ATHLETICS | Leah qualifies for her second All Ireland final

St Gerard’s AC star will compete in U14 and U15 deciders

Leah Mooney (right) of Dundalk St Gerard’s AC proudly showing off her medal after qualifying for the All Ireland Championships after finishing ninth in the U15 girls 3.5k at the Leinster Cross Country Championships in Adamstown

Day two of the Leinster Cross Country Championships took place on a very testing course in muddy conditions on a fine day at Adamstown, Co Wexford on Sunday.

The St Gerard’s AC athletes who made the long journey to the south east for the odd age events were Grainne Moran, Abaigh Moonan, Enya Silkena and Doireann Conlon in the U11 girls 1500m and Leah Mooney in the U15 girls 3500m.

The quintet of runners have been in good form recently and were well prepared for the big fields of athletes and tough competition.

First into action were the U11s in a field of over 150 athletes. That great all rounder Enya lead the team home with a fine run in 15th, followed home by the ever consistent Grainne in 27th.

Doireann, who had moved up a year, was just one place behind after a superb performance with Abaigh Moonan running another fine race a few places back.

The team just missed out on the podium with a fine fourth place finish but Enya, Grainne and Doireann were in the medals as part of the bronze medal winning Louth team which was a well deserved reward for their efforts.

In the U15 girls race, Leah moved up a year having run brilliantly in her own age group two weeks previously to medal and gain All Ireland qualification.

Running another confident race, she relished the test of stamina against the older girls, showing she is a force to be reckoned with and took another medal finish in ninth to qualify for a second All Ireland final in the older age group.

The girls all did brilliantly, proving their worth against the best athletes in the province and can rightly be very proud of their performances.

Before you go…

If you found this article helpful, click the 👏 button below or share the article on Facebook so your friends can benefit from it too.

One clap, two clap, three clap, forty?

By clapping more or less, you can signal to us which stories really stand out.