Leinster Novice, u/20 & Juvenile Even Ages XC 2023 (21st Oct)
Individual and team success at Leinster Cross Country
Despite missing a number of athletes due to illness and others feeling unwell on the day but still running to support their teams, Mullingar still won eleven individual medals, including a Leinster title for Lily Walsh, nine sets of Club team medals and two sets of County team medals, meaning that Mullingar certainly enjoyed great success at the Leinster Novice, u/20 & Juvenile Even Ages Cross Country held on Sunday 21st October at Mountain View Golf Club in Co. Kilkenny. Despite very heavy rain from the tail end of Storm Babet in the days leading up to the event, the ground in Mountain View simply soaked it up and underfoot conditions were excellent throughout what was otherwise a tough course that tested the mettle of everyone that competed. To demonstrate the vagaries of Irish weather, it lashed rain the day before but not a drop fell on the day of competition, in fact the sun even broke through in the mid-afternoon.
The day started with non-Championship 1,000m races for girls and boys under 10 years of age, organised by the host Club St. Senan’s AC, and athletes as young as 7, 8 and 9 years of age from Clubs across Leinster competed with great enthusiasm, including a number from Mullingar. Landryn Yonta, Roisin Keane and Rachel Robinson ran in the girls race and thoroughly enjoyed the experience, and Noah Morgan ran in the boys race where he raced to seventh place and a medal. We can expect to see these youngsters in action in future Championship races.
After the excitement of the under 10 races, the first Championship race, the u/12 girls 2,000m started bang on time at 11.30am and we watched the big team from Mullingar race from the start. After an exciting race where the Mullingar girls ran very well, they were led home by Chloe Bell, followed by Katie Bohan, Liadan Gavin, Amelie Kelly, Amelie Downes, Ellen Gallagher, Elise Buckley, Melody Kelly, Aoife Gouldsbury, Maria Gouldsbury, Robyn Kelly and Clodagh Keane. Such was the standard, despite their talent and great efforts the girls finished out of the team medals but many were moving up an age and the experience will stand to them when they run in their own age in two weeks. The u/12 boys 2,000m followed and despite giving away a year, young Daniel Cummins kept right up with the leaders and was rewarded with a fine 8th place finish and an individual medal. A star in the making, Daniel will be one to watch in the u/11 race in two weeks. With brilliant team running and support, the fast-finishing team of Conor Gavin, Adam O’Donoghue, Harry Flanagan, Cillian Gavin, Cian Gavin, Aaron Robinson and Fintan Harte, the boys were delighted to finish 3rd Club and win Leinster team medals. They also finished 4th County, so all of them can compete in the All-Ireland finals in November.
Another star rising to the top though she too was giving away a year was Lily Walsh in the u/14 girls 3,000m. Lily kept with the leaders and patiently waited to make her move and when she did, she timed it perfectly to pull clear quickly and opened a gap that couldn’t be closed to run home in first place and win the Leinster title. The icing on the cake came thanks to terrific performances by Shaynah Mitchell, Lucy Kilmurray, Lucy Hickey, Aoibhe Martyn, Clodagh Doran, Aaliyah Downes and Emily Tully running hard in support to finish 3rd Club and see another Mullingar team qualify for the All-Ireland finals. Taking a leaf from Lily’s book, Scott Cogan kept right in contention throughout a fast u/14 boys 3,000m race and though he didn’t win he was still delighted to finish 5th and lead the excellent team of Antonio Bertolo, Cormac McGrath, Daniel Horohoe, Oisin Clarke, Louis Kiernan, Greg McDonnell, Hakeem Yonta, Morgan Isdell and Joel Kelly to 2nd Club and Leinster team medals. They also finished 5th County, not far off fourth which would have seen them all qualify for the All-Ireland finals, so a great team performance.
Tianna O’Leary had the honour of leading the Mullingar team home in the u/16 girls 4,000m with a fine 5th place finish, and with Eleanor Kiernan racing home in 8th place, and great support from team mates Isabel Tynan Daly, Emma Lagan, Lydia McDonnell and Blathnaid Peters the team finished 4th Club, no team medals but still a qualification spot for the All-Ireland finals. Continuing to make a steady return to his best, Matthew Molloy fought hard and was pleased to finish 10th in the u/16 boys 4,000m and with Conor Walsh running out of his skin in 11th right behind him, and Oisin Kehoe in 13th, an agonising one place away from an individual top-twelve medal, and Luke Greene not far behind providing the vital fourth team score, it was no surprise that Mullingar finished 1st Club by a big margin. Also running hard in support was Daniel Glennon, Daniel Hickey and Conor Mulvany fighting hard for every place to see the team finish 4th County, missing bronze by just a single point to show that every place counts in cross country. A consolation is that they all qualify for the All-Ireland finals anyway.
The 5,000m for girls u/18 & women u/20 was a combined race where the u/18 girls could win medals in both the u/18 race and as members of u/18 and u/20 teams. Negotiating the course brilliantly and always in the thick of the action, Aimee Wallace finished 4th overall (3rd u/18), and with Grace Byrne (7th u/18), Ailbhe O’Farrell (11th u/18), and great support from Aisling Lane (u/20), Caoimhe Donohue (u/18) and Alanna Greene (u/18). With three in the top twelve and great support from Caoimhe and Alanna, the u/18 team finished 2nd Club. Of course, it didn’t end there, as the u/18 girls could also score on the u/20 teams, Aisling Lane provided the vital fourth team score to see the Mullingar u/20 team finish 1st Club by just two points and clinch the gold for Mullingar. The team also finished 4th u/20 County, missing the bronze medals by just two points. They won the Club gold by two points and missed County bronze by two points to also show that every place counts and everyone has to continue to run hard to the finish.
The final underage race on the programme was the combined 5,000m for boys u/18 & men u/20, where like the corresponding women’s race, u/18 boys could win medals in both the u/18 race and as members of u/20 teams. Racing hard down the finish straight and closing hard on the eventual winner, Diarmuid Fagan stormed over the line in a very close 2nd place overall and 2nd u/20 man. He was followed in by John Ryan (u/20), Ross Killalea (u/20), Conor Sherwin (5th u/18), Pablo Lozano (u/18), Donagh Carey (u/18), Jamie Wallace (u/18), Philip McCartan (u/18), John Glennon (u/18) and Conleth Mullen (u/20), and all battling hard to the finish. When the u/18 and u/20 team results were sorted after the race, the u/18 boys finished 2nd Club and 3rd County, and the u/20 team finished 1st Club and 2nd County.
After the underage races, the programme moved to the adult races and by now the sun was shining bright. The entry for Novice Women 4,000m included a big team from Mullingar led home by Susan Glennon with a terrific 10th place finish, followed by Joan Flynn also finishing well up, and with Michelle Bohan, Linda Cunningham, Ciara Dillon, Caroline Mullen and Claire Lennon giving their all, despite their efforts, the women had to settle for places out of the team medal places, 6th Club and 4th County, but only a mere five points away from the bronze medals in as very close contest.
The day ended with the Novice Men 6,000m, which as usual was one of the biggest fields of the day as over one hundred men raced away from the start of what is regarded as one of the most competitive races in Leinster cross country. One small and three big laps of the tough energy-sapping Mountain View course later, the Mullingar team was led home by Matthew Glennon in an excellent 9th place, followed in closely by James Keegan in 11th place, then Andy Boyhan, Kris Foster, Kedagh Geoghegan, Stephen Campbell, Brian Martin and Liam McGlynn, all digging deep and leaving nothing behind and packing brilliantly in support, to finish a brilliant 1st Club and a very creditable 5th County for the men.
That rounded off a great day for Mullingar with plenty of individual and team successes and excellent running by everyone.. The juvenile teams that qualified from Mountain View will go forward to the All-Ireland Finals in Gowran, Co. Kilkenny in November.
