Eight Dunboyne AC teams made their way to the fabulous new National Indoor Arena in Abbotstown on Saturday 25th February for the Leinster Juvenile Relay Championships .  For once, the cold, wind and rain was not a factor as the teams got to warm up in a pleasant balmy temperature inside this new top class facility.  As you would expect at this level of competition the standard was extremely high.

*Under 12 Girls (4 x 100m) : Kate Gormley, Elizabeth Comerford, Lilly O’Malley, Amy O’Reilly and Alice Griffin

The girls ran their hearts out in a very competitive heat and were unlucky not to progress to the final.  This was the girls’ first introduction to relay racing at Leinster level and all the girls were running on the indoor track for the first time. Hopes are high that this group will develop nicely into very fine athletes for the club.

*Under 12 Boys (4 x 100m): Mathieu Kieffer, Dylan Ryan, Ciaran McCormack, Jack Arthurs and Harry Doherty

The boys, no strangers to podiums, ran in an extremely fast heat which saw them progress into the final where they ran very well to a creditable 5th place overall.  They will be targeting a medal come the outdoor event later this season, no doubt.

*Under 13 Girls (4 x 100m): Aideen Reilly, Aleah Kelly, Emma Timmins and Sinead Magee

This talented group ran well in their heat to make the final.  Coaches were confident they could improve,  and improve they did.  They were in the mix for a bronze medal all the way down the straight until just missing out, finishing 4th.  A really good performance from a very fast and talented quartet who we hope will continue to develop in the future.

*Under 13 Boys (4 x 100m): Adam Vaughan, Sean Crehan, John Brown, Evan Farrell, Dillon Farrell

Disaster struck for the boys as the baton hit the track during the heat.  To their credit they stuck at it and ran to the line.  A disappointing way for the boys to go out of the heat but it will be a good learning experience in what was their first taste of the Leinster Indoor Relay Championships.

*Under 14 Girls  (4 x 200m)

Green Team : Rachel Norman, Dervla MacNicholas, Loreana Harrison and Lucy Eglington

The girls must consider themselves unlucky to be drawn in a tough heat.  Despite finishing second the girls had to wait for the clock as only heat winners were guaranteed a final spot.  Unfortunately, despite a very good run by the quartet, the time was just outside the qualification times.  They will be back again targeting a medal in the outdoor version which suits these girls much more.

*Red Team: Kayla Ryan, Ruby McFeat, Holly Conlon and Kate Griffin

These girls ran extremely well in a very touch heat.  The handovers were efficient and each girl ran very well.  A great learning experience for these girls who continue to develop year on year.

*Under 16 Girls (4 x 200m)

Green Team: Vicky Knox, Doireann Ni Flaharta, Kate Reilly and Nicole Frazer

This team ran extremely well to make it the 3rd Dunboyne team into a final on the day.  In the final itself great work from all the girls got them in the mix for a medal and they battled hard all the way to the line to finish a very creditable 4th overall.  This was a very good performance from the girls who again are a talented group and no strangers to silverware.

*Red Team: Katie Green, Abigail Knox, Anna Griffin and Sarah Magee

Each of the girls battled hard in the search for a qualification place but unfortunately they were out of luck this time.  With some of the team more accustomed to longer distances, they showed tremendous grit and determination to run as well as they did here today.  Again this team will continue to develop into fine Dunboyne AC athletes into the future.

While we were out of luck as regards medals today, three of our eight teams made finals and all teams did the club proud.  Our athletes ran their hearts out and got the chance to experience this state of the art indoor arena.  A big thanks to all the parents and club mates who came out to support our teams today.  The support was great and it was fantastic to hear the vocal encouragement down the back straight.

Check out the photos on the club’s Flickr account here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/151447904@N02/albums/72157677322247523/with/32998030711/