Kevin Mulcaire of St Flannan’s Ennis and Rhona Pierce from St Angela’s Cork took the senior titles at the Glo Health All Ireland Schools Cross-Country Championships held at Clongowes Wood in blustery conditions.
Mulcaire was taking a third consecutive title – he won the intermediate races in 2014 and 2013 – and his victory came with consummate ease. So relaxed was he that he had time to high five a barefoot fan from the crowd and then flip head over heels on his way to the finish line. Local hero Jack O’Leary of Clongowes had made a huge effort to move into second place on the final lap, but then fell back exhausted with Peter Lynch of St Kieran’s Kilkenny finishing second and Jamie Fallon of Calasantius Oranamore third. Defending champion Andrew Coscoran of St Mary’s Drogheda was fourth.
The battle for team gold couldn’t have been closer and careful planning by St Aidan’s CBS saw them take the title by a single point from St 
Flannan’s, with every member of the squad knowing exactly what he had to do. St Aidan’s is now (probably) the only school in Ireland to have won a senior title in each of the past six decades.
The senior girls’ race turned into a battle between Hope Saunders of Mt Temple and Rhona Pierce, who ran with Skerries CC last year, but has since moved to Cork. Over the 2.5km course, Pierce proved that she had the speed necessary for victory. Saunders was second and Clodagh O’Reilly from Loreto Cavan third. Loreto Kilkenny led by Eva Richardson won the team title.
James Edgar of Friend’s Lisburn, a new name to athletics, won the boys’ inter race with Cormac Dalton of St Joseph’s Rochfortbridge just making it to the line ahead of Eoin McCann of Rathmore Belfast fro second place; St Flannan’s Ennis took the team honours. Last year’s junior champion Caoimhe Harrington of CB Bheanntrai proved best of the inter girls, beating Niamh Ni Chiardha of Col Iosagain and Jodie McCann of Rathdown; Dominican Wicklow proved best of the teams.
Another notable victory came in the junior girls’ race where Sarah Healy of Holy Child Killiney was pushed hard by Amy Rose Farrell of Mount Anville; both girls are members of Blackrock AC. Darragh McElhinney of CP Bheanntrai won the junior boys race. Minor winners were Jane Duffy of Ballybay CS and Louis O’Loughlin from Moyle Park.
Winning the Irish Universities titles were Mary Ann O’Sullivan of DCU and AIT’s Liam Brady. UCC thought they had won the women’s team title for the first time in coach Donie Walsh’s memory. They were wrong. They tied with DCU on 30 points, with DCU taking it, although their fourth finisher was 14th to UCC’s 12th. DCU had twelve finishers to UCC’s bare six; maybe that was it? Or something to do with the first finishers? PS: in case you’re looking for the men’s times, only the first two appear to be recorded.
Some pics at www.flickr.com/lindie. More at www.lindie.zenfolio.com
Saturday March 7
Glo Health All Ireland Schools Cross-County Championships and Irish Universities Cross-County Championships, Clongowes Wood College, Clane, Co Kildare. www.athleticsireland.ie
Girls – Minor: 1 Jane Duffy (Ballybay CS) 5.49, 2 Saoirse O’Brien (SH Westport) 5.50, 3 Murphy Miller (Strathearn Belfast). 5.51 Teams – 1 St Dominic’s Cabra 67, 2 PS Inbhear Sceine Kenmare 92, 3 Strathearn Belfast 120. Junior: 1 Sarah Healy (HC Killiney) 9.16, 2 Amy Rose Farrell (Mt Anville) 9.21, 3 Olivia Nelson (Strathern Belfast) 9.30. Teams – 1 Mt Anville 54, 2 Holy Child Killiney 70, 3 Coachford College 109. Inter: 1 Caoimhe Harrington (Col Phobail Bheanntrai) 12.06, 2 Niamh Ni Chiadhra (Col Iosagain) 12.13, 3 Jodie McCann (Rathdown)12.15. Teams – 1 Dominican Wicklow 68, 2 St Joseph’s Spanish 
Point 100, 3 Sacred Heart Omagh 116. Senior: 1 Rhona Pierce (St Angela’s Cork) 9.22, 2 Hope Saunders (Mt Temple) 9.26, 3 Clodagh O’Reilly (Loreto Cavan) 9.28, 4 Orlaith Moynihan (Loreto Clonmel) 19.30, 5 Deirdre Healy (Inst of Ed) 9.31, 6 Aoibhe Richardson (Loreto Kilkenny) 9.33. Teams – 1 Loreto Kilkenny 52, 2 Loreto Clonmel 59, 3 St Dominic’s Cabra 72.
Boys – Minor: 1 Louis O’Loughlin (Moyle Pk) 8.49, 2 Jack Bagge (Ardscoil na Mara Tramore) 8.57, 3 Finn Looney (St Anne’s Killaloe) 9.00. Teams – 1 Naas CBS 95, 2 Rice College Westport 101, 3 Omagh Christian Bros 105 . Junior: 1 Darragh McElhinney (Col Pobail Bheanntrai) 10.56, 2 Sean Corry (Omagh CBS) 11.04, 3 Adam Fitzpatrick (St Kieran’s Kilkenny) 11.05. Teams – 1 St Colman’s Newry 94, 2 St Kieran’s Kilkenny 137, 3 Thurles CBS 140. Inter: 1 James Edgar (Friends’ Lisburn) 16.35, 2 Cormac Dalton (St Jos Rochfortbridge) 16.35, 3 Eoin McCann (Rathmore Belfast) 16.36. Teams – 1 St Flannan’s Ennis 88, 2 Col Mhuire Mullingar 98, 3 St Michael’s Enniskillen 119. Senior: 1 Kevin Mulcaire (St Flanna’s Ennis) 21.36, 2 Peter Lynch (St Kieran’s Kilkenny) 22.02, 3 Jamie Fallon (Calasanctius Oranmore) 22.09, 4 Andrew Coscoran (St Mary’s Drogheda) 22.19, 5 Darren Dunne (Nenagh CBS) 22.28, 6 Paddy Robb (St Malachy’s Belfast) 22.31. Teams – 1 St Aidan’s CBS Whitehall 91, 2 St Flannan’s 92, 3 St Malachy’s Belfast 102.
Irish Universities Cross-Country (www.iuaa.org)
Women (66 finishers): 1 Mary Ann O’Sullivan (DCU) 18:02, 2 Maria O’Sullivan (DCU) 18:13, 3 Shona Heaslip (IT Tralee) 18:22, 4 Sinead O’Conor (UCC) 18:256, 5 Orna Murray (UCC) 18:27, 6 Ellie Hartnett (UCD) 18.34. Teams – 1 DCU 30 (1,2,13,14); 2 UCC, 30 (4,5,9,12); 3 UCD 55 (6,10,16,23), 4 TCD 71, 5 UL 85, 6 QUB 85.
Men (108 finishers): 1 Liam Brady (AIT) 27:01, 2 Jayme Rossiter (DCU) 27:38, 3 Darragh Rennicks (AIT) , 4 Con Doherty (UCD) , 5 Mark O’Sullivan (CIT), 6 Cian O’Reilly (UCD). Teams – 1 DCU 58 (2,8,10,11,13,14), 2 UCD 65 (4,6,7,15,16,17), 3 AIT 174 (1,3,36,41,43,50), 4 UL 209, 5 CIT 226, 6 UCC 242.
Overall – 1 DCU 54.629, 2 UCD 81.481, 3 UCC 128.591, 4 UL 170.147, 5 TCD 195.664, 6 QUB 295.553, 7 WIT 320.664.
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