DUHAC maintain a clean sweep of Cross-Country Colours Titles
Published: February 24th, 2020
DUHAC’s distance athletes dominated the colours Cross Country on Saturday (22nd Feb) against UCD on a windy, exposed course in Phoenix Park. Trinity athletes finished first, second and third in both the men’s and women’s races. The women and men retained two separate trophies, DUHAC athletes now have Track, Road and Cross-country colours titles in both men’s and women’s.
Cliona Murphy continued an extraordinary progression this year by beating off her team-mate Sorcha McAllister into second place. Sorcha, who was aiming for her fourth title in a row in the cross country, had to relinquish her unbeaten record in this race to her training partner. UCD put up a spirited fight and at one stage they were only three points behind the Trinity College Dublin athletes.
Trinity’s Claire Rafter paced her race perfectly and got ahead of two UCD rivals with a superb last lap and a great turn of speed in the last 300m. Trinity Sport scholarship student and Modern Pentathlon athlete, Grace Culhane made a notable TCD cross country debut finishing in fifth place.
DUHAC Ladies Captain, Cliona Murphy commented on the win, “Despite the very windy conditions, our athletes showed the depth of strength we've been building up in the past few weeks and months of training. The excellent performances from both men and women bode well for the National Intervarsity Cross Country Championships taking place in Cork on Saturday, 7th March.”
Trinity College Dublin men’s team made a breakthrough last year winning this event for the first time in years and the team turned out in force again this year. Oisin McKinley ran a strong tempo race from the gun, there was no catching the second-year medical student who has had the biggest improvement in the squad since last year. Gavin Eccles came through in a battle with Ciarán Quinn to finish third and fourth ahead of the first UCD athlete, Rory Burke, in fifth. 800m specialist Conor Mathews had a strong showing in sixth overall.
The Intervarsity Cross-Country Competition is taking place on Saturday, 7th March in Cork. DUHAC’s ladies’ team will be fighting for the top medal position while the men’s team have a chance of making a podium position for the first time at the Intervarsity Cross-Country Competition since 2005.
2020 Colours Cross Country TCD vs UCD
The Phoenix Park 22nd February
Women 4k
| Place | Name | College |
Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Cliona Murphy | TCD | 14min 52secs |
| 2nd | Sorcha McAllister | TCD | 15min 54secs |
| 3rd | Claire Rafter | TCD | 15min 55s |
| 4th | Eimear O’Connor | UCD | 16min 03s |
| 5th | Niamh Stanton | UCD | 16min 10s |
| 6th | Ruth Comerford | UCD | 16min 23s |
| 7th | Deirdre NicAnna | TCD | 16min 45s |
| 8th | Michelle McDonald | UCD | 16min 57s |
| 9th | Grace Culhane | TCD | 17min 03s |
| 10th | Aideen McKavanagh | UCD | 17min 47s |
| 11th | Niamh Brogan | TCD | 17min 48s |
| 12th | Meabh O’Connor | UCD | 17min 52s |
| 13th | Rachel Hosey | TCD | 18min 05s |
| 14th | Alisha Mullen | UCD | 18min 10s |
| 15th | Sadbh Byrne | UCD | 18min 41s |
| 16th | Eimear Perkins | UCD | 19min 14s |
| 17th | Nicole Kenny | TCD | 19min 15s |
| 18th | Alice Fontanelli | TCD | 19min 54s |
TEAM result:
TCD: 1, 2, 3, 7 = 11
UCD: 4, 5, 6, 8 = 23
2020 Colours Cross Country TCD vs UCD
The Phoenix Park 22nd February
Men 6.4k
| Place | Name | College |
Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Oisin McKinley | TCD | 21min 36s |
| 2nd | Alan McGinley | TCD | 22min 01s |
| 3rd | Gavin Eccles | TCD | 22min 16s |
| 4th | Ciaran Quinn | TCD | 22min 41s |
| 5th | Rory Burke | UCD | 23min 32s |
| 6th | Conor Matthews | TCD | 23min 43s |
| 7th | Joseph Fitzpatrick | TCD | 24min 15s |
| 8th | Robert Clampett | TCD | 24min 37s |
| 9th | Eoin Gormley | TCD | 25min 03s |
| 10th | Maxime Gadiot | UCD | 35min 30s |
| 11th | Fields Chung | TCD | 25min 43s |
| 12th | Adam Watt | TCD | 26min 01s |
| 13th | Ruaidhri Elliott | TCD | 26min 21s |
| 14th | Eoin Gormley | UCD | 27min 12s |
| 15th | Mathis Grosso | TCD | 27min 25s |
| 16th | Dace Reilly | TCD | 27min 35s |
| 17th | Aaron Gorman | TCD | 29min 30s |
Team Scores (3 to score)
TCD: 1, 2, 3 = 6
UCD: 5, 10, 14 = 29