With a great haul over the last couple of weeks, it's time we covered the club's senior open racing results for the last month or so. Diarmuid Collins' CX win stands out, as does Jules Cantwell's 2nd out west - he gives his account below! Envelopes also for Monica Marconi, Garry Blair, Kilian Doyle, Ken O'Neill while the Juniors are always picking up prizes regardless! We've also got some more of the women's results from Aideen Keenan, Ann Horan and Emily Brick!

At the end of July, the open racers took a range of prizes in Donore, with Monica Marconi netting 6th in the Leinster Women's Champs. Club Champ Conor Murnane won 2nd unplaced Junior in the men's event, while Seán Murnane likewise took 2nd in the U16 race.

Out west on the same day, Jules Cantwell scored 2nd in the Brian McNamara Memorial in a sprint from the break. He filled us in on the race:

  "Delighted with the day's effort. Was down in Galway for a week of half holiday, half study getaway and managed to finally get a bit of decent training in so felt in top form heading into a race for first time in a good while.

  "Rolling course and the locals go flat out from the off. 2 lads away on 3rd lap. Crossing the line at the end of the 3rd lap, a lad shouts to me, "let's try bridge the gap". Looked up and saw my 6-month old daughter, Amy, at her first race and so the motivation tank was fully stocked. 50sec gap. Partner in crime died after 2 mins leaving me with Wheel Sucker McSuckington, who sat on my wheel and never came through even once.

  "Took a good 8km of TT mode to bridge the gap, but when we got there I agreed with the two strong lads we'd work flat out to the final turn and only race each other then. Worked well and though the bunch was lined out behind us, we kept about a 40sec gap to the line. Took final corner sitting 4th. Winner started sprinting very early, was sure he'd burn out so didn't open up right away. Glad I didn't as I'd have come 4th or 3rd if I did. Made good ground on the winner who didn't seem to fade much, but had given him too much of a headstart, he took it by a wheel.

  "Given the effort I'd put in for the last lap, it was a 2nd gained rather than a 1st lost. Overriding feeling for me was the satisfaction after rolling the dice and attacking in doomed breakaways so many times, when I realised this one had stuck, it was sweet. Wouldn't change it.

  "Met McSuckington in the bar and he was quite apologetic and we had a good laugh. Turns out his teammate was in the breakaway, which explains why he didn't work till we reached them.

  "I still have work to do to get the upgrade to A3, and am looking forward to the next race already!"

As many relaxed next weekend with the bank holiday barbecue approaching, Bernard English and Jamie Busher were battling it out at the Suir Valley 3 Day. This year's edition featured a high attrition rate, as rain and crashes took their toll. English was one of those who suffered a DNF outside Cahir on the final stage, but escaped from A&E mostly unharmed. Up until that point both riders had been riding strongly amidst some strong competition.

It was never easy however, with English describing the opening stage as a "tough tough day and a real baptism of fire". Both rode into better legs as the weekend wore on, which is a monumental achievement considering the standard of international rider that traditionally set the pace in and around Clonmel.

It certainly stood to them the weekend just past in Mayo for the A3 National Champs. You can read Bryan Geary's account of the A3 race here, but what wasn't mentioned was Conor Murnane's crash in the Junior event. He remounted and finished the event despite the hard tumble, and after earning 11th in the TT discipline. Naoise Sheridan also clocked up results in both the road race (6th) and the TT where she scored a bronze medal for her time.

Diarmuid Collins was the most recent winner before that, winning the Rathfarnham CX B race last Thursday evening. His form has been steadily rising since his appearance on the A2 podium in Cavan earlier in the month, taking the 3rd unplaced A2 envelope there. He was joined by Garry Blair in the results, who was fastest A3 racer to the line.

Collins has promised a piece on his CX victory, and we'll be covering the Junior results in more detail later in the week.

Finally for the men, the A4s have continued to impress and place, despite many of their number being upgraded to A3 during the long season. Kilian Doyle and Ken O'Neill joined the Sunday bunch sprint in Wexford to nab themselves 7th and 10th respectively. That'll be a feather in the cap of the 12th and 13th overall places they secured in the Orwell League last Thursday.

The A3s were competing in the stage race with the same finish, where Brendan Lawless scored the highest overall final placing in 21st. Alongside him were Stephen Barry (25th), Mark Holland (28th), Bernard English (49th), Jamie Busher (55th) and Daragh Boyd (80th). That's a Gorey 2016 team in the making right there!

On the same day, at the opposite end of the country, Aideen Keenan was wrapping up the overall title in the Joe Daly Cycles National League for DID Electrical, while one of Orwell's hardest working members Ann Horan did enough to defend her podium spot. Both of those women bounced back from mid-season crashes to finish on a high - Keenan taking the overall and the final stage, and Horan bagging the Orwell League women's title as well as 3rd place in the National League.

Monica Marconi also featured in 11th place in that final round, after winning the A race in Corkagh Park last Tuesday. Newcomer Emily Brick also took her maiden win, in her racing debút in the B race!

The final round of the Corkagh Park series takes place tomorrow night, and we'll have a run-down of the women's results following that. Head out and show your support if you can!

Brendan Campbell Memorial, Donore (26/7/2015)

1 Colm Cassidy (Aquablue)
2 Fintan Ryan (DID Dunboyne)
3 Anthony Walsh (Aquablue)
4 Cian Delaney (Stamullen MD)
5 Paul O Reilly (Fixx Rouleurs)
6 Cian Sutcliffe (Lucan CRC)
7 Robin Kelly (Waterford RC)
8 Aaron Buggle (Fixx Rouleurs)

Unplaced A2s
1 Ross Grogan (Lucan CRC)
2 John Clarke (Navan RC)
3 Mark Kiernan (Kilcullen-Murphy Surveys)

Unplaced A3s
1 Aidan Kelly (Bikeworx)
2 Louis Carnac (Sorrento CC)
3 Phil O Flaherty (McNally-Swords CC)

Unplaced Juniors
1 Conn Mc Dunphy (Lucan CRC)
2 Conor Murnane (Orwell Wheelers)
3 Reece Young (Slaney CC)

Women’s Leinster Championships
1 Emily Birchall (NRPT-Magnet.ie)
2 Wendy Bates (Lakeside)
3 Fiona Guihan (DID Dunboyne)
4 Eimear O Reilly (Clondalkin CC)
5 Niamh Stephens (UCD CC)
6 Monica Marconi (Orwell Wheelers)

U16 Race
1 Jack Caldwell (Navan RC)
2 Sean Murnane (Orwell Wheelers)
3 Aaron Cullen (Donadea)
4 Ryan Fitzpatrick (Inspiration)
5 Leo Doyle (Sheelin Flyers)
6 Jack O Donnell (Drogheda Wheelers)

Brian McNamara Memorial, Tuam (26/7/2015)

A4 Race
1 Keith Nugent (Seven Springs CC)
2 Jules Cantwell (Orwell Wheelers)
3 Pat Bilbow (Ballina CC)
4 Andrew Higgins (Ballina CC)
5 Eoin Hogan (Burren Racing Team)
6 Micheal Cahill (Upperchurch Drombane CC)

Unplaced Woman
Emer Harrison (Covey Wheelers)

Mountnugent GP, Mountnugent (1/8/2015)

1 Colin Robinson (Stamullen MD Road Club)
2 Ronan Killeen (Lucan CRC)
3 Keith Hughes (Bikeworx)
4 Cian Delaney (Stamullen MD Road Club)
5 Mark Reilly (Fitscience)
6 Alan Clogher (TC Racing)

Unplaced A2s
1 John Murray (Navan Road Club)
2 James McGreevy (Westport Covey CC)
3 Diarmuid Collins (Orwell Wheelers CC)

Unplaced A3s
1 Garry Blair (Orwell Wheelers CC)
2 James Quinn (St. Tiernan’s CC)
3 David Casserly (Lakeside Wheelers CC)

Unplaced A4s
1 Peter Gibbons (Lucan CRC)
2 Michael Meehan (CKR Cycling Club)

Unplaced Woman
Michelle Geoghegan (Sint Martinus Napoleon Games)

Stafford Wholesale Sunday A4 race, Wexford (23/8/2015)

1 Stephen Murphy (St Tiernan's)
2 Richard Rennicks (Usher)
3 John Halford (Gorey)
4 Conor Mckenna (Bikework)
5 David Waters (Carrick Wheelers)
6 P J Collins (Raparee)
7 Killian Doyle (Orwell Wheelers)
8 Kieran Condon (Kells)
9 Sarah Pratt (Bray)
10 Ken O'Neill (Orwell Wheelers)