St. Coca's Athletic Club
Kilcock, Co. Kildare
Archives 2019 October to December
Lock up the year 2019 - 31st December 2019
A suitable finish to a great year of running for the club today with a large group of adult members completing the Lock up the Year Half Marathon (or thereabouts) this morning along the Royal Canal from Ferran's Lock to Leixlip while our juvenile members were in a training session at the National Indoor Arena in Abbotstown in preparation for the Kildare Indoor Championships on Sunday 5th January. Happy New Year everybody.
St Stephen's Day Santa Run in aid of St Brigid's SVP Conference, Kilcock - 26th December 2019
Thanks to all who joined us this morning for the annual Santa Run at the track. This year, a total of €422.80 in funds were raised in aid of St Brigid's SVP Conference, Kilcock. Well done everybody.
National Cross Country Championships - Day 2 (Juvenile Uneven Ages & Novice)
Cow Park, Dunboyne, Co. Meath - 15th December 2019
By Carmel Kelly
The last cross country event of the year took place today in nearby Dunboyne. The Irish Life uneven ages all Ireland. The club had 26 athletes qualified to run but unfortunately a few of them were unlucky not to make it due to illness. However there were some fantastic performances all round and even though no medals were won the athletes ran up to and beyond expectations with much to take from the season.
Luke McKeon tasted his first all ireland representing Kildare County in boys U11. Roisin Beggan also representing the county in girls U13. Both running well. The U13 boys team improved on their Leinster run to finish 7th overall (2nd Leinster team). Feilim Dikcius, Brian Caffrey, Daniel Geraghty and Harry Cahill packed well finishing between 40th and 70th. Aoife McNerney led the girls u15 to 11th place with a 21st place finish. The other girls Niamh McDonald, Sadhbh Buckley and Ruby Olivier all running well too. An amazing last 1500m for Oisin Farrell brought him from mid 40's to 25th and he led the team to 4th place. Eoin Richards, Thomas Richards and Tadhg McCauley combining well. Kirsten Monaghan. Zofia Terzyk and Shane McNerney were all running as individuals in the u19 races. All running well but out of the medals.
The end of a long and most successful cross country season. Well done to everyone and to all the coaches who have brought the athletes to this level.
Run with Ado funds donated to St Francis Hospice in Blanchardstown - 15th December 2019
By Martin Baten
Many thanks again to all those who contributed and helped out with the Run with Ado, especially the Mooney family. I know it was a tough run for many of you but this is what it's all about - honouring our good friend Adrienne and all those who are no longer with us. We finally handed over the cheque to St Francis Hospice in Blanchardstown. Thanks again to everyone.
26th SPAR European Cross Country Championships - Lisbon, Portugal - 8th December 2019
By Dermot Kelly
St Coca's Athlete Aoife O'Cuill was part of a 40 strong Irish Team to participate in the European Cross Country Championships in Lisbon. Aoife put in a fantastic run as part of the U20 squad and was the 2nd team mate home for the Irish behind Jodie McCann with the U20 squad taking 11th place.
Overall, Ireland had their most successful European Cross Country Championships winning individual bronze in the U20 men and in the U23 women and two silver team medals won by the U23 women squad and by the senior women's team.
Donore Harriers Jingle Bells 5K - Phoenix Park, Dublin - 7th December 2019
Congrats to all of the St Coca’s contingent, led by David Walsh, who took part in the Jingle Bells 5K in the Phoenix Park last Saturday organised by Donore Harriers. Nice way to close off an eventful year.
Kildare Cross Country Championships Day 3, Relays and Seniors - Curragh - 1st December 2019
By Carmel Kelly
A damp start to the day on the Curragh this morning for the last Kildare fixture of the year. A new event for juveniles inter club mixed relays drew big numbers. St Cocas fielded two u10 teams, three u12 and two u14 teams coming out on top in the u14 with a storming run by Daniel Geraghty, Aoishe Gormley, Sadhbh Buckley and Brian Caffrey. U10 Luke McKeon, Lily Ryan, Dearbhla Hearns, Colm Cahill, Hazel Geraghty, Kevin Kiely, Sean Hayes, Emily Graham and Sara Chrachol. U12 Roisin Beggan, Fionn Killeen, Harry Cahill, Erin Murray, Daithi Killeen, Cormac Buckley, Rebecca Treacy, Paulina Chrachol, Cormac Murray, Niamh Richards, Emily Geraghty and Gearoid McCauley. U14 Claire Kelly, Cian Durkan, Emily Byrne and Lauren Graham.
Immediately after the relays the senior women took to their marks in the 4K race. A 3rd place finish by Áine Burke led the team to silver medals. Kirsten Monaghan, Lynda Gormley, Niamh Cleary and Olivia Bermingham making up the team.
The men’s race 17 year old Eoin Richards became one of the youngest senior champions ever (Paul Robinson also winning at that age) when he had an impressive win in the senior 10k race. Having made his debut on the Irish Mountain running team this year the months of hill training along with his regular endurance work gave him the edge on the day. Behind Eoin the team were all running well and won deserved bronze team medals on the day. Shane McNerney, Niall O’Reilly, Leeroy Graham, Patrick Conlon and Henry Cahill members of the team.
Great running conditions on the Curragh today a number of other club runners took the opportunity to get some good training in for the upcoming All Ireland in Dunboyne and Kildare indoors in Athlone.
National Senior, Junior & Juvenile Even Ages Cross Country Championships - Day 1
National Sports Campus, Abbotstown - 24th November 2019
Huge congratulations to everyone who ran today. Tough underfoot conditions. Another medal winning performance by Conor Murphy who won silver in the u14 3,000M. Eoin Richards 7th in u18 6,000M. Aoife O'Cuill 5th junior 4,000M. Special well done to our two youngest runners. Katy Hayes 30th and Juliet Olivier 38th U12 2,000M. Remember all running today qualified from Leinster so a great achievement. Well done all.
Run in the Dark - Dublin - 13th November 2019
Congratulations to all our St. Cocas members that ran Run In The Dark in very wet and cold conditions tonight. We are so proud of you all, particularly those who did their first 5k or 10K
Leinster Cross Country Championships - Day 3 - Uneven Ages and Seniors - Ferbane Co. Offaly, 9th November 2019
The final Leinster cross country of the year took place today in Ferbane Co Offaly. A traditional farmers field in every sense of the word, the cows having left their calling card before they were hushed to a nearby field😝. Undaunted the St Cocas athletes were made of strong stuff and created a bit of club history with 4 teams qualifying for the all Ireland on 15th December in nearby Dunboyne.
From the first race girls u11 to the boys u19 the athlete put in exceptional performances. Juliet Olivier finished 5th in a field of almost 150 runners in the girls u11 to make the Leinster team. Aisling Nolan 59th, Aoibhin Beggan 86th, Aine McCauley and Maebh McNerney all running well.
Luke McKeon was running u11 (up and age) finishing 41st, Daithi Killeen 73rd and Cormac Buckely 76th , 134 finishers. The county team came 4th and qualified for the all Ireland with Luke making the team.
The u13 girls race was another with huge numbers with 131 finishers. Roisin Beggan has a great run to finish 68th and qualify on the Kildare team. Katy Hayes 84th, Lauren Greham, Rebecca Treacy and Saoirse O'Toole also running well.
The boys u13 had medalled last year and again were in the hunt for medals. Feilim Dikcius 20th, Brian Caffrey 24th, Daniel Geraghty 40th, Fionn Killeen 46th, Harry Cahill 47th and Robert Murphy 48th. A great team display rewarded with bronze medals and a place in the all Ireland.
A very strong set of girls lined up in the u15 and they won LEINSTER CLUB GOLD. Led by Aoife McNerney 9th, Maedhbh Caffrey 12th, Niamh McDonald 15th, Sadhbh Buckely 16th, Ruby Olivier 39th and Kate Carroll 92nd the team title was theirs. They also helped Kildare county to silver medals.
The u15 boys were in a stiff race and Conor Murphy 10th qualified on the Leinster team. Conan Lennon, Joseph Richards, Tadhg Killeen, Jim Harrigan and Conor McNerney all running well but out of the medals.
Eoin Richards had one of his finest races in the boys u17 to claim a bronze medal and lead the team to bronze medals and a place in the all Ireland. Oisin Farrell 13th, Thomas Richards 19th and Tadgh McCauley 46th.
Aoife O'Cuill was always in control of the girls u19 race leading for most. She pulled away in the last 500m to take the LEINSTER GOLD. Kirsten Monaghan 14th and Aine Caffrey 20th the girls won club silver, county gold and qualified to the all Ireland.
In the last juvenile race Shane McNerney was having a great run and just missed out on a qualification to all Ireland in 15th place. Adam Cullen also had a solid run in this age group.
The standard at Leinster is strong and today St Cocas mixed it with the best in the province. Next stage is all Ireland and the first fixture in Sunday 24th November in Abbotstown for the u12/14/16/18 junior and senior. Congratulation to everyone athletes, parents and coaches.
KBC Dublin Marathon - 27th October 2019
Congratulations to all club members who completed the KBC Dublin Marathon today, it is a fantastic achievement for you, many undertaking a marathon for the first time. Much thanks to all the club supporters, family and friends for shouting out along the route. St Coca's ladies team consisting of Laura Kelly with an amazing time of 3:03:38 along with Niamh Cleary and Fiona King took 13th place overall. Complete result times are at the end of the photo set.
Leinster Cross Country Championships Day 2 (Evens, Junior, Novice), Gowran, Co. Kilkenny
26th October 2019
The first round of the Leinster Cross country took place today in Gowran Co. Kilkenny. Underfoot conditions were testing after the heavy rain yesterday but the course dried out as the day went on with St Cocas athletes having some super performances.
Race of the day from the club perspective was the u14 boys race where Conor Murphy ran the race of his life to take his first provincial title, in fact a first title for St Cocas in well over a decade. He raced to victory never troubled once he took the lead in the 2nd half of the 3k race. His team also running well took the silver club medals. Feilim Dikcius 27, Brian Caffrey 36, Joseph Richards 45, Daniel Geraghty and Conor McNerney the lads have all qualified to the all Ireland in 4 weeks time.
In the boys and girls u12 the teams all ran well especially the u12 girls. The club team came 7th with Katy Hayes 37 and Juliet Olivier making the county team who won bronze medals and also qualify for all Ireland's. Roisin Beggan, Eirn Murray, Aisling Nolan, Aoibhin Beggan, Maeve McNerney all running well. Best of the boys u12 was Harry Cahill 32. Fionn Killeen, Robert Murphy, Gearoid McCauley, Daithi Killeen and Cormac Murray were all on this team.
A fantastic top 10 finish for Sadhbh Buckely in the girls u14 where she finished 7th. Maedhbh Caffrey close behind in 17th. Great team running from the girls behind, Aoishe Gormley, Aoife Carroll, Lucy Martin, Meadhbh Cullen and Georgia Nolan the team came 6th. The Kildare county team were 4th with Sadhbh, Meadhbh and Aoishe qualifying for the all Ireland.
Great finishes by the 3 girls running u16 with Aoife McNerney putting in a very strong performance to finish 7th. Just outside the top 20 Ruby Olivier 23 and Cliona O'Toole 24 the girls were just missing the vital 4th scorer and would surely have medalled. Better news for the county. With Naas ac girls winning the team title the county team also won Gold medals so all three of ours qualify for the all Ireland.
Thomas Richards also had a strong run finishing 11th in boys u16. Qualifying to all Ireland he will also represent Leinster. The team came 9th, Conan Lennon 44, Tadgh Killeen, Jim Harrigan and Tadgh McCauley all running strongly.
Last races saw the juniors and u18 girls and boys. Aine Burke and Kirsten Monaghan were the best of the girls. Aine Caffrey and Zofia Terzyk combining to win team bronze.
Oisin Farrell was our sole runner in the u18 race finishing 14th. To end the day Shane McNerney had a strong run in the Novice men finishing in the top half.
Well done to all our runners today. Great progress for many from last year. Looking forward to the next day and best of luck to those who have qualified for the all Ireland.
Kildare Cross Country Championships Day 2 (Uneven ages, Intermediates)
Larchill Arcadian Gardens, Kilcock - 20th October 2019
Another busy busy day out in Larchill today for the 2nd round of the Kildare cross country. It was the uneven age groups and Intermediates out today. Many stepping up an age to assist teams.
U9 girls and boys were running cross country for the first time and all ran great. Alannah McDonald the top finisher in the girls race finishing 4th. Cliodhna Buckely, Caoimhe McNerney, Grace Rogers, Lily Ryan, Aoife Killeen, Matthew Murphy, Matthew Murray, Patrick Nolan, Eoghan McNerney, Stephen Geraghty and Sean Hayes all putting in strong performances.
Juliet Oliver had another good run to take 4th place in u11 girls. Emily Connolly 13th, Aisling Nolan 14th, Aoibhin Beggan 15th, Aine McCauley 17th, Maeve McNerney 20th, Emily Geraghty, Sarah Shelly, Dearbhla Nolan and Caoimhe Flood along with Juliet won team silver medals.
The boys u11 all ran well with Luke McKeon again finishing top 10 in 8th, Cormac Buckley not far behind in 12th. The team along with Daithi Killeen, Zac Diver and Colm Cahill were just outside the medals in 4th place.
Most of the girls u13 had moved up an age group and were also unlucky finishing 4th place by just one point. Erin Murray 16th, Roisin Beggan 17th, Saoirse O'Toole 22nd, Rebecca Treacy 23rd and Katy Hayes.
Feilim Dikcius was a very impressive winner in the boys u13. Brian Caffrey had a super run to finish 2nd, Daniel Geraghty not far behind in 4th. With great support Fionn Killeen 8th, Robert Murphy 10th, Finn Dowling 13th and Charlie Reilly 18th, the team title was never in doubt.
The u15 age groups showed the strength of the club with individual and team gold and silver in both age groups. Aoife McNerney another impressive winner, Sadhbh Buckley 2nd, Niamh McDonald 3rd, Meadhbh Caffrey 4th, Ruby Olivier 7th, Aoishe Gormley 9th, Aoife Carroll 11th, Kate Carroll 14th, Meadhbh Cullen and Olivia Chrachol. The girls won gold and silver.
Similarly in the boys u15 Conor Murphy was a comfortable winner, Conan Lennon 3rd, Jim Harrigan 4th, Joseph Richards 5th, Tadgh Killeen 6th and Conor McNerney 8th, gold and silver team winners.
Orla Reidy 4th and Cliona O'Toole 5th in girls u17 and another impressive gun to tape win for Eoin Richards in the boys u17. Oisin Farrell 2nd and Tadgh McCauley 7th this team also won gold.
The girls u19 ran with the Intermediate women. The u19's winning gold and inter women silver. Kirsten Monaghan taking the u19 individual title, Maud O'Shea and Zofia Terzyk running well on the team. Marianne Maguire took an individual bronze in the inter and was followed home by Leonie Foran, Denise Fox, Jacqueline Roland and Anto Bergin. This was a first cross country race for many of these ladies winning County silver medals.
The last race of the day the u19 men and intermediate. Shane McNerney won the u19. Niall O'Reilly, David Walsh, Patrick Conlon, Martin Baten and Clive Moran all running intermediate and winning silver medals.
Great running by everyone over the last two weekends. Onwards to the Leinster even ages next weekend in Gowran Co Kilkenny.
The club would like to thank all who made the last two weeks possible. With the rain and unpredictable weather hosting the event proved a challenge. Thanks to all the parents who helped with putting up the course, car parking and taking down the course. A huge thanks to Michael and his family in Larchill Gardens for the use of this wonderful venue.
Kildare Cross Country Championships Day 1 (Even ages, Novice, Masters)
Larchill Arcadian Gardens, Kilcock - 13th October 2019
Just coming back down to earth after an extremely busy day for the club in Larchill. Firstly well done to everyone from the club for their support. From getting the course ready to parking cars to running the races and cheering everyone on the day was great.
It was round one of the Kildare championships.
74 athletes represented the club today. 61 juveniles and 13 adult members.
4 individual titles, 5 team titles including an impressive Novice men's title.
After the heavy rain over the past few weeks the course held up remarkably well. Almost 60 athletes toed the line for the first race girls u10. While our girls didn't take any medals they all ran great with smiles on their face.
Caoimhe Flood was top finisher in 12th place. Alannah McDonald, Dearbhla Hearns, Dearbhla Nolan, Hazel Geraghty, Caoimhe McNerney, Cliodhna Buckely and Emily Cahill were all members of this team.
Luke McKeon ran a great race coming through the field to take an individual silver. His team mates all running well behind him winning silver team medals. Rian McNickle 10th, Adam Byrne 15th, Colm Cahill and Matthew Murphy on this team.
Juliet Olivier and Katy Hayes showed great bravery in the girls u12 running in the lead group from the start. Juliet faded towards the end but Katy finished well in 6th. Eirn Murray 14th, Roisin Beggan 16th and Aisling Nolan 21st pulled the team into silver medal position. Not far behind were Rebecca Treacy, Aoibhin Beggan, Maeve McNerney, Emily Geraghty and Tara McEnroe.
The boys u12 packed well as a team winning team bronze. Only 5 points off the winners. Harry Cahill 6th, Fionn Killeen 8th, Hugh Dowling 9th, Gearoid McCauley 11th, Robert Murphy 13th, Cormac Buckely 19th, Daithi Killeen, Ryan Dalton and Cormac Murray.
The first individual gold of the day for Sadhbh Buckely in the girls u14. She ran a very strong race pulling away from the field over the last lap. Maedhbh Caffrey 5th, Saoirse O'Toole, Maedhbh Cullen, Georgia Nolan, Rionnach Lennon and Claire Kelly combining for club silver.
Another top notch run by Conor Murphy winning the gold medal and leading the team to gold. Feilim Dikcius 6th, Brian Caffrey 8th, Joseph Richards 9th, Conor McNerney 10th, Daniel Geraghty 11th and Cillian McCauley 14th. This team should go well at Leinster and beyond.
Aoife McNerney kept the winning going with an impressive run in the u16. Niamh McDonald 2nd, Ruby Olivier 5th and Cliona O'Toole 7th. Another team gold.
Not to be outdone the boys u16 also claimed gold with another very impressive win by Thomas Richards. All top 5 places from St Cocas. Jim Harrigan 2nd, Tadgh McCauley 3rd, Conan Lennon 4th and Tadgh Killeen 5th.
The numbers in the u18 girls and boys were small but Kirsten Monaghan came 2nd and led the team to gold. Aine Caffrey, Zofia Terzyk and Maud O'Shea members of the team. Oisin Farrell completed the juvenile programme winning gold in the u18 with Adam Cullen 4th.
The novice and masters races were also on the programme for today.
A great result for the men winning the county novice title. Shane McNerney led the team with Tim Richards, Niall O Reilly and Gary Cahill scoring. Other members of the team were Ruairi Nolan, Martin Baten, Larry Kelly, Henry Cahill, Noel Beggan and David Walsh.
No results for masters men yet.
The women's masters won silver medals. Lynda Gormley, Niamh Cleary and Marianne Maguire all finishing in the top 8.
Run with Ado - Kilcock - 5th October 2019
Many thanks to all those who helped out with the Run with Ado today, and a big well done to all the runners who ran such a tough course. You're well set for the marathon now. Thank you to Donadea Wheelers for their marshall support along the route.
A special mention to the Mooney family who were there from start to finish, your presence made the event a special one. An amount of €2466.80 was raised for St Francis Hospice in Blanch, this includes the auctioning of a signed Dublin football shirt, with a signed rugby shirt auction still to be added to the proceeds. Hopefully Ireland make it out of the group 😂! Go on Ireland 🇨🇮
