Blood, sweat tears and a few blisters

WINSTON Churchill once said to his people, ‘All I can offer you is blood, sweat and tears’.

This year’s Dublin City Marathon went one better when it delivered blood, sweat and tears and a few blisters thrown in for good measure.

Stephen Kelly really stole the show for Drogheda & District AC at last Sunday’s race when he produced a magnificent performance to run the classic 26 miles distance in an eye opening 2:37:57.

Kelly’s run was all the more noteworthy given that he had suffered a bad fall just two days prior to this year’s race.

Running to a steady tempo right from the gun, Kelly got himself into a good working group of quality club runners and one look told you that he was up for the challenge.

Kelly passed through the half way mark in a very fast 1:17 which had some of his many supporters worrying if he’d over cooked it.

They needn’t have worried as Kelly strengthened by many miles of hard running in training poured on the pace with a couple of miles to go.

Once he rounded the last bend and could see the finishing gantry, Kelly gave it his all to cross the line tired but happy as he set a new club record by a full 10 minutes.

The next DDAC finisher was prolific racer Colm Reilly who just missed out on breaking the 3 hour barrier with his run of 3:01:49.

Training partners John Reilly and John Cooper ran in together to finish in 3:10:16.

Fran Egan, a club youth coach who was running as a pacer got his crew of runners round the course in 3:29:38.

Also running well were Gerry Mullins, Roger Tegart, Brian Guilfoyle and Patrick Ward.

DDAC’s first lady finisher was Helga McDonnell who dipped under the four hour mark when running 3:56:49.

Not far behind was Linda Cruise who ran well to finish in 3:58:41, a mere 6 seconds ahead of David Birch.

Others who ran the Marathon included Helen Dillon, Niamh Matthews, Julie Halton and Carmel Keenan.

With over 46 of members running this year’s race, a special mention must go to club coach Eoin McGinn who put the training plan together and was there for the various groups when they needed him.

Last Saturday saw the Leinster Novice Cross Country Championships take place at Proudstown Racecourse, Navan.

These Championships drew a large number of quality athletes from all over Leinster which resulted in some very close finishes.

Erin McHugh was the sole DDAC entrant in the Women’s 4k event which was run over a testing course with some twists and turns to be negotiated on each of the 2 laps.

A good start is so important in these events and right from the gun McHugh positioned herself well as she ran with the leading pack.

Going out on the second lap McHugh was more than holding her own in 10th place in a race that was being run at a ferocious pace.

McHugh dug in when the serious questions were asked and held on to finish 10th overall in 16:05 which was good going given the conditions.

In the Men’s 6k event, run over 3 laps, Mark O’Shea ran a superb race to finish 18th overall in a fast 21:16 and he should go well in next week’s county senior race.

Shane Larkin, who always seems to race well pushed hard all the way to the line and finished 57th in 22:44.

Club Captain Paul Smith made a welcome return to racing when he finished 77th and it’s races like this that will bring him on to the next level.

The Leinster Even Age Championships also took place at the same venue and the run of the day belonged to young Tadgh Donnelly who finished like a train to pick up the bronze medal in the Boy’s U16 4k race.

Donnelly, who’s also a very useful boxer has immense strength and is not found wanting when the pressure comes on.

This fine result by him is all the more remarkable as he’s really only settling into a structured training regime and the sky is the limit for him.

In the same race, Harry Caffrey had a solid run to finish 48th just three places ahead of club mate Sean Toner.

This U16 race really was packed with talented athletes and both young lads acquitted themselves well against the best that Leinster has to offer.

In the Boy’s U14 race, Matthew O’Shea had a good run to finish 52nd despite running a year out of his age group and he’s one to watch for the future.

Sam O’Neill found the going tough in the junior Boy’s 6k race but nevertheless delivered a strong run to finish 17th.

Running in the Boy’s U18 6k event were James Nolan and Cormac Canning, two fine young athletes who are steadily learning their craft.

Both lads worked hard and steadily made their way through the field with Nolan finishing 15th and Canning a little further back in 20th place.

Saoirse Smith and Kate O’Reilly both ran in the girls U16 4k race and gave a good account of themselves finishing mid table against some very tough opposition.

With just a week to go to the Louth Senior Cross Country Championships, many members were sharpening up for the big race by taking part in the weekly Oldbridge Parkrun.

The hilly slopes combined with the soft conditions underfoot make this challenging 5k race ideal preparation for the task ahead.

Pat O’Grady sped round the course in a useful 18:43 when finishing 2nd overall to Mark Hoey who won in a fast 16:56.

The next finisher in 8th place was the rapidly improving Martin Russell who ran the course in 20:32.

Further back, Declan McMahon just held off club mate Peter Mullen for 17th place by a mere five seconds when finishing in 22:53.

Orla O’Connor was DDAC’s first lady finisher and winner of the ladies race in 13th place overall in a time of 21:05 which was a new PB time for her.

Laura Roche was the next lady across the line in 32nd place in 24:47 with Deirdre McFerran 62nd in 28:21.

Also running were Una Sheridan and Dominic Fagan.