ST PETER’S BATTLING ON TWO FRONTS
THE athletes of Dromiskin-based St Peter’s AC were in action on two fronts in glorious weather on the last Sunday in June.
Five of the club’s adult athletes made a very strong contribution to the Louth senior teams in the first round of the National League at the Mary Peters Track in Belfast, while five of the younger athletes enjoyed great success in the Blackrock AC Beach Races.
The Louth women’s team were up against six other teams in the Premier Division of the National League, having won promotion from Division One last year, while their male counterparts faced seven other teams in Division One.
St Peter’s provided the only two event winners for the Wee County in Belfast.
Emily Rogers, having recently returned home after spending a year on an athletics scholarship while studying for a master’s in Oklahoma State University, won her specialist event the High Jump with a leap of 1.66m. She backed that up with a fine third place in the Hammer.
Tom McGrane, who was also the manager of both the Louth men’s and women’s teams, had a good win in the Shot Putt with a throw of 9.24m, his best distance since 2016.
Conor Durnin made a welcome return to competition to take second in the Triple Jump with a 12.67m performance. Brendan Rogers, Emily’s father, impressed in the Weight for Distance, flinging the 56 lbs implement 3.95m for third place.
Eilish Brady was making her debut for the Louth team and finished an excellent fourth in the 1500m Walk.
At the Blackrock AC Beach Races Mark Litchfield enjoyed an excellent win in the U14 Boys’ 750m race, a race in which his younger brother Conor also competed. Harry O’Reilly was a fine second in the U12 Boys’ 500m race, while his younger sisters, twins Emily and Hannah, came home fourth and sixth respectively in the U10 Girls’ 500m race.