National League Finals

I had the kids in tow today as the better half way away for the weekend which meant I had to rely on some of the guys from the club to look after them whilst I did the race. I can report they did a good job (thanks guys)!

So after the long drive to Tullamore, I was running a bit late, plus the races were running early which meant I only had time for a couple of kms warm-up. Then straight on the track for a few strides and then lining up at the start. Not a big field (14 in the race), and whilst I was running division 1, we also had the premier league guys to keep things interesting. Some quality in the field, including Mark Kenneally (national 10km champ - sub 29 minutes), Joe Sweeney (Irish rep), Sean Connolly (ran 2:16 on marathon debut recently and a 4 minute miler). Sean was the stand-out guy in division 1 so to be honest it was a race for second place...

The gun sounded and there division 1 runners hit the front of which I was part and I settled into 3rd place. I wasn't running with a watch but the pace seemed very slow. They were calling out lap times at the 200m mark and the first lap was a 73. Nothing flash. It became a tactical race and that's how it remained for the next 3 or 4 laps. Nobody prepared to up the pace so it was going to get interesting at some point.

I don't recall all the detail but probably after 2km, one of the premier guys hit the front to get things moving. Lap times had been in the 73 to 76 second range and I was feeling fine. A few more guys hit the front and I was left chasing them at a slightly quicker pace. After a couple of laps of this the main group had reformed and it was going to be a 2km shoot-out.

Sure enough, the lead guys suddenly dropped in a 64 second lap and I was left alone in 5th place (2nd in division 1 behind Sean). I had upped the pace to around 72 second laps but made no attempt to go with them. The remaining laps I was left running by myself and whilst I was out of touch on the leaders, I had opened up a decent gap on the chasers. After kicking down the last lap I crossed the line in a time of 15:26.61. A pleasing time given the slow start to the race.

I finished 2nd in division 1 (5th overall) and some decent points to put towards the Galway City Harriers tally for the day. As it turns out we finished 2nd overall on the day and will now be promoted to the premier league next year. Well done to all the other sprinters, throwers and jumpers on the day who represented the club plus thanks to Matt for organising.

I finished up with a couple of kms warm-down and a quick shower. Then back in the car with the kids for the long drive back to Galway. All up 9kms for the day.

The most pleasing thing is that the time (15:27 rounded) felt completely comfortable. It was a warm day (19 degrees) and a few people were struggling but I felt good. It gives me heart that the sub 15 is still within reach!

Here are the overall team standings for the day:

Division 1 Men
1. Tallaght 114
2. Galway 98
3. Clare 92
4. Sligo 88
5. An Riocht 87
6. Olympic 78
7. Kildare 75
8. Tipperary 76

Here are the 5000m results:

5000 m - Men Division One Final

1 27 Connolly, Sean Tallaght A.C. 15.16.51
2 51 Bidwell, Matt Galway City Harriers A.C. 15.26.61
3 52 Kelly, David Sligo A.C. 15.56.72
4 25 Murphy, Brian Clare County 16.03.46
5 28 O'Callaghan, Donal Riocht A.C. 16.12.89
6 54 Roche, Patrick Kildare County 16.81.66

5000 m - Men Premier Division

1 1 Kenneally, Mark Clonliffe Harriers A.C. 15.02.88
2 7 Sweeney, Joseph Dundrum South Dublin A.C. 15.11.43
3 5 Dooney. Kevin Raheny Shamrock A.C. 15.19.16
4 4 Brown, Robin North Down A.C. 15.31.85
5 8 Connick, Andrew Ferrybank A.C. 15.35.61
6 3 Maunsell, Thomas Leevale A.C. 15.35.63
7 2 Murphy, Ed Kerry Athletics 15.44.43
8 6 Nolan, James St. Abbans A.C. 17.49.40