A double win for Newbridge u14 in the 2000m race
Boys u16 L to R: Jack Gilmartin (Celbridge) winner, Seighin Beattie (Naas), Johnathon Kenny (Kildare) and (Clane) Photo: Dermot Kelly
As the winds became higher, the numbers in the ensuring races dropped somewhat. Thirty-two girls and twenty-two boys took part in the u14 2000m race. Robyn Browne (Newbridge) not only took individual gold but also led her Newbridge team mates Kate Hargaden, Jane Keaney and Anna Cullen to team gold.
Hargaden was for most of the race in a four way battle with the Clane AC pair of Iris McCartan and Isla Corcoran along with Eileen Humphries (Naas). As with 2023 it was McCartan who outsprinted both Hargaden and her Clane clubmate Corcoran to take the silver with Hargaden taking bronze.
Having McCartan in second and Corcoran in fourth, and Gemma Ryan and Aobh Corcoran 12th and 13th respectively – Clane AC produced a good team score to secure second placed team. St Coca’s took third.
Newcommer Emma Fitzharris (Crookstown-Millview) had an excellent race, finishing eight in her first ever Cross-Country race, Jack Brennan had a great track season, qualifying for the national championships.
On the back of his superb track season the Newbridge AC athlete took gold in the 2000m boys u14 race. He led the field of twenty-two athletes from start to finish.
Eoin Kelly (St Coca’s) was having a good run in second and kept a close eye on Brennan for the entire race. Luke Harrington (Le Cheile) was content to stay in fifth position for most of the race.
Moving past Harry Boland (Newbridge) and Eoghan McNearny (St Coca’s) in the final stages of the race. The St Coca’s team of Kelly, McNearny, Matthew Ellis and Ben Nolan took the team gold from Newbridge in second.
Celbridge AC’s Jack Gilmartin took gold in the boys u16 3,500m race. The 800m specialist who finished 3rd in this year’s boys u16 All-Ireland 800m made light of the much longer race. The top six boys in the race, were content to race together for much of the race with Gilmartin forging a lead in the closing stages of the competition. It was the Newbridge pair of Matthew Grogan and Alexander Guther who took silver and bronze respectively. Newbridge took the team gold from Naas in second.
Newbridge had a clean sweep in the girls u16 with national u15 3000m bronze medalist Rachael Keaney taking the gold from Eabha Brennan in second and Hannah Cash in third. The club took team gold. Their dominance was such that they had seven out of the top eight girls in this race. They were intercepted from taking the top seven places by Caoimhe Fitzgerald (Crookstown-Millview) who finished fourth. The 2023 Leinster Champions look good to retain their title.
As the juveniles go up in age, the numbers get less but the quality still remains high. Cillian Gleeson may be Celbridge’s best u18 middle distance athlete but in his absence, it was Eoin Dowling who took the u18 title. Dowling lead a Celbridge clean sweep of the race, where his team mates Daniel Costigan and Luke Gilmartin where second and third respectively. Celbrdige took the team title from Newbridge.
Holly Headon (Naas) claimed Naas AC’s second gold medal of the day. Just last week the Naas AC athlete took second place in the Dublin Half-marathon. Last Sunday trading the roads for the grassy fields, Headon finished ahead of teammate Emily Kearns with both these athletes joined by Mary Jo Cowdell and Emer O’Rielly to take team gold for Naas AC. Grainne Hickey (Celbridge) took individual bronze and led Celbridge AC to silver team medals. The master’s ladies was run with the novice ladies. Once again it was Michelle Cox who was in superb form.
Cox, a European masters cross-country medalist, had no problem pulling in a win from her teammate Emma Boland. Newbridge managed a clean sweep as Niamh O’Boyle took the bronze medal. In winning the overall master’s competition, Cox won the master’s over 40 with Boland second. O’Boyle took the over 45 titles.
The rain managed to stay away from the entire fixture, however time had run out for the novice and master’s men’s. Signs of the weather to come were dropping on the men as they raced in battle to finish before the deluge started. James Smyth (Celbridge) looked at ease throughout the entire race as he led a group consisting of Adam Veighey (Naas), Rob McCabe (Clane), Conor Murphy (St Cocas) and Dave Browne (Newbridge) though the first part of the race.
As Smyth increased the pace it was Veighey who went with him. The tall figure of Clane’s McCabe towered over the youthful Murphy as he tried to chase down Veighey and Smyth. McCabe eventually passing Murphy to take the bronze. St Coca’s won the team prize by nine points from Celbridge, who just cleared the silver by two points over Naas.
Despite coming third overall, Rob McCabe won the overall master’s race. McCabe an over 40 athlete led Newbridge’s Dave Browne (winner of the over 45s) and Derek Gilmartin (Celbridge) who won the over 50 titles.
Berlin has always proved a popular marathon. One of the flattest and fastest courses on the continent, this marathon has always attracted many Irish athletes. Thirty-Nine Irish athletes finished in the top five hundred of this year’s marathon. Sinead Kane was guided by John O'Regan & Eamonn Shields to finish the marathon in 3:29.41. This is a great achieve from Le Cheile’s Kane who has only 5% vision and is legally regarded as blind. Kane has raced many marathons and continues to embrace challenges year after year, an inspiration to many.
