Mullingar confirmed as best juvenile cross country club

The Mullingar Harriers were at the AAI National Cross Country Championships in Ballyhaise, Co. Cavan where the Club won three Club titles, two Club silvers, one County silver, two individual titles and 6 other top twelve finish places, which even surpassed the results in Tramore two weeks previously. As well as being the only Club to field teams in every race from under 11 to Novice, we also won the most Club titles.As in the first round, Mullingar athletes also contributed to the resurgence of Leinster in the Inter-Provincial competition.In contrast to Tramore, the course in Ballyhaise was very well laid out and gave no excuse for poor performance, with a very wide well organised starting area, long straights and no ridiculously sharp bends to contend with and for this the organisers are to be complimented. Ground conditions were muddy and difficult in places, but such is the weather of late, this was no surprise and it only added to the spectacle expected of a National cross country finals.Claire Fagan was in brilliant form and got things off to a great start by leading the girls under 11 team to Club silver medals, and also winning a bronze medal with the Leinster team. Close on her heels, only two places behind her was Laura Whitelaw also winning bronze with Leinster, followed by Niamh Quinn and Meabh McNulty providing the vital fourth score in her first All-Ireland final to secure silver medals. Providing great support was Ellen Cronin, Emma Glynn and Rebecca Yorke.Going one better, Patrick Shaw stayed right in the mix all the way in the boys under 11 race and finished 4th to win an individual medal, win bronze with Leinster, and lead Mullingar to its first Club title of the afternoon. Kevin Giles was next in, also winning bronze with Leinster, followed by Shane Hughes and Cormac Dalton who was only just recovered from injury to make up the scoring Club four. Michael Moran, David Mimnagh and Ciaran Nolan completed the team and finished 4th County, just outside the medals.First individual title of the afternoon came courtesy of Linda Conroy who dominated the girls under 13 race where she timed her break from the pack to perfection leaving those behind no hope of closing the gap and winning by a big margin, leading Mullingar and Leinster to gold. Caoimhe Shaw, Aisling Bracken, Lauren Casey, Ann Marie Kennedy, Aisling Moody and Lorna Moody provided terrific support and the girls thoroughly deserved their gold Club medals.It was great to see Padraig Moran back in action in the boys under 13 after his ordeal in Tramore. Padraig and Liam O"Reilly ran a spirited race but had to concede in a great sprint finish with Liam out kicking Padraig to finish 3rd and Padraig close behind in 7th, both helping Leinster to gold and leading Mullingar to their third Club title. Close behind were Oisin Quinn, Glen Gaffney, Eoghan Moore and James O"Leannachain to secure the Club gold medals. This was a great team effort.Despite recent bereavement, Ciara Hewson made the decision to run and was rewarded with a well deserved individual medal for 6th place, a silver medal with Leinster, and she led Mullingar to Club silver, thanks to great support from Elizabeth Carr in 9th place also winning silver with Leinster, followed by Lorraine Daly, Donna Kiernan, Jane Leydon and Eadaoin Daly all taking Ciara"s lead and example and running well for the team and deserving their silver medals.In the boys under 15, barring accidents, there was only going to one outcome and Shane Fitzsimons once again demonstrated why he is one of the truly bright lights in underage athletics in Ireland at the moment. Shane stayed in second place for much of the race but when he broke clear he opened a gap so big and so quickly that it was awesome to watch and he made it look positively easy as he crossed the line to win and add the under 15 title to the under 14 title he won in Tramore, and join a very select cohort of athletes to win double titles. Shane led Leinster to bronze medals, but despite good running by Aaron Glynn, Odhran Daly and Kaman Halford, there were no team medals for Mullingar.Amie Giles tried her very best in the girls under 17 but it just wouldn"t come right for her on the day and she was very disappointed with her finishing place, but sometimes athletes have these days and also she in underage again next year. Also competing was Lisa Darby, Cliodhna Daly and Rachel Yorke but despite running well in support, they finished out of the medals. But this is a young team and their day will come.No such woe for Jake Byrne who ran a great race and always looked in control and ran with utter confidence and despite losing a shoe on the last lap, finished second in the boys" under 17. Vincent Connolly who is only running a few months finished an excellent 20th place and helped Leinster to silver medals. Providing support was Shane Kelleher and Zack Halford but such is the standard, finished out of the team medals.Aoife Hogan was Mullingar"s sole representative in the girls" under 19 where she ran a really good confident race and with a great sprint finish played her part in securing gold medals for the Leinster team.Likewise in the boys under 19, we had only one runner, Shane Boggs but despite running well and finishing well up he finished out of the medals but is underage again next year.It was great to see Mullingar field teams in the Novice women and men races and in the women"s race, the Club was led home by Mary Scully who competed hard all the way and finished a brilliant 5th place, followed home by newcomer Alwyn Kinane, Nuala Moran, Patricia Broderick and Breda Daly who all coped admirably with the fast deteriorating muddy course.By the time the Novice men took to the line, the course began to resemble the Somme in places and running was very difficult, especially on the stiff uphill sections.Despite the conditions, Matt Glennon, Aidan Gorry, Liam McGlynn and Colm Walsh dug deep into their fighting reserves and gave good accounts of themselves to finish well and expressed satisfaction afterwards with their performances, greatly assisted by the support provided by the women"s team and others that stayed to cheer them on. Unfortunately, conditions weren"t to the liking of newcomer Darragh Thornton and he was forced to withdraw but hopefully he wasn"t too put off and will compete again another day.Again, an excellent Championships for Mullingar, and one that reinforces the Club"s formidable reputation in cross country. A particular word of thanks is due to the many parents and others that made the journey to Cavan in difficult road conditions and braving the elements to provide valuable support.European Cross Country ChampionshipsThis coming Sunday will mark a proud day for the Club as Martin Fagan and Mark Christie compete together for Ireland in the senior men"s 10,000m at the European cross country in Brussels. Both are young men in their early twenties and it"s not that long ago that they were to be seen training at the Club and competing in Leinster and National underage competition.They are proof positive that with dedication and hard work athletes can rise to the top and see the World with their legs, so to speak. Martin and Mark will be the first to say that they know there are some youngsters in the Club at the moment with the potential to be even better than they are and will succeed if they stick to the sport and apply themselves fully in training.The first race, for junior women, is at 11.15am, but the main event for us is the senior men 10,000m at 1.05pm. No details of TV coverage yet, so check the TV listings during the week. Everyone at the Club wishes Martin and Mark the very best of luck on Sunday.Christmas ArrangementsNow that the domestic cross country season is over for 2008, our young athletes deserve a short break, as do their parents who have to fetch and carry them to training.So, this Thursday (11th Dec) will be the last training session at the Club until we return again on Tuesday 30th December when hopefully everyone will be refreshed after Christmas and raring to go again. Of course, those going to Antrim on Saturday 3rd January will need to keep in shape and do some training over the break and Club coaches will advise what to do. For the others, enjoy the break and make the most of it, though you too can do a little bit of running at home if you like, nothing too strenuous, just something to keep you ticking over.Again, Club coaches can advise.Even though the Club is officially closed for Christmas, of course we"ll be having our customary Christmas morning run from the Club house at 11am. Some might take the opportunity to run as far as Mullingar Shamrock"s GAA as a warm up, support the GOAL mile, and run on further or head back to the Club to finish.The Christmas morning run is an excellent way of working up an appetite but to work off the excesses of the Christmas dinner, what better way than to run the Longford 5km Road Race in Newtownforbes at 1pm on St. Stephen"s Day?Talking of Christmas invariably leads to the matter of presents, and if you"re considering buying a book as a gift, you"d do well to considering 'The Chairman of the Boards: No. 1' and 'Sonia: My Story', the biographies of Eamonn Coghlan and Sonia O"Sullivan. Both are absorbing reads and will be warmly received by anyone with even a passing interest in athletics.Christmas PartyAs it"s Christmas, and to mark the excellent year that 2008 has been for Mullingar Harriers and the contribution made by so many people to the Club"s success, especially the parents who are really the unsung heroes, we"re having a party for adult members and parents at the Annebrook House Hotel on Thursday 18th where we"ll have finger food, refreshments and lots of chat and craic. Adult members and parents should head for Annebrook at 8.30pm for 9pm.Subscriptions for 2009Please renew your subscription as soon as you can. AAI registrations are due in January and if you"re not registered, you"re not insured and can"t take part in Club activities. Subscriptions will be taken by Margaret Daly or Nuala Moran any night at training.Finally, the Executive and members of Mullingar Harriers wish to extend sincere sympathy to Ciara Hewson and the entire Hewson family on the sudden recent death of Ciara"s sister, Lia. May she rest in peace.Fixtures14th December. European Cross Country Championships, Brussels14th December. Donore Harriers AC 'Jingle Bells' 5km Road Race, Phoenix ParkSt. Stephen"s Day. Navan 10km Road Race, 11amSt. Stephen"s Day. Longford 5km Road Race, Newtownforbes, 1pm3rd January 2009 (Saturday). Antrim International Cross Country Challenge, CAFRE, Greenmount Campus, Antrim, first race 11am (Note: new venue; not Stormont)11th January. AAI National Masters Indoors, Nenagh18th January 2009. Leinster Cross Country Day 3 (Junior & Senior) and Juvenile Cross Country Relays, Tymon Park, Dublin24th January. AAI National Junior Indoors, Nenagh25th January. AAI Indoor Games, Nenagh1st February. Leinster Indoors Day 1, NenaghTraining continues each Tuesday and Thursday from the Clubhouse in Grange at 7pm and at Belvedere on Sunday mornings at 11am. Check the Club"s website <>at www.mullingarharriers.com for results, news and details of all upcoming fixtures.