WHO rookie Niamh Cassar has made a stunning debut at the Australian schools champs in Adelaide, winning the Junior Girls title by just four seconds.
Niamh, in her first year in the NSW team, was second behind New Zealand's Emily Hayes but the first Australian home in 17:42 around the 2.7km course. What a fantastic result!
It was also a great turnaround after she finished seventh, and two minutes adrift, in the W16A Sprint the previous day. Big Foot's Nea Shingler was third among the Australians and sixth overall in the Junior Girls.
Days 3-4 of the Aus champs carnival were Sprints, with the long weekend Monday being the Australian titles to finish the Renmark section, and Tuesday in Adelaide the opener to the schools champs at Keithcot Farm.
Garingal's Duncan Currie finished a highly commendable second in the Senior Boys, a minute behind Victorian star Aston Key.
Newcastle prodigy Alvin Craig had the Junior Boys race at his mercy, leading after #6, but lost 1 minute 40 seconds on the next leg to end up fourth (and third Australian), 67 seconds behind the winner David Stocks from the ACT. That was after winning M16A the previous day.
In the Senior Girls, Bennelong debutante Tshinta Hopper was the leading NSW athlete in 14th place.
In Monday's Australian Sprints, NSW winners were: Nea Shingler (BF, W14A), Wendy McConaghy (GO, WOpenB), Tracy Marsh (BF, W40A), Jenny Enderby (NC, W50A), Paula Shingler (BF, W55A), Maureen Ogilvie (UR, W85A), Alvin Craig (NC, M16A), Angus Leung (GO, M20A), Shane Doyle (UR, M50A), Tony Woolford (BB, M55A), Eoin Rothery (BF, M60A), John le Carpentier (SH, M75A).
NSW also had six second placings and nine thirds.
Our best performer in the elites was our new scholar, Grace Molloy from Scotland, who was second in the Senior Women (W21E) - knocking off a host of big name Australians in the process.
