Cross Country Team March On

The school cross country team have had a very busy, yet successful couple of months of racing over March and April. First up was the Cumann na mBunscol Kildare Cross Country Championships held at Hawkfield Centre of Excellence on March 26th. With over 20 teams and 130 children on the starting line, the 12 members of the school team knew they had a battle on their hands. All 12 harriers stood up to the challenge and ran tremendous races over the testing 1500 metre course that was made even tougher by the blustery conditions. Scoil Phádraig was led home by the sixth class pair of Eoin Byrne in 4th place and Kyle Gallagher in 6th place. Both boys ran amazing races and made huge improvements on their 54th and 58th place finishes from last year. Rounding out the team’s final scorers were Michael Adedeji in 39th position and James Carroll in 41st place. With a final score of 90 points, Scoil Phádraig agonisingly missed out on the bronze medal by a single point. Despite the disappointment of missing out on the medal, the boys should be hugely proud of themselves for finishing as 4th best team in County Kildare. With nine of the twelve runners returning next year, the future looks bright for Scoil Phádraig’s harriers.

In addition to the Cumann na mBunscol Championships, the entire cross country squad competed at the second and third rounds of the South Dublin Cross County League at Clondalkin Park. With additional points from Michael Ijoma, Luke Walsh and Eoin Byrne who all finished in the top ten of their respective races, the team has scored enough points to qualify for the finals. The boys will complete their cross country season on May 14th at Corkagh Park, Clondalkin and will compete against 53 other schools from South Dublin. We wish them all the very best of luck!!!

Scoil Phádraig Cross Country Team - Cumann na mBunscol Kildare Championships