NI and Ulster Uneven Age Group and Novice Cross Country Championships
As November settles in and the cross country season gathers pace, it was an early start and a long road west for the young athletes of North Belfast Harriers. At 7.30 on Sunday morning a full bus pulled away from club headquarters with 49 on board, all ready for a great day’s racing at the NI and Ulster Uneven Age Group and Novice Cross Country Championships at the Finn Valley Centre in Stranorlar, Co. Donegal. A misty morning awaited our junior stags on arrival, but it soon lifted to leave ideal conditions for running. There was a great buzz around the course all day, and from the under 11s right through to the under 17s our runners rose to the occasion, performing at their very best against the strongest clubs in the province.
Special mention goes to the Harriers who finished in the top ten of their races. Thomas Coy took a superb second place in the Boys U17, where Ruarcc Sheridan was fifth and Joseph Eager tenth. Leila Jones was fourth and Cassie Curran ninth in the Girls U17, Cormac Carabine fifth in the Boys U15, Isaac Mooney sixth in the Boys U13 and Maia McAllister tenth in the Girls U13.
Team honours
There was team success to celebrate too, with three Harriers teams finishing in the top three. The Boys U17 team of Thomas Coy, Ruarcc Sheridan, Joseph Eager and Lucas Mooney took first place with 32 points, well clear of North Down AC on 73. The Girls U17 team of Leila Jones, Cassie Curran, Lois Usher and Eimear O’Regan finished second, edging out Enniskillen RC by a single point, and the Boys U15 team of Cormac Carabine, Sion McAllister, Mason Mercer and Cillian McLoughlin came home third. A great reward for the strength in depth across the club.
In the county competition, host county Donegal led the way, winning six of the ten races, including all four at U11 and U13. Antrim were next best with three wins, in the Girls U15, Girls U17 and Boys U17, along with second place in the Boys U13 and Boys U19 and third in the Girls U13. Down took the Girls U19 and were runners-up in the Girls U15 and Boys U17, Tyrone finished second in three of the younger races, and Armagh came within three points of Donegal in the Boys U15. Harriers were to the fore for Antrim throughout, providing four of the six scorers in the winning Boys U17 team and three in the winning Girls U17 team.
| Race | Team position | Score | Scoring runners |
| Boys U17 | 1st | 32 | Thomas Coy, Ruarcc Sheridan, Joseph Eager, Lucas Mooney |
| Girls U17 | 2nd | 64 | Leila Jones, Cassie Curran, Lois Usher, Eimear O’Regan |
| Boys U15 | 3rd | 78 | Cormac Carabine, Sion McAllister, Mason Mercer, Cillian McLoughlin |
Girls U11
Girls U11. Four Harriers finished in a field of 81.
The Girls U11 team: Erin McKee, Katie Kielty, Eva Mooney and Georgia O’Shaughnessy.
| Position | Name | Club | Time |
| 37 | Georgia O’Shaughnessy | North Belfast Harriers | 5:31 |
| 42 | Erin McKee | North Belfast Harriers | 5:35 |
| 71 | Eva Mooney | North Belfast Harriers | 6:02 |
| 81 | Katie Kielty | North Belfast Harriers | 6:58 |
Boys U11
Boys U11 race, Three Harriers finished in a field of 80.
| Position | Name | Club | Time |
| 28 | Conor Park | North Belfast Harriers | 4:26 |
| 49 | Kian McVicker | North Belfast Harriers | 4:39 |
| 58 | Luke Doris | North Belfast Harriers | 4:44 |
Girls U13
Girls U13 race, Seven Harriers finished in a field of 75.
Maia McAllister at the presentation for the leading finishers in the Girls U13 race.
Boys U13
Boys U13 race, Three Harriers finished in a field of 58.
Milo Purvis, Isaac Mooney and Ismael McAllister, with Isaac wearing his medal for sixth place
| Position | Name | Club | Time |
| 6 | Isaac Mooney | North Belfast Harriers | 6:52 |
| 35 | Milo Purvis | North Belfast Harriers | 7:48 |
| 45 | Ismael McAllister | North Belfast Harriers | 8:15 |
Girls U15
Girls U15 race, Five Harriers finished in a field of 74.
| Position | Name | Club | Time |
| 26 | Eloise McAuley | North Belfast Harriers | 12:13 |
| 39 | Eimear Coy | North Belfast Harriers | 12:36 |
| 41 | Nola Rafferty | North Belfast Harriers | 12:40 |
| 71 | Erin O’Regan | North Belfast Harriers | 15:14 |
| 72 | Sophie Weiniger | North Belfast Harriers | 15:15 |
Boys U15
Boys U15 race, Twelve Harriers finished in a field of 62.
| Position | Name | Club | Time |
| 5 | Cormac Carabine | North Belfast Harriers | 9:53 |
| 16 | Sion McAllister | North Belfast Harriers | 10:33 |
| 27 | Mason Mercer | North Belfast Harriers | 10:55 |
| 30 | Cillian McLoughlin | North Belfast Harriers | 11:01 |
| 36 | Thomas Weiniger | North Belfast Harriers | 11:15 |
| 37 | Joshua Long | North Belfast Harriers | 11:16 |
| 39 | Kobe McClelland | North Belfast Harriers | 11:23 |
| 40 | Lorcan O’Kane | North Belfast Harriers | 11:27 |
| 41 | Oisin Caldwell | North Belfast Harriers | 11:27 |
| 47 | Cohen Turley | North Belfast Harriers | 11:47 |
| 49 | Tanoj Reddy Yakkanti | North Belfast Harriers | 11:49 |
| 50 | Connor Ryan | North Belfast Harriers | 11:51 |
Girls U17
Girls U17 race, Four Harriers finished in a field of 42.
| Position | Name | Club | Time |
| 4 | Leila Jones | North Belfast Harriers | 15:06 |
| 9 | Cassie Curran | North Belfast Harriers | 16:00 |
| 19 | Lois Usher | North Belfast Harriers | 16:40 |
| 32 | Eimear O’Regan | North Belfast Harriers | 17:54 |
Boys U17
Boys U17 race, Seven Harriers finished in a field of 55.
| Position | Name | Club | Time |
| 2 | Thomas Coy | North Belfast Harriers | 14:41 |
| 5 | Ruarcc Sheridan | North Belfast Harriers | 14:57 |
| 10 | Joseph Eager | North Belfast Harriers | 15:23 |
| 15 | Lucas Mooney | North Belfast Harriers | 15:45 |
| 17 | Zac Connolly | North Belfast Harriers | 15:53 |
| 29 | Michael Devlin | North Belfast Harriers | 16:52 |
| 38 | Tom McLaughlin | North Belfast Harriers | 17:09 |
A team effort
Days like Sunday don’t happen by themselves. Behind the scenes, Seamus took care of the entries, Stephanie had the bus organised, Davy and Lyle had the tent and table up and ready, Chris made sure nobody went hungry, and coaches and parents pitched in wherever they were needed. Yet what made the day was the young athletes themselves, who backed one another from the first race to the last and showed what it means to be teammates and friends. Everyone who ran, and everyone who helped, did the club proud. The medals were the icing on the cake of a great day for North Belfast Harriers.
Weekend parkruns
Closer to home, it was a quieter weekend on the parkrun front. Séadna Lynch O’Hare and Lucy Jones took on the 5K at the Waterworks on Saturday morning, and both were back on Sunday for the junior parkrun, where ten Harriers lined up for the 2K while the bus was making its way to Donegal. The club had three finishers in the top ten, with Séadna third, Oliver Bisewski fifth and Lucy ninth, and Ronan O’Neill, Olivia McAvoy and Tommy Burns close behind. Across the city, Dawson Goodfellow flew the flag at Woodvale junior parkrun, finishing tenth. Well done to all our young runners who turned out over the two days
Waterworks parkrun 5K
| Position | Name | Gender | Age category | Club | Time |
| 27 | Séadna O’Hare Lynch | Male | JM10 | North Belfast Harriers | 22:26 |
| 94 | Lucy Jones | Female | JW11-14 | North Belfast Harriers | 26:38 |
Waterworks junior parkrun 2K
| Position | Name | Gender | Age category | Club | Time |
| 3 | Séadna O’Hare Lynch | Male | JM10 | North Belfast Harriers | 8:03 |
| 5 | Oliver Bisewski | Male | JM10 | North Belfast Harriers | 8:48 |
| 9 | Lucy Jones | Female | JW11-14 | North Belfast Harriers | 9:30 |
| 11 | Ronan O’Neill | Male | JM11-14 | North Belfast Harriers | 9:49 |
| 13 | Olivia McAvoy | Female | JW10 | North Belfast Harriers | 10:11 |
| 14 | Tommy Burns | Male | JM10 | North Belfast Harriers | 10:41 |
| 23 | Harry Teague | Male | JM10 | North Belfast Harriers | 11:37 |
| 24 | Naoise Lynch O’Hare | Male | JM10 | North Belfast Harriers | 11:46 |
| 30 | Adam Flood | Male | JM10 | North Belfast Harriers | 12:37 |
| 31 | Maeve McIvor | Female | JW11-14 | North Belfast Harriers | 12:38 |
Woodvale junior parkrun
| Position | Name | Gender | Age category | Club | Time |
| 10 | Dawson Goodfellow | Male | JM10 | North Belfast Harriers | 16:15 |
Club notices
- Cold weather reminder: As the evenings grow darker and colder, please make sure your child arrives at training sessions with suitable warm layers. A hoodie or jacket is required for before and after the sessions.
- Medical info: If your child uses an inhaler, please make sure it accompanies them to every single training session. Speak directly with the coaching team if there are any updated medical matters we need to be aware of.
- New members: As the club goes from strength to strength across all junior age groups, please encourage others who are interested in running to come along to the track to try it out for themselves.