The All Ireland Novice men's and women's cross country championships as well as the boys and girls under 11, 13, 15, 17 and 19 championships were held in Coleraine Co Derry on Sunday last and by all accounts the organisation of the event left a lot to be desired. The course layout was described as a disgrace by one well known Waterford official, two of the races may have to be rerun in February the boys U13 and girls U15..

Once again that most versatile young athlete from West Waterford A.C. Kate Veale was Waterford's best performer at the fixture. Kate combines race walking with running and she is tops in both but probably better known as a race walker. On Sunday last however she showed all her versatility and fighting qualities to run a terrific race in the under 17 championship and in a huge field she finished a superb second overall. Other good individual juvenile performers all from Ferrybank were Eoin Brown 4th U13, Orla Queally 5th U13, Krista Meade 8th U11 and Beth Walsh 9th U19 and in the Novice women's race Maria Halley was 5th while in the Novice men's Paddy Flynn was 9th and John Cleary 16th. For West Waterford the following figured on Munster teams that won medals Sinead Flynn U11 1st team, Miseal Power U11, Robbie Mulligan U15 and Declan Power U19 all Munster teams placed third, as was Krista Meade Ferrybank.