First up were the 3rd class boys who were split into 3 races of 40 boys each. Ross Fagan (2nd class), making his debut for the school team, lead the charge with a courageous run and he was rewarded with an excellent 5th place finish. As Ross finished inside the top 10, he put the first points on the board for Scoil Naomh Pádraig. Christian and Adam Behan were soon to follow and both finished in the top 20.
Next up was Race 2 and this was undoubtedly the race of the day. Within 5 seconds of the gun sounding, Scoil Naomh Pádraig vests swarmed to the front of the field with Ife Ojo storming into the lead. Chasing hot on his heels was Dylan O’Reilly and remarkably Eoin Molloy (2nd class) sat in 3rd place. As the race approached the closing stages, Ife and Dylan O’Reilly ran well clear of the chasers and the only question now was who would take gold. Both boys were neck and neck coming around the final bend but a final surge by Ife was enough to take the win. With Dylan taking a comfortable 2nd place, Eoin Molloy showed great stamina to make it a 1-2-3 finish. This was an incredible achievement and the icing was put on the cake when Cian Browne showed great pacing ability to work his way through the main pack to finish in 5th place. The result of this race alone meant that the team banked 36 points (12+10+8+6), a new record score for the school. Other notable performers in the 3rd class category were Seán Byrne, Ryan Sage, Cillian Keane, Dylan Comerford, Ben O'Connor, Scott Murphy, Daryl Byrne, Scott Doyle and Bradley Cox.
As the day progressed, the harriers from the Curragh continued to excel and earned further points through the great efforts of Teighan Ryan Klimuk and captain Mikey Ijoma. The ever improving Kian McGowan ran another solid race to earn a top 20 finish. Rhys Hayden, Cormac Doyle and Tyon Drazi closed the day with fine runs. A final score of 49 points smashed our previous best of 30 points; well done to all on our best performance yet. Onwards and upwards!