NI & Ulster Junior Cross Country Championships

Report by Siobhan Grant

It’s 3 in a row for Harry!

It seems Athletics NI have some unpublished agreement with the Weather Gods that every year the NI & Ulster Cross Country Championships will be accompanied by a named storm. After last year’s encounter with Storm Bibet, where provisional rerouting measures were in place, this year it was Storm Ashley who had participants refreshing social media and emails from Friday evening wondering if the event would even go ahead.

As rain and wind battered the island early on Saturday morning, spectators and participants arrived at Billy Neill under clear blue skies. Although it was clearly the calm in-between the two-front Storm, Athletics NI had made the right judgement call to power on with the event and had alerted those involved to be prepared for races starting a bit sooner as they tried to work through the programme before part two of Ashley made landfall.

For Newcastle AC, over 20 juniors braved the start line across all races from U10 to U20. With all numbers professionally distributed and warm ups lead by Rónán Grant in the absence of competing himself, it was clear the apple didn’t fall far from the tree in organisation skills and coaching.

With the rain of the previous two evenings soaking into the ground, Billy Neill had softened up in comparison to last week’s Comber Cup with the pre race recce clearly showing areas which would quickly deteriorate under the passing pairs of feet. Though for the U10 they got the best the route had to offer over their 1000m race. First up Cliona McAleenan and Sophie Kerr ran strong races and fought hard up the inclines. With the finish line in sight, both girls sped up as they gained at least 10 places each in the closing stages. Cliona finished 42nd in 4.15 and Sophie close behind in 54th in 4.26. Ruaidhri Watson was the only U10 boy but he made his presence felt as he powered off the line with determination. He held strong to finish in 42nd place in 4.07.

The U12 girls race welcomed Emily Kerr back to Comber for a second week and this time she’d club mates Aydah McKibbin and Rua Gosling by her side. With over 120 runners in the race it was a busy battle mid table but Emily was in her element as the muck and gutters welcomed her and she them. Finishing in 31st place in a time of 5.10 for 1500m. Aydah fought hard for position and the long elegant stride of this P7 kept her in the top 50 for 48th in 5.22. You would assume it would have been difficult to spot Rua in the crowd as she was head and shoulders smaller than most the girls however this little pocket rocket shone in amongst the field and finished in a very respectable 72nd place in 5.41.

Many say that Athletics isn’t a team sport and they would be wrong. Every single one of the Juniors is invested in every race that a yellow and red vest is appearing. Being at the start of the course, cheering around the course, popping up when the runners need it most and being there at the finish to see them safely home. However, Harry McVeigh was going for his 3rd NI & Ulster Title in a row and everyone felt every emotion going, except Harry himself. In his usual cool and calm approach to racing, he laughed and giggled with team mate Rossa Mc Aleenan as they set off for the start line.

As the horn went off Harry powered up the front straight and pulled the crowd with him. As they emerged from the trees with 500m to go Harry was accompanied by only one other runner, Donal Devlin, and over the next 300m they played cat and mouse. With 200m to go, it looked like Harry had used up his reserves and the young man from Keep er Lit Running Club was 4 strides in front leading into the final hill. As they entered the final 75m, Harry was now shoulder to shoulder with young Donal who then edged slightly ahead and thinking the race was over, put his arms up to celebrate the win. Harry however kept his composure and dipped for the line and by hundredths of a second, the young Newcastle AC man won his third NI & Ulster Title in 4.14 – a thrilling finish and a fantastic achievement. Harry then shook Donal’s hand, shared words of encouragement and thanks, and looks forward to meeting him again at All-Irelands in November.

Rossa McAleenan had run into difficulty in the early stages of the race as he got caught up in the crowd and met the ground. However this didn’t dampen the fire in this young man and he battled to finish in 34th place in 5.01

The U14 girls squad has been running together for three years now and are growing in confidence and strength which showed over the 2500m. Maisie Mc Veigh led the team home in 44th place in 8.26 with a controlled run from Parisa Susay-Quinn in 52nd in 8.36. Mary Houston proved the hills are vital in her training as she attacked each hill with no fear to finish in 66th place in 8.52. Lily McMurray found her second wind after a few weeks on the bench to finish in 9.31 for 83rd place. A battle of wills played out as Eilis Donnelly and Aoife Grant capitalised on the tiring runners in the final 500m and gained several places each to finish in 94th and 95th place, 9 seconds apart in 10.12 and 10.21 for an 11th place club finish overall.

The U14 boys race brought its own ray of sunshine as the clouds began to look rather ominous and winds began to pick up. Connaire Og McVeigh set off at a blistering pace with Owen Gilmore hot on his heels. The two young men who are matched very eveningly in ability stormed around the course and made light work of the steep sections and boggy tight turns. Entering the final straight they were at odds with each other with Owen crossing the line first in 21st place in 7.29 and Connaire Og in 23rd in 7.30. Senan Gosling was also digging for that something extra and finished in an amazing 50th place in 8.12 with Donal McDaid bringing the team home in 76th place which was good enough for a great 8th place overall for the squad. Both Connaire Og and Owen will now advance onto All Irelands in November.

With an U16 squad entered, on the day illnesses meant that Fiachna McAleenan and Michael Lynch were the only club representatives however this didnt hold them back. As the younger runners in this category they never parted from the main body of the race to finish in 46th place for Fiachna in 12.46 and Michael in 61st in 13.32 which were outstanding times for the 3500m course which was now being beaten to death by the wind at every corner.

The U18 ladies race saw Natalie Cotton bring along her recent international experience to complete the 4000m course in 18.50 for 30th place. The U20 men’s 8000m race saw the return of Ethan McMullan and a Patrick McDaid to the Cross Country circuit after they too had been representing NI alongside Natalie on the mountains. Storm Ashley had arrived with gusto and added to the fact the race involved 4 laps of the quickly deteriorating course, it was going to require every ounce of energy they had. Ethan claimed 14th place in 29.37 and Patrick in 17th in 30.11.

The Senior ladies tackled 3 laps of the course to complete 6000m. The first lap was run with physical demands, the second was run with mental demands as they navigated the same lap yet again and the third lap was run with heart as legs tired in the oncoming wind. Damian McDaid, now in the heart of Storm Ashley fought his way around in the Men’s 8000m race after making it a 4th Parkrun win in a row at Dunleath the day before. Well done to Tanya Cummings, Joanne Mills, Megan Rodgers and Angela Kerr for a strong show for the ladies as the juniors watched on inspired by their grit and determination.

With a number of runners qualifying for All Irelands next month, there are a lot of positives to take from this year’s Even Age Group Championships.

U12 girls Rua, Aydah and Emily looking fresh before hitting the muck

Harry McVeigh U12 Boys NI & Ulster Champion

U14 Boys – Senan, Donal, Owen & Connaire Og

U10 Girls, Sophie & Cliona, ready to get moving