Guest Post: ROLLING BACK THE YEARS - ON THE ROAD FROM CORK TO COBH ...by John Walshe

ROLLING BACK THE YEARS - ON THE ROAD FROM CORK TO COBH
(By John Walshe)
 

Although it hasn’t been held since 2019 (and who knows if ever again) there was always something special about running the 15 miles from Cork to Cobh. Most present-day runners are familiar with the October date when it was organised by the Cork BHAA, but the race itself has a chequered history going back all of 60 years.
 
Back in 2016, Blarney runner/librarian/ historian Richard Forrest published a delightful 136-page book looking back at this athletics event beginning with what he called ‘the modern race’ in 1962. This was organised by Ballymore Athletics and Cycling club under the auspices of the NACA and when BLE (forerunner to Athletics Ireland) came into being in 1967 the race acted most years either as the national or Munster 15-mile championship.
 
Such was the case 50 years ago last month when, on April 15th, 1973, the status of national championship attracted an entry of over 100 from all parts of the country. Clubs represented included Raheny, Inchicore, Civil Servce, Clonliffe and University College Galway. There was a strong Cork contingent which included a number taking on the 15-mile journey for the first time.
 
The race started at 3pm under the Railway Bridge at Water Street with dressing facilities and number collection at the Arcadia Ballroom on Lower Glanmire Road. The route took the runners along the dual carriageway as far as Dunkettle. Long before the N25 came into being, they then continued down the old road almost into Carrigtwohill before turning right for the familiar second half all the way to Cobh. Interestingly, the first mile mark to be seen was a ‘10’ near Glounthaune church (telling you how far to go) with a similar ‘5’ near Fota followed by a count-down of miles 4, 3, 2 and 1.
 
Pat O’Riordan of Leevale had won the race in 1968 and 1972, the latter in a time of 75:45. But in what was described by Tim O’Brien in the Cork Examiner as ‘a spell binding performance’ he improved on that by a whopping one minute and 46 seconds to win in an Irish record of 73:59. Employed in Wexford in the dairy industry, the 26-year-old O’Riordan was a man for all surfaces. He enjoyed national success with Leevale and Cork at cross-country and was Irish steeplechase champion in 1971 and had a best time of 8:54.4 over the barriers.

The class of his performance that April day can be seen in those left in his wake. Des McGann had represented Ireland in the Olympic Marathon the year before and yet was over a minute in arrears. Joe Scanlon (GCH) in third and Finbarr Long (UCC) in fourth would go on to win national titles at 5000m and steeplechase respectively while Fr Paddy Coyle (fifth) was a former national marathon and cross-country champion.
 
Richard Crowley, St Finbarr’s, winner of the Cork-Cobh in 1971, could only manage sixth while Donie Walsh (also an Olympian marathoner in 1972), the national cross-country champion a couple of months before, must have had an off-day as he was well down in 12th place.
 
Two young runners who would go on to better things were 17-year-old Gerry Deegan (three senior national cross-country and four inter-county titles) in 37th place and four places behind, Liam O’Brien, a year older, was already laying down the endurance foundation that would take him to the semi-final of the Olympic 3000m steeplechase 11 years later.
 
Two places from the end was Mark O’Shea, 42, from Dromcollogher in Limerick. No doubt suffering from blisters, Mark had discarded his shoes at Kilacloyne Bridge and proceeded to run the remaining distance in his thick woollen grey socks. He had also run the year before and, according to the Cork Examiner, ‘he richly deserved that special applause of spectators when he crossed the line’. The fact that a 41-year-old running 15 miles was a newsworthy item shows how far we’ve come – nowadays a similar race could easily be won by someone in that same age bracket.

Sadly, a number of those numbered among the 65 finishers that day have gone to their eternal reward. A few others are involved in the sport in various capacities and indeed one or two are still toeing the line in races, although it could be said their 10-mile times now are approaching what they achieved for 15 back then.
 
Of course there is one glaring omission from this look-back – there is no mention of female participants. For the simple reason that back then no women ran such a distance. It would be another five years before three brave and pioneering Cork runners - Marion Lyons, Elaine Kelly and Dervla Mellerick – lined up under the same Railway Bridge at Water Street and embarked on a maiden voyage to the seaside town of Cobh, thereby changing the face of Irish running forever.

A list of previous guest posts from John Walshe can be seen HERE