Cross Country
The National Cross Country Championships were held in Gowran Park on 19 th November where our women’s team
had a hugely successful day in defending their title! Heavy rain in the previous days made for very tough running
conditions over the course and the race was set to be a mental battle as much as a physical one. In the women’s
race, a leading group of half a dozen athletes broke away from the field early in the race and the DCH women packed
incredibly well behind. Edel Monaghan led the team home with an impressive 9 th place overall followed in by Avril
Deegan in 10 th . With every point in the team competition counting, Clíona Murphy put in a strong finish to take 14 th
place. Performance of the day from the DCH women came from Orla Duffy who out conservatively and stepped up
when required to found out the scoring team with a 16 th place finish! This performance meant that 1 out of every 4
finishers in the top-16 at this year’s Championships was a DCH athlete, an incredible performance by all which now
sees second DCH team qualified for the European Club Cross Country Championships which will be held in Albufeira
in February. The team was rounded out by Deirdre McDermott (32 nd ) Sorcha MacAllister (38 th ), Sinead Cronin (40 th ),
and Aislinn Moorhouse (57 th ).
The women’s team’s initial celebrations were brief as they got back out onto the course to cheer on our sole competitor in the Men’s senior race, Philip Marron. Philip was met with one of the most competitive start lists in recent years and was surrounded by high-caliber athletes throughout the race. A fantastic
performance over the 9km course saw Philip finish 29 th overall. Meanwhile, Christopher McGloughlin put in a great
performance in the Junior Men’s race.
Our women’s team were also represented at the Dublin Intermediate Cross Country Championships with Cristín
Scollard taking an impressive victory in the race! The rest of the team consisted of Eimear Fitzpatrick (9 th ), Katie
Greene (10 th ), Christelle Vall (41 st ), and Abbey Corr (42 nd ) and a fantastic performance by all athletes saw DCH claim
bronze in the team competition.
To round out the 2023 cross country season, we had two strong teams represented at the National Novice Cross
Country Championships that were held on Navan Racecourse, as well as ample support for our athletes. The women
were first off with Orla Duffy placing herself in the middle of the leading group of about 10 athletes. A really strong
final few hundred meters saw her finish just shy of the medals with a 4 th place in a highly competitive field! Orla was
followed in by equally impressive performances from Cristín Scollard (24 th ), Clare O’Connor (36 th ), Aoife Corr (38 th ),
Katie Greene (59 th ), and Aoife Donaghy (79 th ). Stellar runs by Clare and Aoife who worked together for much of the
race ensured DCH secured silver in the team competition behind a very competitive Leevale team.
The men were next to try to emulate the Women’s team’s success with no fewer 10 DCH athletes taking to the start
line. A conservative start by Órán O’Hare saw him come through the field strongly over the course of the 6km race to
finish 19 th . Oisín McKinley was next across the line in 26 th place followed by Liam Naughton in 27 th . A superb run by
Conor Duncan meant that the DCH team were first to have 4 runners across the finish line as he finished in 29 th . The
men’s team was rewarded for their tenacious effort with bronze on the day in a highly competitive team competition!
Rounding out the team were Alex Crowley (35 th ), Joe Fogarty (46 th ), Conor Murphy (71 st ), Christopher McGloughlin
(88 th ), Ivan Briody (120 th ), Evan McMillan (125 th ), and Paul McGloughlin (150 th ).
Road
Despite all of the action around cross-country fields, a number of our athletes also found the time to excel on the
roads. Our Men’s team prepared for the National Novice Cross Country Championship by undertaking the St Anne’s
Park Parkrun two weeks prior to the race. Oisín McKinley was first across the line on the day clocking 15.41 followed
in behind by Liam Naughton, Conor Murphy, Conor Duncan, Mark Gilligan, and Evan McMillan. The festive season
got underway at the annual Jingle Bells 5k organised in the Phoenix Park by Donore Harriers. Philip Marron set an
impressive performance to finish 3 rd overall in a time of 14.20 while a strong showing by our Women’s saw them place
3 rd team with Sorcha McAllister (12 th ), Claire Rafter (21 st ), Sinead Cronin (25 th ), Aislinn Moorhouse (77 th ), Abbey Corr
(154 th ), and Catherine McManus (301 st ) competing on the day. At the Seeley Cup 10k in Belfast, Clíona Murphy
finished 2 nd while Edel Monaghan finished 4 th with both athletes running sub-35 minutes. Lorna Walsh, Abbey Corr
and Aoife Ní Bhroin competed at the Remembrance Run that was held in the Phoenix Park. In addition to competing
for the club, 9 of our athletes represented their respective universities at the IUAA Road Relay Championships that
were held in Maynooth University. A special mention also to Vlad Evseev who completed his first ever marathon in
2:35.33 in San Sebastien placing 31 st overall in the race!
Track
Jodie McCann got the club’s track season off to a swift start clocking a time of 9.00 over 3000m at the Zatopek:10
meet in Australia. Jodie’s time places her 26 th on the all-time Irish rankings and 4 th best DCH performance of all-time,
behind Úna English, Roisín Smyth, and Deirdre Nagle.
Training & Upcoming Racing
Some athletes who were targeting National Senior and Novice Cross Country Championships will now be taking a
short break from training to recuperate before the final cross country races of the season in the new year and the
start of the indoor season. The club will host its annual Cake Run on December 16 th where club athletes will race over
5km distance with pre-determined handicaps.
Dublin City Harriers 