Curtain comes down on successful cross country season.
The final cross counter race of the year was held in Gowran Co Kilkenny. Almost 2000 athletes from all corners converged on Gowran for races for under 11 to 19. All the athletes had to qualify through their provincial championships so we were up against the cream of Irish athletics.West Waterford had twenty athletes qualified to compete most of who were either running in their first All Ireland or running out of their age group so we knew that any medals would be hard to come by. For a time it looked as this might be the first All Ireland in over twenty years that we would return from empty handed but in the boys under 15 David Gaffney saved the day. Finishing 23rd David was a scoring member of the Munster team that finished second and so a silver medal came home to Dungarvan.
It was a wonderful days cross country running in ideal weather conditions on a well laid out but challenging course.
We had three under 11 girls competing on the Waterford team and they finished Ava Kiely 108th, Nicole Cullinane 113th and Natalie Barry 151st.
Best of the under 13’s was Isabelle Gaffney in 42nd place with Ciara Flavin 139th and Sarah Hallissey 158th.
Eoin Prendergast was our only representative in the under 13 race and he finished 33rd.
In the girls under 15 we had a full team competing. Sarah Gaffney was first home in 34th place Aoife O’Donovan and Fia de Paor had a sprint to the line with Aoife inching ahead in 44th with Fia in 45th. Next came Ami Flavin in 96th with Lauren Cliffe 118th and Claudia O’Halloran 138th.
In the boys under 15 David Gaffney was our best finisher in 23rd place and a much better run from Naoise Mac Murchadha saw him finish 67th with Conor Keane 138th.
Barry Blackwell finished his cross country season with a 44th place finish in the boys under 19
Well done to all who travelled to Gowran to compete and to support our young athletes.
Well done to one of our newest coaches Kelly Fitzgerald who finished 73rd in the novice women’s race
All in the juvenile club wish the very best of luck to Mícheál Power who competes in the under 23 race at the Spar European Championships in Dublin next Sunday.
