After a trip to Enniskillen last year, it was back to Northern Ireland again for the National Juvenile Even Ages and Senior Cross Country Championships which were held on Sunday last. After a large amount of rainfall in recent weeks it was predicted that the course would be quite wet and this prediction came through. St Abbans had a large group in action with teams in the U12 Girls, U12 Boys, U14 Girls, U14 Boys, U18 Boys as well as some competing with County teams and some individuals.

The Girls U12 got the programme underway with 2Km, which was 2 laps of the smaller 1Km loop. As always there was huge numbers in the juvenile races. The St Abbans girls got out strongly with Ava Brophy and Penelope McMahon very close to each other throughout the race. Kate Kelly also got out strongly and managed her way through the muck well. Ava led the St Abbans girl’s home in 36th place with Penelope right behind in 40th. Kate finished further back in 153rd. All three girls should be very proud of their efforts on a tough day of Cross Country running.  
In the Boys U12, Conor Keegan led the St Abbans lads over the same 2 laps as the Girls U12. The club had 6 athletes in action in this one after their excellent medal winning performance at the Leinster’s. On the course each of the lads navigated the tricky corners very well which had already become cut up after just one race. Conor led the team home in 39th place, Rian Bolton was next in 105th, Liam Doyle was close behind in 108th and Sean O Doherty completed the team in 122nd. Reuben Kelly and Sean McDonald completed the St Abbans athletes in the Boys U12, where the team finished in 14th place overall.
The Girls U14 was a race filled with great drama from the outset with St Abbans athletes involved throughout. After winning the Leinster championships some weeks ago, the girls fancied their chances of winning a medal in Derry. They were to the fore of the race throughout with Sinead Fitpatrick and Bailee Bolton towards the front. However, a fall on the first lap for Sinead threatened to de-rail her own and the team’s ambitions. Her determination shone through as she gathered herself, worked her way back through the field and claimed gold by 9 seconds. Bailee Bolton, competing out of her age group was next home in 25th, Ellie Knowles soon followed in 39th, Ella Murray was next in 58th and Aoife Lawlor finished out the team. The girls knew it would be close for the team standings and to everyone’s delight when the scores were calculated they came out victorious by 20 points from Ennis Track in 2nd. The Laois team finished in 5th overall. Sinead and Baillee also collected a silver medal after the Leinster team finished in 2nd place in the provincial competition.
The U14 Boys were next in action over 3km. Conditions were becoming increasingly difficult at this stage. Daire O Sullivan led the boys team home finishing in 68th position. John Conway was next home in 78th, with Noah Bergin close behind in 86th. Cathal English, Callum Kenny and Shane Miller completed the team which finished in 16th place.
Laura Ayers was the club’s sole competitor in the U16 Girls race which was ran over 4000m. Laura had a strong run throughout and came home in 24th place. This was enough to help Leinster to second region overall.     
In the Girls U18 4500m race which was ran with the Junior race Annabelle Lawlor finished in 46th and Aine Carter in 85th. Both girls contributed to the Laois team who finished in 7th County. In the U20 Girls Race Rachel Ayers finished in 31st place.
The Boys U18 were next up where the team of Kalem Buggy, Will Duffy Eoin Mulkerrins and Shane Stynes took on the 4500m course. Kalem and Will were very close together throughout the whole race which saw them finish in 60th and 61st overall. Eoin was next in 96th with Shane in 112th. The club finished in 10th place while the Laois team were just outside the medals in 5th. 

In the Senior Categories, the club had Cheryl Nolan and Stephen Hunter competing. Cheryl positioned herself towards the middle of the lead pack early on. When the move came from Niamh Allen Cheryl found the strong pace difficult and finished up in 19th place overall. Stephen continues to return to fitness and finished in 130th place in what was a brilliant Senior Men’s race with only 4 seconds separating the top 3 athletes.
Overall, the club had a fantastic weekend trip up to Derry with the medals an added bonus on top of the great memories made by juveniles and adults. Many thanks to all of the coaches and parents who helped with the organisation of hotels and lifts. Also a huge thank you to the coaches in the club who continue to prepare these athletes to compete at these championships. The next event is on Saturday next in Stradbally, followed quickly by the Laois Senior hosted by Ballyroan on Sunday.