior and Masters races. Siobhan and Seanna also picking up individual category medals, congratulations to all!

The Senior Mens 6k race saw some top-class athletes assemble as is the norm in East Cork races. A steady opening few laps saw many able to sit in the pack but when East Corks’ Paul Hartnett made the decisive move Carraig’s’ Daire O’Sullivan was the quickest to react, pulling away from the chasing group for the silver medal. Just 2 seconds separated the next 3 runners with Frank O’Brien taking bronze ahead of Brendan Healy and Donal Giltinan.

Carraig na bhFear took the silver team medal by what might be described as one of our more ‘eclectic’ teams. Rian O’Luasa unfortunately missed the Juniors race but it was a stroke of good luck for the mens team, Rian lining out for the Seniors and executed a well-paced race to move through the field and finish in 11th place overall and second scorer behind Daire. Joseph Daly made a timely and welcome return to competition as third scorer with Dave O’Riordan rolling back the years to complete the scoring! Dave also leading his fellow Masters athletes Dave Mullins, Richard Hawkins and Liam Colbert to the Gold team medal in the O45 competition as well as coaching on the day. A mighty team effort by all and great results!

Thanks to the coaches Martin and Dave for trojan work on the day getting everyone to the start line and providing the race reports on our younger athletes. Also, Ger for supporting as Race Starter and Michelle and Jo for some fabulous photos capturing a great day out.

Look ahead: Carraig na bhFear AC will step up this weekend to host the East Cork Cross country Championships Day 2. Dave Mullins again kindly providing an excellent and familiar venue and hopefully we can emulate St.Catherines AC in hosting a well- organized event. With the destiny of the Jerry Russell and Maureen O’Connell trophies for best boys and girls clubs hanging finely in the balance we are hoping for a good turnout to field teams at all ages.

Report by Richard Hawkins

On the weekend of the 13th and 14th August, the Ironman Ireland event took place in Youghal. 4 of our brilliant club members were in action on a weekend that saw some of the hottest conditions this year. On the Saturday, Cliona Hurley, Richard Hawkins and Dave Mullins competed in the Ironman 70.3. That 70.3 stands for miles as the three stars took on a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile cycle and 13.1 mile run. In the most challenging weather, Dave was the first to finish, completing the swim, cycle and run in a time of 6 hours and 6 minutes. Good enough for 31st place in category. Richard was next home in a time of 6:27:21 and a 17th in category finish. Cliona followed the lads across the finish line in a time of 6:56:41, 23rd in category. All three finished inside the 7 hour mark, which was an amazing feat.

On the Sunday morning Tony Dunne set off on the epic journey that is the full Ironman. A different type of cruelty, Tony completed a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile cycle and a full 26.2 mile marathon. And what an unbelievable performance in the toughest of conditions, Tony finished in a time of 12:27:38. That placed him top 50 in category and 279th out of a field of over 1000. Congratulations to all four members, an incredible achievement that will live long in the memory.

Day 2 and 3 of the National Juvenile championships took place in Tullamore over the weekend of the 9^th and 10^thJuly. Fine weather for competition saw many Championship best performances although as the weekend progressed, the 26deg heat on Sunday afternoon became a challenge for the track athletes on the tartan tack. Carraig Na Bhfear Ac had good representation over both days with all athletes doing the club proud with some terrific performances with new PB’s or performances close to their previous best.

Our Race walkers have been training six days a week for the last seven weeks preparing for the All Irelands. All three, Robyn Maher, Anna Mullins U14 and Aoife Martin U15 put all their hard training to great effect in their races. Robyn got a PB by 20 seconds for a time of 11.08 finishing fourth and had the race of her life. In the same race was Anna who got an unbelievable PB of 52 secs, clocking 12.10 and finishing 8^th overall with many more competitors behind her. Next up was Aoife who despite not getting a PB still finished fifth in a time of 10.44. Just to show the quality of this race, Aoife's time would have got a medal in the previous eight years. Aoife's race has six unbelievable walkers of which any of the six can medal on their day. Aoife's time will come and has made her even more focused for next season having had a brilliant 2022. Congrats to all three girls who showed what hard work can do, well done to all for a great season.

Field events: Our Javelin throwers both had a good series of throws, Lily O’Riordan very consistent and a PB throw of 33.98m on her 6^th and final throw enough to secure the bronze medal in the U19 girls competition and round off an excellent year of competition for Lily. In the U17 boys Javelin (700g), Timmy Colbert had a best throw of 43.25m, just outside his personal best to finish in 4^th place, unfortunately a tough position outside the podium places but an excellent performance at national level. Caoimhe Geoghegan had a breakthrough performance in the U18 girls long jump, breaking through the 5m barrier not once but 3 times with a best jump of 5.05m on her final attempt to finish a fantastic 6^th out of a field of 12 competitors. Well done Caoimhe and great to see the new long-jump pit in Carraig paying dividends already! We had 2 competitors in the U18 boys high jump with George Alamu winning the bronze with a best jump of 1.65m. The versatile Rian O’Luasa finished in 4^th place, in his first field competition at National level Rian progressed to the 4^th round with a best of jump of 1.60m. well done to both lads!

Our sole competitor in the field events on Sunday was Josh Judd, another breakthrough performance with Josh throwing a big PB distance of 37.91m in the U15 boys 3kg hammer for an excellent 4^th position, just 73cm outside the medals. However, Josh can take a lot of confidence from a great season and looked very confident in his ability in this very technical event. A feature of this competition was the impressive performance from the winner, Thomas Williams of Shercock AC. Hammer throwing is very much the family business and Thomas who has been practicing since the age of 9 had a best throw of 70.20m, eclipsing the previous Championship best by almost 12 metres!

Track: Timmy Hawkins was competing in the final of the U18 boys 1500m. A fast race from the outset with the winning time of 3:59:02 only bettered once previously in the championship by Nick Griggs last year. Timmy sensibly decided to let the field go and as some runners wilted in the heat, Timmy put in a fast last lap to come through strongly and record a pb of 4:21:59. Just rewards for Timmy who kept a cool head on a hot track on the big day! Our U17 long hurdlers competed in the last track events of the day. Aine Sheridan had an excellent heat in the U17 girls 300mH (0.762m) to come through in 3^rd place and qualify in a time of 50.82. In the final Aine again ran well and a 7^th place in National an impressive result for Aine in her first year at the event. In the U17 boys 300mH (0.762m) Ruaidhri Boyle had a steep learning curve in the heat from a technical perspective and qualified from 5^th place as a fastest loser. Having this in the back of his mind as he took his place in the final made his performance even more impressive, near flawless in his execution Ruaidhri showed great focus and determination to lead until the final barrier, ultimately taking a brilliant bronze medal in a blanket finish taking over 2 seconds off his heat time. Again, all the more impressive because it is also his first year in this very technical event.

In summary, an excellent weekends competition with our athletes quite at home at this level across the full range of disciplines. Great credit is due to Ger Foley and Martin Hurley who were there as the gates opened on Saturday morning (Martin also officiating in the walks) and were still there as the gates were closing on Sunday evening. Great advice and support given to both athletes and parents over the weekend!

Look forward: The East Cork 5k championship race will take place on the MTU track on Wednesday 13^th July. The following weekend Carraig athletes will be back in Tullamore to compete in the National Juvenile Relays on Saturday and the U23 track championships on Sunday. Best of luck to all competing!

Report by Richard Hawkins

12/7/2022

Last Tuesday 21^st June saw the running of the East Cork Track & Field championships for Junior, Senior and Masters athletes in the college in Carraig Na Bhfear. As Midsummers Day became evening it was warm and bright lending to a relaxed and friendly atmosphere which we have come to expect from this event. The grass tracks were in pristine condition ready for competition and with free refreshments on offer, no better value night out for €5! The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, a lot of familiar faces and plenty of new ones. Some of the highlights were the number of athletes competing in track races for the first time and some previous entrants who stepped up to have a go at new distances, masters medals in particular were hard won on the night. Great to see Fota Island Running club competing for the first time with good representation and taking home plenty of medals.

In the Junior events, Carraig were very prominent in numbers and subsequently in the medals. The sprints results were as follows.

100m Junior women: 1^st Lily O’Riordan, 2^nd Isobel O’Meara, 3^rd Caoimhe Geoghegan.

100m Junior men: 1^st Ruaidhri Boyle 2^nd Cathal Whooley, 3^rd Timmy Colbert.

300m – Junior Women: 1^st Isobel O’Meara, 2^nd Aine Sheridan and 3^rd Lily O’Riordan.

300m – Junior Men – 1^st Ruaidhri Boyle, 2^nd Cathal Whooley, 3^rd Timmy Colbert

Some excellent performances also in the middle-distance races, results are as follows.

1500m Junior women – 2^nd Orlaith Merritt

1500m Junior men – 1^st Aidan Maher, 2^nd Timmy Hawkins, 3^rd Cathal Whooley

3000m Junior Women – 1^st Rebecca Kelleher

3000m Junior Men - 1^st David Maher, 2^nd Rian O’Luasa

In the 100m Senior Womens race a close contest saw Katie Walsh being pushed all the way by Orla Coffey with Cliona Martin also running well to take the bronze medal. In the senior mens race Ciaran Nugent was impressive in taking the win, however Ruaidhri Boyle is growing in to the sprint events very impressively and wasn’t far behind in 2^nd place, Don Sheehan strong as ever in 3^rd place.

Masters 100m women: Eileen O’Riordan picking up her first East Cork medal placing 2^nd in the O35’s and Seanna Boyle adding to the family bling with 3^rd in the O45’s. Not to be outdone, Robert Boyle took gold in the mens 100m O45’s just ahead of Dave O’Riordan in second place, a full contingent of 8 runners in this race great to see.

300m Senior women, it was as you were in the 100m, a close race with Katie, Orla and Cliona taking the podium positions. Ciaran Nugent was the winner of the mens senior 300m. In the 300m Master women 300m Rachel O Callaghan just getting edged in to 4^th position in a good race. The 300m masters men was again one of the most hotly contested age groups with 8 athletes in the shake up, Don Sheehan again making us all question our training regime, returning to action to win gold with Robert Boyle in 2^nd place.

And finally middle distance, a great mix of clubs in these and some great action around the 300m track. 1500m women, Eileen O’Riordan in 1^st place with her second medal of the night and Orla Gorman taking 3^rd, Helen Roche taking bronze in the O45’s encouraging signs for our womens cross-country team! Congratulations to Rebecca Kelleher finishing in 1^st place overall in the overall combined womens Junior and senior race in 11:58 as well as taking the junior title.

The 3000m mens race was combined junior, senior and masters. A steady pace early on leading to an inevitable wind-up with Carraigs Daire O’Sullivan putting in an impressive burst of speed to finish ahead of East Corks Nick O’Donoghue and Midletons’ Tony Forristal with a time of 9m:46s. Congratulations to David Maher who was first Junior but also 3^rd overall in the race, dipping under the 10-minute mark. Willie Walsh was close behind in 5^th place overall running 10m04s to take gold in the M45 category. A mention also to John Ahern who celebrated his birthday (and eligibility for the M45 category) by taking 4^th place, narrowly missing out on bronze.

In summary, a great nights’ racing made possible by a lot of hard work by our members in preparation which was acknowledged by all present, the evening finishing on a high with 7 teams competing in a mixed relay event.

Tailteann games: The schools’ event for Intermediate boys and girls took place in Tullamore on Friday 24^th in difficult conditions. With an Irish singlet for the SIABs’ on offer for the first 2 finishers in each event, it is always hotly contested with a high standard of competition. Timmy Colbert (Scoil an chroi Naofa) threw a big PB of 45.75m in the 700g javelin to take a brilliant 4^th place! In the 300m hurdles, Aine Sheridan (Colaiste An Mhuire, Cobh) ran a pb of 51.69m, great experience for Aine who will compete in this event in the club Nationals, Aine will be eligible for Tailteann games again next year. Similarly, Aidan Maher (St.Colmans, Fermoy) who finished 6^th in the Boys 1500m Steeplechase will be eligible again for next years competition. Well done all!

National Senior Track & Field championships: A proud week for the club as we followed 2 of our athletes competing in what is the pinnacle of domestic athletics competition. It is a major goal of the club to retain juniors and hopefully see them make the difficult transition to Senior level. Daire O’Sullivan and Ciaran Nugent have put in serious work this year and deservedly took their place amongst Ireland elite, hopefully the first of many appearances. Daire was in heat 2 of the 1500m, in windy conditions, all middle distance races were very cagey, tactical affairs which made for great viewing. Daire, finishing well up the large field of runners 8^th place with a time of 4:03.90, the first 4 qualifying automatically. Nice also to see East Cork divisional colleague Frank O’Brien running well in the same heat, Frank was officiating at our East Cork Track night earlier in the week!

In the 400m hurdles heats, Ciaran Nugent lined up against 4^th placed Olympian Thomas Barr. Certainly not overawed by the occasion, Ciaran ran a pb of 54.81 to finish 4^th in the heat and qualify for the final as 5^th fastest overall, a magnificent achievement given the occasion and the challenging conditions. In the final on Sunday, Ciaran maintained his placing with a phenomenal 5^th place finish in 55:00. Congratulations to Ciaran on a great performance.

Park Run: Glen River Stalwart Rian O’Luasa was joined this week by coach Willie Walsh and Timmy Colbert. A well balance field of runners with Willie first across the line in 19.00, Timmy 4^th in 20.24 and Rian 7^th in 21:09.

Look ahead: Day 1 of the Club National track and field championships take place in Tullamore on Sunday 3^rd. Best of luck to Aidan Maher, David Maher, Timmy Hawkins, Aine Sheridan, Lily O’Riordan and Josh Judd who will compete on Day 1.

Report by Richard Hawkins

28/6/22

Summer Racing hit full swing this week with plenty on offer for our members and we were well represented throughout the week which finished with a double trip to Templemore for the Munster school’s finals on Saturday and the National League on Sunday where we were supporting the East Cork division.

John Buckley 5k: This is always a well- supported event with 595 runners this year, a flat course an ideal opportunity to notch up a pb and indeed we had some very fast times. First home was Tadhg Crowley in 30^thplace overall with an excellent 16:52 and was part of the UCC team that finished as second men’s’ team. Michael Mulcahy showing great form finishing in 18:39 with Rian O’ Luasa clocking a big pb in 19:35 followed closely by Adam Farrell in 19:52 and Colm Crowley breaking the 20-minute barrier running 19:55 (Chip times). Siobhan Walsh ran 21:17 to take a coveted age group prize in 3^rd place F40. Well done all on some great racing in windy conditions.

Cheetah Run: This unique event is held in the beautiful Fota Wildlife Park after normal closing hours, a fantastic occasion and always organized to the highest standard by Eagle AC. The first race was the cheetah 1 mile race which is open to children 15 and under and was sold out well in advance. All our runners finished well up the field of 86 runners to take home a unique finishers medal. Plenty of friendly rivalry drawing the best out of each other, Peter Hawkins finishing 6^th overall in 5:42 to edge out Luke Mullins (5:47) in 7^th place with Michael Mullins coming home in 15^th (6:04). Robyn Maher was 22^nd overall and 7^th girl home with a fine time of 6:35, Lucy Davis was 30^th (6:45), Paul Colbert 33^rd (6:50) and Anna Mullins 35^th (6:51), all finishing in sub 7 minutes, excellent running!

The 5k adult race had over 700 finishers snaking around the wildlife park and paths of the Fota Island Estate. It was a very successful night for our juniors with Sinead Roche winning the prize for 1^st Junior girl in a time of 25:50. In the boy’s race Timmy Colbert running 19:52 held off a late challenge from Rian O’Lusa in 19:54 to take the 1^st Junior boy prize with Rian finishing 2^nd Junior. Our adult competitors used their winter group training to good effect running great times with many PB’s. First home was John Aherne with an impressive time of 19:25 followed by Richard Hawkins 19:56, David Mullins 20:55, Liam Colbert 23:11, John Maher 23:17, Helen Roche 25:50 and Orla Barry 25:52. Richard picked up a category prize as 3^rd M50 to round off a successful week.

John Hartnett 10K: On Friday night David and Denise Maher put their local knowledge to good use, the Ballyhooly roads familiar territory for training runs. David running in very good form this season finishing 5^thoverall in 36:37 and winning the prize for 1^st Junior. Denise ran a fine pb of 59:01 finishing well under the hour mark. Well done to the Mahers, each family member having great races this week with Aidan also featuring strongly in the school’s competition!

Park Run: No stopping Rian O’Luasa this week with his 3^rd 5k in 5 days finishing in 4^th place overall with a time of 21:46. Well done Rian!

Munster Schools Track & Field: Templemore was the venue for this years’ Munster Schools competition, it was a well-organized event that actually ran ahead of schedule with a very high standard of competition. Our athletes performed exceptionally well, many winning medals and earning a place in the National finals in Tullamore on 4^th June, not easy given that only 2 qualify from laned events and 3 from the distance races and field events.

The programme kicked off with the walks with Aoife Martin (Col. Chroi Naofa) having a comfortable win in the 1200m Junior girls race in a time of 5:57. The Intermediate girls 2000M walk was a high standard race with Odhrna Hurley (GC Mhuire AG) having to settle for 4^th place despite a fine effort in 11:42. The hurdles events were a bittersweet affair, Aine Sheridan (colaiste Muire Cobh) won bronze (en-route to Dublin to play Bohs at 2pm!), Lily O’Riordan (St.Angelas, Cork) also taking bronze before sister Faye (St.Angelas) who was also in the bronze medal position clipped the final hurdle taking a tumble. Unfortunately, Faye will be out of action for a few weeks, but such is her positive attitude she will come back stronger and I’m sure will deal with unfinished business next year! Timmy Hawkins took 11 seconds off his PB winning the 2000m senior Steeplechase. He couldn’t have picked a tougher opponent, second placed Flobater ‘Foo-Foo’ Fares (North Mon) represents Ireland in MMA and was also the first Irish 17-year-old to complete a 200km ultra marathon, running from Cork to Galway in under 27 hours last year! Well done to Aidan Maher (St. Colmans, Fermoy) who was 4^th in the Inter boy’s steeple but showed no signs of the effort with a strong run in the U16 mile taking silver in 4:52! Lucy Lynch was part of the St.Als, Carrigtwohill Junior girls 4 x 100m relay team who ran a fast 56:30 but were outside the medals.

Carraig athletes featured prominently again in the field events. Josh Judd (St. Colmans, Midleton) facing stiff competition rose to the challenge winning silver in the Junior discus (32m20cm) and bronze in the hammer (32.42m) qualifying for Nationals in both. George Alamu (Midleton CBS) is jumping consistently and another great jump of 1.75m good enough for gold in the senior boy’s high jump, Lucy Lynch won silver in the Junior girls high jump with a first-time clearance at 1.50m. Excellent performances in the Javelin competition with Timmy Colbert throwing 43.76m for a pb and silver medal, Lily O’Riordan also winning silver in the senior girls with a best of 32.21m. In the long jump Joel Joseph (Midleton CBS) had to rely on his first jump to take the bronze medal on countback as the next 4 jumps incredibly were identical to his opponents, Joels’ best jump 5.64m! Caoimhe Geogheghan (St. Marys, Midleton) had a best jump of 4.82m to finish 6^th in the senior girl’s competition which was a very high standard. Well done to all Carraig athletes who performed brilliantly.

National Leagues Day 1: The National League Division 1 kicked off in Templemore on Sunday 22^nd and Carraig had a strong presence supporting the East Cork divisional team. Great credit to the athletes involved, some having competed in the school’s competition the previous day, most supporting at least one event and even one of the coaches was sequestered (just as well our coaches are all fast!) The National Leagues are great platform for athletes both transitioning and establishing themselves at Senior level but also it is a very social and fun day out for all involved. Orla Coffey was doing her best imitation of Jessica Ennis-Hill with outstanding performances across several events, finishing 2nd in the Pole Vault & 3rd in the Shot Putt, 4th with the 4 x 400m Relay team and 5th in the 400m. That’s some range of events! Just like Orla, Lily O’Riordan was showing incredible skill and talent across a series of events! Lily was 2nd in 110 Hurdles, 4th in the High Jump with a best of 1.25m, 4th in the 100m Sprint and also ran two relay legs. Blessing Alamu secured the win in the Discus Throw (1kg) with 33.49m and followed that with Silver in the Long Jump. The brilliant Ciaran Nugent showed his speed by winning the 400m Hurdles in a time of 56.46. Áine Sheridan followed up a hugely successful week with 2nd place in the 400m Hurdles in 1.15.46. 3rd place for the talented Odhrna Hurley in the 1500m Walk with a time of 9.20.20. Daire O’Sullivan was 4th in the 1500m with a time of 4.04.8, Daire competing in the relay also, a serious summer ahead for this man! Isobel O’Meara finished 3rd in the 200m sprint. David Maher followed up his success on Friday with a 4th place finish in the 3000m Steeplechase and was also part of the 4 x 400m team. Maebh Daly placed 4th in the Javelin, very well done! George Alamu finished 5th in the High Jump with a jump of 1.65m and e followed that up with 4^th place in the Triple Jump with a 11.30m jump. Excellent performances from George. Many more members giving strong performances in the Relays including Caoimhe Geoghegan, Cathal Whooley and Willie Walsh. Very well done all and look forward to round 2 on 31^st July.

County Juvenile B’s: Last but certainly not least, our youngest competitors brought the curtain down on a super counties campaign with some fine performances. We had great representation across the Sprints, distance races, long jump and Turbo javelin. Well done to Denis Hourigan, Jack Hourigan, Ayo Osunboyede, Allie Philips, Ellie Long, Marie Cotter and Aoibhe Dunlea, all competing very well and doing the club proud. A few medals to boot with MJ Walsh winning bronze in the boys U13 80m sprints and Rachel Cuthbert taking a well-deserved bronze in the long jump.

Report by Richard Hawkins

24/5/22

A large variety of events this week took the members of Carraig Na Bhfear to all parts of the County with the big event being the South Munster Schools T & F competition in MTU on Tuesday 10^th (girls) and Thursday 12^th (boys). It was the first time in three years that a full program of events was on offer and our juvenile club members again showed our strength in depth across all track and field disciplines. Qualification for the Munster Schools finals in Templemore on the 21^{st of} May on offer for the first 3 in each event a major incentive.

In Junior girls Faye O’Riordan (St.Angelas) was 3^rd in the 75m sprint hurdles and achieved a pb in the high jump but was outside the medals. Lucy Lynch was second in the High Jump with 1:50m and ran the anchor leg for St.Als, Carrigtwohill who took the gold medal. Aoife Martin (Colaiste an Chraoi Naofa) continued her recent good form winning gold in the junior 1500m walk in 6:12, one of the fastest times of the day in all grades! In the Intermediate girls’ competition Laura Moore (Loretto Fermoy) knocked 12 seconds off her pb from the previous week in winning silver in the 3000m race! Odhrna Hurley (GC Mhuire, Cork) held off a close challenge to win Silver in the walk. Aine Sheridan (Colaiste Muire Cobh) had an impressive win in the 300m hurdles in 53:38 and was 4^th in the steeplechase. Sarah Kate O’ Meara (Mount Mercy won her 200m heat but was outside the medals which were decided on times. Finally, in the senior girls we had three competitors. Isobel O’Meara (Mount Mercy) had an excellent 3^rd place in the 400m in 1:04 and was 4^th in the 200m. Caoimhe Geogheghan (St.Mary’s, Midleton) was 3^rd in the long jump and 7^th in the 100m. Double gold for Lily O’Riordan (St.Angelas) in the 100m hurdles and javelin. Well done all!

In the boys’ competition, Josh Judd (St.Colmans CC, Midleton) won double silver in the discus and hammer events. In the intermediate javelin competition, another fine throw of 42:53 won gold for Timmy Colbert (Colaiste an Chroi Naofa). Aidan Maher (St.Colmans, Fermoy) won double bronze in the U16 mile and 1500m steeplechase. Joel Joseph had a fine jump of 5.57m for first place in the long Jump. Strong performances also on the day for Brian Hawkins (Rochestown College) in the U16 mile and 1500m, Bobby O’Riordan (Presentation college) in the 3k and javelin and Luke Mullins (Presentation College) who competed well in the 800m heat where the first 3 were all sub 2:02! Our senior boys also had good success with Harry Buckley (CBC, Cork) winning the long Jump by 2cm with a huge jump of 6.17m, Timmy Hawkins (Rochestown College) 2^nd in 2000m steeplechase and George Alamu (Midleton CBS) winning gold on countback with a pb of 1.75m in the high jump. Good to see Eoin Quirke (Midleton CBS) back in competition running a leg of the 4 x 100m but narrowly missing out on a medal. Great performances by everyone on the day.

Youghal AC 5K: We had several members of our club competing on the new flat course in Youghal with some fast times and plenty of smiles and great photos. David Maher was first Junior male finishing in 10^th place overall with a time of 17:21, an excellent time given that he had competed in the 2k steeplechase earlier in the day! Cian Ryan was second JM in a brilliant time of 18 minutes. Great performances for Adam Farrell (19:50), Rhona Lynch (20:12, 1^st F45), David O’Riordan (20:34), Cliona Lynch (22.22, 2^nd JF), Helen Roche (22:32, 2^nd F50), Christy Murphy (23:55), Eileen O’Riordan ((24:06) special mention for Eileen wearing the Carraig singlet for the first time, looking forward to many more appearances for the ladies teams!), Denise Maher (26:58, pb!) and Paul Ryan (27:19) pushed all the way by son Sean! It looked like a very enjoyable race with the finish in the main street, thanks to Rhona for the suggestion as an ideal focus for training.

Park Run: Movin’ on up! Rian O’Luasa had his best finish yet in the Glen River Park Run crossing the line in second place with a time of 21:28, great stuff Rian!

Surf, Turf & Tar: We had a glorious morning in Rosscarbery for this unique, well-organized event with 7 members taking part. An all-terrain race consisting of road, cliff-paths, beaches, dunes, trail, and open field! The half-marathon was a very, very tough course (Paul Noonan wanted to be sure I made that very clear!) Richard Hawkins finished in 26^th place in a time of 1:44 winning the M50 category. Paul running strong to the end despite the very, very tough course to finish in 128^th place in 2:09 from a field of over 200 runners!

In the 10k event Timmy Hawkins was in the leading group thoroughly enjoying the experience. It was a ‘horses for courses’ race with the eventual winner Alfie Davis unbeaten in the event since its inception in 2017 very much at home in the sand and hills. A nice touch of sportsmanship in the race when Timmy took a wrong turn while leading but his co-leaders waiting for him to come back to the group, Timmy eventually finishing in 3^rd place from a field of over 400 runners in 38.12. Excellent performances from Peter Hawkins (21^st, 47:45), Brian Hawkins (33^rd, 49:57), Liam Colbert with a brave run having suffered a calf strain early on (67^th, 49:57) and Yvonne O’Connor (177^th, 1hr:02). Plenty of delicious west Cork delicacies to help recovery afterwards!

Look forward: The Munster Schools T & F will take place on the 21^st may in Templemore and we will have several athletes in action in the National Leagues representing the East Cork division on Sunday 22^nd, again in Templemore.

Report by Richard Hawkins

16 May 2022

Day 2 of the county championships took place on Sunday 8th May in MTU. What started as a day promising mild conditions became progressively cooler and windier and as the program fell behind schedule, a test of patience and endurance for adults and athletes alike. No criticism intended, a busy program and good numbers of athletes and credit to the organizers and officials for a good days’ competition.

On Day 2, Carraig had 5 U12 girls – Allie Philips, Emma Johnson, Hannah Coffey, Marie Cotter and Mary Kate Dawson competing in the Sprints and Turbo Javelin, Hannah also competed in the High Jump. First up of the was Hannah in the High Jump, Hannah jumped 1.1m finishing just outside the medals as the bronze medal jumped 1.2m. Next up for the girls was the sprints, all five ran very well and Emma made the Semi-final and was just outside the time to qualify for the final. Congratulations to Allie Philips, Ellie Long, Emma Johnson, Hannah Coffey, Marie Cotter, Mary Kate Dawson, and Paul Colbert who competed in the counties over the two days. Stick with it, your time will come and keep enjoying it. Representing the boys, we had Sam Dunne with a fine long jump effort of 3.13m.

Martin Hurleys’ race-walking group had 4 competitors taking part with all 4 – Anna Mullins, Robyn Maher (U 14), Aoife Martin (U 15) and Odhrna Hurley (U17) showing excellent technique and all achieving PBs. Robyn took Gold in a time of 13:18, Anna took Silver in 13:45 in the U14 2Km Race. Aoife took Gold in 11:04 in the U15 2Km Race and Odhrna took silver in 19.08 in the U17 3Km Race. Congratulation’s girls and keep up the hard work.

In the U14 girls 80m Jessica Akinkulie and Rachel Cuthbert went well in the heats and will have gained a lot of valuable experience, Jessica also competing in the 200m. Faye O’Riordan qualified for the final of the U15 girls hurdles but unfortunately wasn’t able to compete in the final. Sister Lily took the win in the 100m girls U19 in 17:44 and followed up with a silver in the 200m. Faye also competed in the 200m with a 4th place finish in the heats and then got the medal she deserved for a great days’ competition while taking bronze in the Javelin. Quite a large field in this competition and a throw of 17.18m was required to edge Belgooly in to 4th place. Lily placed 1st in the U19 competition throwing the 600g javelin 30.86m. Lucy Lynch took silver in the U16 girls 200m with a fast time of 28:36, bettering her qualifying time. Lucy Lynch capped a great day clearing a massive 1:59 on her first attempt in the final round of the U15 girls high jump, 3rd place in the competition going to Rebecca Akinkoulie with a jump of 1.5m, great performances! Ciara Keohane finished just outside the medals in 4th place in the girls 200m in 29:43. Well done all, great running!

In the boys’ sprint events Mathew Lynch put in another solid performance in the u15 200m, very little time separating the bulk of the field. In U17 boys Ruaidhri Boyle and Cathal Whooley both qualified for the final, unfortunately Ruaidhri couldn’t take his place with injury. Cathal had a storming second half of the race to take yet another medal in a brilliant spell for him, this time taking bronze in a cracking time of 24:79. In the boys U18 200m Joel Joseph continues to gain race fitness with a fine 4th place in 25:85, also taking silver in the long jump with a best of 5m33.

Unsurprisingly, given the clubs’ emphasis on cross country the middle distance and 3k events were a happy hunting ground for us. In the U17 Boys 800m Luke Mullins showed clear intent from the start and was only edged out of the medals in the closing stages but 2:20 an impressive pb, brother Michael running 2:37 a very good time also for the distance. We were very prominent as a club in the 3k distance, in the U16 girls Laura Moore clearly learning from her 1500m race covered every break and pushed all the way to the line to take silver, only losing gold by the slimmest of margins. In the U16 boys Peter and Brian Hawkins took 2nd and 4th positions in breakthrough times of 10:52 and 11:23 respectively. Aidan Maher (10:14), Timmy Hawkins (9:27) and David Maher (9:29) taking gold in the U17 to 19 ages. Bobby O’Riordan also winning bronze in the U17 race with a time of 10:49.

In the throws discipline Brian Hawkins got his medal with a 3rd place in the U16 shot with a throw of 8.20m. Josh Judd won second place in the U15 discus (1Kg) with a throw of 29.82

In Summary, all our athletes putting in excellent performances and getting stronger week on week. Thanks again to martin Hurley for reporting on the walkers and our younger athletes and to Willie Walsh and Ger Foley for putting in another great shift on the long jump and high jump for the day!

Report by Richard Hawkins

13 May 2022

Last Sunday began the first of the county championship Sundays which traditionally take place in the Month of May. Familiar faces and voices lending to the excitement of a great days’ competition. Carraig Na Bhfear AC had a good representation, lot of medals but most importantly a lot of enjoyment with plenty of experience gained stepping up a level from divisional competition.

Our U12’s Competed in their first Track and Field County Championships as the last one held was in 2019. Carraig had 5 under 12 girls competing – Hannah Coffey, Ellie Long, Emma Johnson, Allie Philips and Marie Cotter. Their First event was Shot, all 5 threw very well and Hannah finished fifth and Ellie sixth. Their next event was 600m, again all ran very well. Their final event of the day was the Long Jump, all jumped well and all five really enjoyed their first county competition which is the main thing at this age. We had one under 12 boy competing – Paul Colbert in the 600m and turbo Javelin. Paul ran very well in the 600m and finished middle of the pack and was very unlucky in the Turbo Javelin not to get a medal as he threw 18.11m for sixth place with the third-place athlete having thrown 19.84m. All six should be very proud with their performance.

In U13 girls Lucy Davis was pipped in to 4th place in the high jump with a clearance of 1.05m and an excellent throw in the Shot Put of 6.1m to finish well up the large field of competitors. The first of our high hurdlers was Jessica Akinkoulie with 4th place in heat 2. Faye O’Riordan finished 5th in the girls U15 250m hurdles in a new event for Faye which was followed up with a bronze medal in the high jump on countback in a tight competition. In the 1500m we had Faye and Laura Moore U15 and U16 respectively, both running well. I am sure both learning a lot in the races that bunched and surged at times in typical middle-distance fashion. We had more new recruits in the high hurdles with Aine Sheridan taking gold in the U17 and Ruadhri Boyle also taking gold in the U17 boys’ race. Credit to the coaches who have identified athletes who are suited to hurdles events and the more experienced athletes who have helped develop their skills in recent weeks. Aine also took 2nd place in the 400m U17 girls race in 1:07:78. Caoimhe Geoghegan was our final competitor in the girls’ competition with a string of excellent performances: Silver in the 100m, gold in long jump and just edged in to 4th place in the shot Put.

The boys U14 1500m was one of the races of the day, Cian Ryan running 4:51, a super time for a juvenile race but only good enough for a bronze in a race won by North Cork AC in 4:41, an incredible time for that age group. However, Cian will only benefit from having athletes of that standard to compete against and I am sure will have already banked the experience! In U16 boys 1500m Peter and Brian Hawkins ran good times to finish in 5th and 6thplaces respectively. In the sprint events Mathew Lynch finished 8th overall in the U15 100m in 13.34, very well done. Cathal Whooley is going from strength to strength with a 4th place in the 100m and gold in his more favored longer distance of 400m in 57:45.

We are leading the way in Cork athletics currently in the Steeplechase event taking gold in the U17 and U19 events through the Maher brothers Aidan and David. The pick of the races was the U18 boys where Timmy Hawkins ran an excellent season opening time of 10:24 but had only 2 seconds to spare from Robert Troy of Liscaroll AC, his sparring partner through the whole of last season, the lads drawing the best out of each other.

In the boy’s field events Joshua Judd had a throw of 34.1m in the 3kg hammer event, Joshua making his target distance following very consistent training. Timmy Colbert took gold in the Javelin (700g) with a PB throw of 40.13m.

Thanks to Ger Foley and Willie Walsh who were representing the club as competition officials on the day. Also, Martin Hurley for the update on the U12’s and Michelle Whooley who got some great action shots on the day, especially on the Steeplechase!

Look Forward : Day 2 of the counties take place next Sunday followed on Monday by graded leagues incorporating Junior, Senior and Masters events which is a new departure this year. South Munster schools T & F will take place next Tuesday (girls) and Thursday (boys) also in MTU.

Report by Richard Hawkins

6 May 2022

On Sunday 24 April the East Cork Track and Field day 2 took place in Youghal. Some outstanding performances and again some athletes making a breakthrough. In middle distance our boys were prominent in the 1500m races with gold medals for Cian Ryan, Dylan Mulcahy and Peter Hawkins U14, 15 and u16 respectively and Aidan Maher taking silver in the U17 – 19 race.

In the 200m boys u15 race a fine win for Mathew Lynch and Cathal Whooley taking bronze in the U17-19 race. In the 200m girls’ races bronze for Faye O’Riordan and Laura Moore in the u15 & U16 races. Leah Dunne took gold in the U17-19 race with Lily O’Riordan pushing her all the way to take Silver.

In the field events Caoimhe Geoghegan showed her versatility as an athlete taking gold in the U17-19 girls shot. MJ Walsh also giving the shot a go taking the bronze medal in the U13 boys competition. Our U12’s not to be outdone in the throws won silver in the U12 girls Turbo Javelin with Mary-Kate Dawson and in the U12 boys Paul Colbert took bronze, no doubt getting some goods tips from brother Timmy!

Another very enjoyable East Cork event brought the Juvenile track and field events to an end for this year, some excellent performances and athletes tasting competition for the first time ideal preparation for the County championships.

Report by Richard Hawkins

3/5/22

It was a surprise to many of us to recall that Carraig Na Bhfear AC had won the East Cork Senior men’s and women’s races as recently as 2018, such has been the disruption to routine in the intervening years. Perhaps a slight feeling of a hollow victory for the men that night as East Cork had the first 3 finishers, excluding them from the team scores. A welcome return to normality was the staging of the Ballynoe race in its traditional late April slot with a fine turnout on the night despite Ed Sheeran obviously not reading the fixtures list properly!

Our men’s team took center-stage on the night with a comprehensive if somewhat unexpected victory given the high standard in the East Cork Division. Since 2018 an injection of new blood in the form of Timmy Hawkins, David Maher and Tadhg Crowley adding significant depth to our squad. The one constant from that year was Willie Walsh albeit a reconditioned and rejuvenated version 2.0, bettering his time from that race by 73 seconds and playing a captains’ role in orchestrating a pack of 4 athletes working together to run the hilly 5-mile course, all under the 30-minute mark. No better sight in team athletics than seeing a team packing together lap after lap, the significance not lost on the spectators before Willie launched an attack on the final lap to give Timmy (29:05) and Tadhg (29:06) the platform to drive on and take the 4^th and 5^th individual places (first scoring places) with nothing between them. Willie (29:33) and David (29:47) had enough left in reserve to take impressive 9^th and 10^th places respectively to seal a fine championship win with a total of 28 points with the same number of points to spare over East Cork who finished in second place with 56 points.

Well-supported by Rian O’Luasa (18^th place) in a well-paced 33:04, the ever-smiling crowd favorite David O’Riordan (24^th place) with a great time of 35:33 and an impressive 31^st place finish for Liam Colbert in 38:36. Liam continuing to improve month after month a great addition to the squad in the last year. An impressive turn-out by Carraig who almost matched local club St. Catherines with the largest turnout.

There must be something in the coaches’ water because Rhona Lynch also improved on her 2018 time finishing in 8^th place in the women’s race in a time of12:42 for the 3k course in what was a tough battle for team places. Siobhan Walsh shrugged off an injury to finish in 11^th place (13:21) , the team scoring completed by championship debutante Orlaith Merritt in 20^th place (14:09). Our 4^th team member was Orlaith Gorman, also making her debut finishing in 25^th place (16:31) and our newer squad members a major high point for this team also. With team scoring tight across 5 teams, an anxious wait was rewarded with the news of a bronze medal and a great result for our women’s’ team.

A thoroughly enjoyable night for athletes and spectators alike and much to look forward to as we build and develop squads for the future, well done and congratulations to all!

Report by Richard Hawkins

29/4/22

Carraig Na Bhfear AC are no strangers to a hectic schedule, but this week saw one of the busiest weeks in our Calendar. Our long- awaited Easter Training Camp was preceded by a visit to the Kilmacow open sports on Monday which was celebrating its 43^rd running. Little surprise that it has been so successful as it is a well-run, competitive but friendly event. A 400m 8-lane grass track circling one of many sports fields, the complex also boasting a running trail, shot area and long jump pit. A breezy day and thankfully fleeting showers not spoiling the enjoyment.

As athletes warmed up for the sprint events Brian Hawkins had already quietly secured our first medal of the day with a 2^nd place finish for his 7.74m effort with the 4kg shot in a field of 9 competitors. Brian quickly followed this up with a 2^nd place in the U16 100m. Not to be out-done brother Peter picked up bronze medals in the 700m and high jump. The stand-out performance for the boys was Cathal Whooley coming through in a blanket finish to snatch gold in the U17 100m. Strong performances also in the Junior 3000m from Timmy Hawkins (2^nd) and Aidan Maher (3^rd).

Our girls were prominent throughout the afternoon challenging for medals in all ages from U15 up. Robyn Maher led the way in the 1500M walk with an excellent bronze medal. Rebecca Akinkuolie took 3^rd place in the U16 100M while Faye O’Riordan took silver in the 700m and bronze in the High Jump. Three Bronze medals U17 with Leah Dunne continuing to show good form in the 100m and Aine Sheridan placing in the 700m and shot. Our Juniors dominated the track events with Lily O’Riordan and Caoimhe Geogheghan taking 1^st and 3^rd respectively in the 100m and a clean sweep in the 400m for Leah Dunne (1^st), Isobel O’Mara (2^nd) and Abbie Akinkoulie (3^rd). Caoimhe also taking the silver medal in the long Jump.

Last but certainly not least were our ‘Veteran’ men who ran the 3000m race with the Junior men. Some good quality athletes from Waterford facing some unexpected competition from our seven club participants, always up for a challenge. Its not often you can clock a great time and then bring home an actual clock but that is exactly what Willie Walsh accomplished in running a fast 10m:10s on grass to take victory with Tony Dunne coming through to take 3^rd place on the podium! (Just as well Willie didn’t opt for the condiment jars, or I would have had to do the well-seasoned athlete joke!) Richard Hawkins, Dave Mullins, Dave O’Riordan, Liam Colbert and John Maher completed the band of Dads.

In Summary, a fine haul of medals and Carraig Na Bhfear AC finished as 3^rd juvenile club which is excellent given that we had mainly older kids travelling. There were many other fine performances particularly with some of our younger competitors, but such was the level of competition that medals were hard won but it is always good to compete against different clubs who we may not routinely encounter.

Tuesday and Wednesday were based in the Watershed complex in Kilkenny for our training camp, a super facility with a high-quality tartan track. As the sessions progressed the weather progressively improved and resulted in an unexpected warm weather camp of sorts! Some solid group training sessions were supplemented with the rare opportunity of plenty of time to work on drills and give athletes the opportunity to try hurdles and field events with plenty of potential on show. Our distance runners were in their element with easy runs along the canal walk and loops of the scenic grounds of Kilkenny Castle. Each day completed with a welcome relax in the hotel leisure centre.

In Summary, a big thank you to the coaches for a well-planned event which exceeded expectations, to the parents for providing the opportunity for the athletes to travel and the athletes for exemplary behaviour as always while representing the club. A special thank you to Michelle Whooley and Garry Geogheghan who put so much time in to ensuring we have the photos to remember a fantastic and memorable few days, a lot of work and stealth went in to capturing natural shots in many locations over the three days.

Boston Marathon : Congratulations to Helen Roche who completed the Boston Marathon in a time of 3:47:12 to chalk up another perfectly paced Marathon, heartbreak Hill doing little to spoil near even splits. Well done Helen!

Ballintotis 4 Mile: The evening races are starting to hit full swing and we had 2 athletes among the 812 finishers in this popular race. Siobhan Walsh had a fine run to finish 8^th out of 95 finishers in her category, very close to several other athletes just ahead in this competitive group topped by Olympian lizzie Lee! Caroline O’Donovan finishing in 35:19 well up the field of runners, well done both!

Great Railway run 25K : Richard Hawkins and Adam Farrell completed this charity race which started in Centre Park road and finished in Carrigaline, taking in much of the old Cork to Crosshaven rail route. Perfect conditions for running saw the lads completing the course in 1:55:49 and 1:57:05 respectively. A mention also for Christy Murphy (father-in-law of Adam) who cycled the route and gave great encouragement.

Park Run: Rian O’ Luasa continued his streak of appearances with a 22:56 finish, part of a busy few days of training and races for Rian, well done!

Look Ahead: The East Cork 5-mile Road Race returns to its traditional April slot on Thursday 28^th with Sunday 1^st May signalling the start of the Juvenile County Championships which will take place throughout the month of May.

Report by Richard Hawkins

25/4/22

When the East Cork Track & Field competition was last held on a tartan track, MTU was CIT and many of us weren’t part of Carraig Na Bhfear AC, so this was our first taste of the event proper. As a club we will long have fond memories of going ‘Old School’ on grass tracks in Carrignavar for a few years to ensure as much continuity as restrictions safely allowed but there is something special about returning to the track, seeing the next generation of athletes swaddled in layers of thermal clothing and oversized singlets giving their best efforts and having fun with their friends. A bitterly cold and windy day was a test of endurance for athletes, parents and officials alike but couldn’t dampen the spirits.

Martin Hurley’s Group: Big numbers out and some fabulous photos of the athletes going through their paces beforehand and giving their all in competition. Lots of potential and names to look out for in the future. Too many to mention by name but the future of the club is in good hands. Credit to the East Cork division for running novelty races for the U7 & U8 age groups as well as mums and dads, a perfect introduction to the sport without any pressure. The cost of entering large numbers of young athletes in multiple track & field events at county or provincial level has risen significantly in recent years so we are very thankful as a club that we have a divisional organization which offers well-organized, competitive but fun events at a reasonable cost that ensures we have an ideal platform for all levels of ability to compete.

U13/U15 : Again, too many to mention by name but lots of positives from this group. Some familiar names elevating their performances to medal positions as well as some newer faces adding to the depth of talent in the sprint and field events. We had strength in evidence across all disciplines with some of our middle-distance athletes testing the waters of sprint events and doing very well and our walking specialists showing diversity and great potential in other events which is very important for developing athletes.

Juniors : Not a major surprise to see so many athletes figuring prominently on the results sheet given the recent success in the indoor season, what is always heart-warming is to see athletes who have put in the work over many years finding the self-belief to win a race or achieve a pb that they wouldn’t have thought possible. A major feature of this group currently is consistent training over the last few years benefiting the group as a whole and medals and pb’s now being shared across a wider pool with personal potential being realized. Nice to see some more of our sprinters also returning for the outdoor season to bolster our sprint and relay squads!

In summary, an excellent start to the outdoor track & field season. We certainly have our work cut out for us to challenge for the Willie Harte trophy for best T & F club on day 2, but we wouldn’t have it any other way, tough competition at divisional level is our bread and butter and the springboard for future success. Check out our social media platforms for more detail and super action shots from Michelle Whooley who was on duty on Sunday braving the elements!

The IUAA Inter-Varsity competition was held in Carlow IT on 8^th and 9^th April. Friday saw the running of track qualifiers and the start of the field events. In the Women’s long jump Blessing Alamu (WIT) had a fine jump of 5.31m to take 4^th place, just outside the medal positions in a field of 13 competitors. Katie Walsh (MTU) was in unfamiliar territory stepping up to the 800M running a solid 2:32 season opener in the faster second heat. Katie was back in action in the 4 x 400M final on Saturday with MTU taking 5^th position in 4:16. In Fridays’ mens’ track qualifiers Ciaran Nugent (TUD) and Daire O’Sullivan (UL) showed their experience in doing just enough to qualify for Saturday’s finals in their respective preferred 400m hurdles and 1500m events.

Saturday saw Blessing Alamu produce an excellent throw of 35.66m in the women’s discus to go one better than the long jump and take the bronze medal, just rewards for some excellent performances. In the men’s 400m hurdles final it was all about the top three with Ciaran Nugent running a super time of 54:99 to take the bronze medal, Ciaran’s time almost 3 seconds faster than his last years national U23 bronze medal performance. Fantastic to see Ciaran running so well. In the 1500m Daire O’Sullivan has been running very consistently over the last 2 years, regularly pushing the 4:06 mark and challenging for podium positions. It can be very difficult to make a breakthrough to the next level and doesn’t always happen in the tactical world of middle distance running but if you are going to do it you might as well do it in style. That’s exactly what Daire did by smashing through the 4- minute barrier to finish in 3:59:25, agonizingly close to the bronze medal in 4^thplace but I would expect that Daire is more than happy with an epic PB! Well done to all our athletes acquitting themselves with distinction at college level.

Park Run : Rian O’ Luasa was flying the flag for the club again at as the Glen River parkrun celebrated its 100^th running! Rian crossing the line in 4^th place getting the nod over his nearest rival who had an identical time, way to finish Rian!

Look Forward : Our long-awaited Easter training camp is almost here! A trip to Kilmacow open sports on Monday will be followed by 2 days of club training and much socializing in Kilkenny. We look forward to seeing as many athletes in Kilmacow as possible for what promises to be a great day of competition for Juveniles and adults alike.

Report by Richard Hawkins

11/4/22

National Relays: ‘An Unexpected Journey’ : More Midlands than Middle-Earth, a fantastic Journey came to a successful conclusion on Saturday 2nd April as the curtain came down on the National Athletics Indoor season with the running of the 4 x 200m Indoor relays in Athlone AIT. A few months back teams of teens were cobbled together more in the hope of providing a goal for the indoor season for our teenagers than the expectation of success but the journey that followed was truly memorable for all involved. Individual specialists in endurance running, middle distance and a sprinkling of sprinters blended beautifully to become well-drilled teams capable of competing at the highest level through hard work and a lot of fun. A magnificent stadium for competing and viewing also meant nowhere to hide in the chaotic competition of team relays with any mistake cruelly exposed. It was the first time for most of our athletes competing in this arena and understandably anticipation and trepidation were present in equal amounts. Three of our four teams qualifying for the finals another breakthrough for Carraig Na Bhfear AC and a great experience for all.

U17 Girls : The team of Lucy Lynch, Leah Dunne, Rebecca Akinkuolie and Emer O’Callaghan qualified for the final from second place in heat 1, their time of 1:51.52 very fast and 4th fastest of the qualifiers. A short turnaround to the final didn’t faze them and they matched their earlier run with a 1:52.02 for a 5th place finish, very much in the mix at this level. An idea of the standard they were competing at later emerged with the news that the winning time of 1:42.12 from Rathoath AC was a national record for an Irish girls Juvenile 4x 200m team (eclipsing the U18 & U19 records also)!

U17 Boys : Our team of Cathal Whooley, Ruaidhri Boyle, Bobby O’Riordan and Timmy Colbert finished 5th in Heat 1 of 2 and not making the final with a blistering 1:42.89 for the 800M distance an indication of the level of competition on the day. A spread of only 6 seconds covering all team times ran on the day. Well done to the lads on a great effort and good to see Ruadhri Boyle back in a Carraig singlet and running well as part of our U17 squad.

U18 Girls : Our team of Caoimhe Geoghegan, Abbie Akinkuolie, Rebecca Kelleher, Leah Dunne and Ciara Keohane finishing initially in 3rd place in their heat in a time of 1:53.02 but quickly learning that they had been promoted to second place and qualification for the final with the disqualification of DSD AC. With just 40 minutes to prepare for the final a tactical reshuffle of positions and personnel saw the girls improve their time by almost a second in the final to take 6th place, well in the mix throughout the race.

U 19 Girls : Another heat, another final as Lily O’Riordan, Carol Halpin-Hurley, Abbie Akinkoulie and Caoimhe Geoghegan qualified in third place from their heat. A championship best performance by winners Leevale, much credit must go to Carraig for maintaining their pace from the heats given that it was the fourth race of the day for some athletes and legs were surely heavy at that stage. Well done to all on another great performance.

In summary, an unforgettable indoor campaign for coaches, parents, and athletes and plenty for the coaches to ponder on how best to maximize the potential shown in the upcoming outdoor season.

Templemore Spring Throws Festival: A unique event in the athletics calendar, the throws festival is a specialist competition covering the disciplines of Hammer, Javelin, and discus. Templemore Town Park was the venue in glorious sunshine. Carraig had 2 competitors in the Javelin competition, Lily O’ Riordan opting for the heavier 600g javelin for the first time with the winning throw of 30.96m and a PB from her opening effort. Well done Lily!

In the 700G mens’ competition Timmy Colbert threw an impressive 39.69m on his opening throw for 5th place. The competition was a mix of ages with Timmy being the youngest so a valuable learning experience for Timmy ahead of competition at his own age in the coming months. A PB also for Timmy with the new weight Javelin.

Paris in the Spring The spring marathons kicked off this weekend with Darragh O’Keeffe taking on his first marathon in Paris. Darragh certainly got the full experience, well laid training plans inevitably interrupted by life but adjusting accordingly, finding the wall exactly where it should be at 32kms but climbing over it and dipping under the 3hr 50-minute mark by seconds to achieve a time not to be underestimated for a first marathon. I am sure Darragh will enjoy his recovery and set new goals for the year!

Sonia O’Sullivan Cobh 10 mile: There was much debate in recent weeks whether runners who had signed up for this race but succumbed to Covid would be able to complete the hilly 10-mile course. Never a doubt in the mind of Tadhg Crowley who eased himself back to some easy running over the last two weeks. With a sub-60- minute Dungarvan 10 and a solid block of training in the bank Tadhg cruised to a magnificent 24th place from 633 finishers in a time of 59:47, perfectly paced to go Sub 60-mins again. Running for most of the race on his own demanding a lot of focus to maintain pace on the hills but no problem to Tadhg, well done to our club PRO!

The further adventures of Colm Crowley! Not to be outdone by brother Tadhg, our adventure race specialist Colm completed no fewer than 4 trail runs in the picturesque setting of Glendalough in the latest Quest race. Colm finished 26th of 228 competitors in a time of 4 hrs. flat!

Park Run: A big well done to Rian O’Luasa who was 4th across the line in 20:56 in the Glen River Park run. Rian shaving almost 2 minutes off his time from last week, clearly learning how to master the art of pacing the hilly course. Much credit is due to this young man for getting up early on a Saturday and persevering in what is a great addition to weekly club training sessions.

Look Ahead: East Cork Track & Field Day 1 takes place next Sunday 10th. Hosted in MTU it will provide excellent competitive action for our athletes, exciting times!

Report by Richard Hawkins

4/4/22

Martin Hurley’s’ group of racewalkers took center stage this week in the National Indoor Championships held in AIT Athlone. Carraig Na Bhfear AC have had a strong focus on this discipline for several years but the formation of the Rob Heffernan Racewalking academy in 2020 has certainly raised the profile and the participation rates in the Juvenile ranks. Standards have risen accordingly but a rising tide lifts all boats and Carraigs’ athletes are thriving in this environment. The U14 girls 1000m race was won with a Championship best performance, Carraigs’ Anna Mullins and Robyn Maher in 5th and 6th places respectively from a field of 11 walkers recorded big PB’s and have great potential for future championships. In the U15 Girls Aoife Martin had it all to do with a high-quality field including a strong contingent from Tuam AC who have a very competitive training group under the guidance of Pierce O’Callaghan who is well known in World Athletics circles. Aoife pushed hard from the start and was soon part of a breakaway group of 3 girls. Aoife took a massive 38 seconds off her Munster winning time to take the bronze medal, just .07 seconds outside the silver medal position in a photo finish. If any spectator was in doubt as to where racewalking ranks in terms of endurance events, the number of athletes lying exhausted on the track long after the finish of both races left them in no doubt. Massive congratulations to Martins’ squad who did the club proud.

Also competing in the 1500m U19 final was David Maher. A large field of 10 runners toed the line, a slow start became a gradual wind-up to a fast finish. A fine performance by David in 4:37 and great experience gained at a National Level.

Mallow 10: The popular Mallow 10-mile road race took place on Sunday with 2 club members participating. Michael Mulcahy finished in 95th place overall with a very creditable time of 1:04:46. Helen Roche had an excellent category placing in a time of 1:20:10. Well done to both runners in windy conditions.

Park Run: A beautiful Saturday morning tempted a few of our runners out for an early start. Willie Walsh tackled the hilly Glen River Course and was first finisher in a time of 19:08. Peter and Richard Hawkins opted for the flatter option of Ballincollig Regional Park , a steady-paced run in 21:04 and 21:12 respectively a good mornings’ work completed.

Look Ahead: A quiet week ahead on the competition front but preparations continue for the National club relay championships in Athlone on 2nd April with 4 teams set to compete.

21/3/22