UCD men won the Gannon Cup by 4 lenghts in a time of 6:33.5

Trinity ladies won the Corcoran Cup.

Trinity Novice Men won the Dan Quinn Shield.

UCD Novice Ladies won the Moorehead Cup

Detailed race reports to follow

Race Day Details

Alumni Reception, Clarence Hotel starting at 13:30

Busses to collect spectators from the Taxi Rank at O’Connell Bridge for the Corcoran Cup and Gannon Cup races.

Race Times

Gannon Cup Race 15:30
Corcoran Cup Race 15:00
Dan Quinn Shield 14:30
Moorehead Cup 14:00

With only 2 days to go, the UCD Ladies are putting the finishing touches on their race plans for Saturday under the watchful eyes of Pat Gannon, Martin Feeley, Myrte Duin and Deirdre Keane. For the novices this will be their first experience of head to head racing and what better place for it than through the heart of Dublin city with excited friends and family cheering them on. The Colours race is unique and exciting one for every rower lucky enough to pick up an oar on the day. With the numerous bridges on the way, encouragement from spectators is never far and when the smell of the hops from Guinness’ hits you it’s the sure sign that the finish is fast approaching. This will also be the first year of a “Goonanette” race, where Novice B crews will go up against each other on the upper Liffey. Everyone is getting excited for the races now, let’s hope that everything runs smoothly on the day.

The Corcoran Cup Crew:

Cox: Jenni Lynch (Co. Dublin)

Stroke: Bronwyn Lait (Co. Louth)

7: Susan Harkin (Co. Dublin)

6: Kate Lorigan (Co. Dublin)

5: Laura O’Brien (Co. Wicklow)

4: Laura Gannon (Co. Dublin)

3: Amy Bulman (Co. Cork)

2: Claire Lambe (Co. Dublin)

Bow: Neva Noone (Co. Mayo)

The Novice crew:

Cox: Leanna Duke (Co. Dublin)

Stroke: Sarah Maguire (Co. Dublin)

7: Clodagh Tanner (Co. Cork)

6: Ciara O’Hagan (Co. Wicklow)

5: Claire Ni Reachtagain (Co. Tipperary)

4: Denise Ryan (Co. Dublin)

3: Lyndsay Baker (Co. Offaly)

2: Grainne Desmond (Co. Cork)

Bow: Deirdre Murphy (Co. Longford)

Best of luck to the Novice girls and a big thank you to the Senior squad. It is a huge privilege to take a seat in the Colours crew this year and I hope that we can do the club proud. Thank you also to all our coaches for their dedication and commitment to our club. Finally, thanks to the Colours Committee of Johnny Devitt and John Walsh for their hard work and preparation in making this momentous race happen and to Kate Lorigan for all of her work organising the programme and dinner!

Saturday is the first race between UCD and Trinity men’s crews this season and the outcome is both eagerly anticipated and highly uncertain. The Gannon Cup is the first real test for our Novice and Senior crews and their performances will set the tone for the rest of the season.

The 2010 UCD Gannon crew consists of:

Cox – Loic Belletre (Co. Cork), 8 – Peter Grogan (Co. Offaly), 7 – Andrew Neale (Co. Offaly), 6 – Finbar Manning (Co. Limerick), 5 – David Neale (Co. Offaly), 4 – Colm Pierce (Co. Dublin), 3 – Richard Murray (Co. Dublin), 2 - Anthony English (Co. Mayo), Bow –  Tom Doyle (Co. Dublin)

They’re all sturdy lads who hate to lose and will do everything in their power to keep the trophy at UCD.

To our coaches Pat McDonagh, Pat Gannon, Dave Tanner, Brian Barter, and Rob Grimes: thank you for the guidance and mentorship you have provided to our club this season. To all our crew members: it has been a privilege to row with you during my time at UCD and I wish you all the best of luck on Saturday.
To Johnny Devitt and John Walsh of the Gannon Cup committee: thank you for the exceptional work you have put into organising this event which is so important to both our clubs.

After disappointment with the cancellation of Mick’s Head, both Novice and Senior squads were back to business. The conditions at Blessington were a far cry from those we got used to in the winter. Instead of a slip shoulder deep in water, recent dam releases ensured that you could count the pebbles if you were brave enough to row under the first arch of the bridge. A flat calm surface replaced the waves sloshing over riggers, with the water remaining mirror-still even into the afternoon.
While the senior squad were admiring the water in Blessington, the novice squad continues to develop. Alternating distance sessions with trips over the wier, introducing the Novices to the course and cox, Leanna Duke to the bridges! With an increase in the breadth and depth of women’s college rowing in recent years, this could be the year when hopes of a second ladies’ maiden eight (as a parallel with the Goonan Cup) becomes a reality.
The Novice squad had their first taste of racing at Lagan Head last weekend. They had a good race and learned some important lessons about bridges on the way. The Senior squad met up with some of the legends from past Corcoran crews and gained some valuable words of wisdom. When put to the challenge on a 300m course they oldies scrubbed up pretty good, though they did have half a length advantage off the start!
Good luck to all the crews in the rest of their training. Let’s hope the weather is a bit kinder to us on March 6th.

This year our squad has more than doubled from last year; new members have brought energy, experience and enthusiasm into the club. However, seat racing and selection of the final eight has been overshadowed by injury and the destiny of key crew members has been in the lap of the physio gods. As a result, younger rowers were given a chance to sit in the Senior boat for Lagan Head, our first race of the season due to the cancellation of Neptune and St. Michael’s Heads. The boat felt tense but the result on paper was a win. The post race conclusion is that there is a lot of room for improvement in the run up to Colours.

Just ten days to go now, and training is going more or less according to plan. Still spending time in singles and the gym duringing the week and freezing out at Blesso at the weekends. The crew will hopefully be confirmed this Saturday.

The novice crew is coming along well too, and managing to stay dry in recent weeks.

Link to the 2008 race how will this years race progress incomparison

The Winter training camp in Blessington Lake, Co. Wicklow, in early January, proved a great success.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zusYuvOriBg&feature=related

More crew training videos to follow…

The Captains of UCD, Trinity and Committee of the Gannon Cup are delighted to announce the Saturday the 6th of March as being the date for the 2010 Gannon Cup. Futher details to be made available in due course.