Mick Clohisey (Raheny Shamrock) and Maria McCambridge (DSD) dominated the GloHealth Inter Clubs Cross Country Championships in Kilbroney Park, Co. Down yesterday.

There was a number of good performances despite the event being poorly attended. Clonliffe Harriers’ Hope Saunders won the junior women’s 4,000m race in style to get the main racing programme underway. Clodagh O’Reilly (Annalee) and Sarah Fitzpatrick (DSD) made up the podium in second and third respectively with DSD winning the team title.

Kevin Mulcaire defended his junior men’s title with ease over 6,000m and had the added satisfaction of leading Ennis Track to their first ever team title. Patrick MacGabhann (DSD) was second with Sean Collins (Ennis Track) rounding out the top three individuals.

Maria McCambridge was a facile winner of the senior women’s 8,000m race and the 39-year-old had plenty to spare ahead of her DSD teammates Sarah Mulligan and Michelle McGee who were second and third. They easily won the team title.

Mick Clohisey returned from a warm weather training camp in Portugal on Saturday and had little difficulty in despatching the opposition over 12,000m. Clonliffe Harriers’ Sergiu Ciobanu was second and led his club to the team title with Brendan O’Neill (DSD) in third.

It was a disappointing day for cross country with so little entrants and minimal spectators on what was an excellent course for running and spectating. Some radical changes are needed.

Clohisey in shape

Mick Clohisey showed he has returned fit and well following his warm weather training camp in Portugal. He said his legs were a little heavy due to marathon training but the Raheny man has moved on to a new level in the past few months.

McCambridge makes brown bread of the women

Image via Brendan Ahearne

Maria McCambridge wasted little time in dispensing with the senior women’s field and the 39-year-old shows little sign of slowing up just yet. She had ample time to put butter and jam on a slice of McCambridge’s brown bread. There was little the field could do.

Three clubs keep championship alive

CLonliffe Harriers, Dundrum South Dublin and Raheny Shamrock continue to keep this championship going and as a result our long distance running tradition alive. The volunteer coaches and mentors such as Joe Cooper, Noel Guiden, Eddie McDonagh, Donal Hennigan, Dick and Pat Hooper continue to hold the fort.

Saunders and Mulcaire set up double

Hope Saunders and Kevin Mulcaire were convincing winners of the junior women’s and junior men’s races and they will be looking to make it two in-a-row at the All Ireland Schools Championships in Clongowes Wood College on Saturday.

Ennis Track win junior men’s title

It was good to see Ennis Track garner their first junior men’s title under the tutelage of coach Pat Hogan. The super squad consisted of Kevin Mulcaire (1st), Sean Collins (3rd), Jamie Roche (7th), Liam Naughton (12th), Patrick Chesser (15th), Patrick O’Rourke (17th), Aaron Slattery (18th) and Stephen Maher (19th).

The winning Ennis Track members

DSD’s golden oldies enjoy commemorative run

Noel Berkeley, Robin Bryson, Gerry McGrath, Aengus Ó Cléirigh, Enda Mannion and more got out on to the picturesque Kilbroney Park course to commemorate their victory in 1990 and lived to tell the tale. It added a nice, and much needed, touch to the day.

DSD’s 1990 winning team got out to commemorate their victory. Image via Kieran Carlin

The DSD National XC Champions from 1990! Enjoying our commemorative run 25 years

Noel Berkeley who finished second individually in 1990 and was an Olympian in 1992 also took to twitter to comment about the demise of the race and the importance of cross country running

@teresa_mcdaid alot of athletes failing to realise that XC is the backbone of distance running. @irishathletics @Jumping_The_Gun

— The Running Guru (@NoelBerkeley) March 1, 2015

Big changes needed

It will take more than simply changing the Inter Counties and the Inter Clubs around to solve the cross country conundrum. If cross country is indeed the bread and butter of distance running, then there will have to be an openness to serious change and a restructuring of the fixtures and season.

Championship by numbers

144 finishers in total

18 junior women

26 junior men

24 senior women

76 senior men

18 in the junior women’s

European junior representatives

Of the European Junior Cross team Hope Saunders, Clodagh O’Reilly, Sarah Fitzpatrick and Isabel Carron competed but only Kevin Mulcaire of the junior men was in action.

Results

Junior women’s results here

Junior men’s results here

Senior women results here

Senior men results