Holmfirth Harrier Helen Berry produced a strong run to help England to victory in the British & Irish Masters Cross Country International.
Berry came home fourth at Santry Park, in Dublin, as England saw off a strong challenge from the host nation.
Ireland tried to make the most of their home advantage at the meeting staged on a wet and windy day, but they could still not quite beat England in the team event.
The host country was expected to turn out strong teams and they didn’t disappoint.
With tremendous home support they put a stop to England’s usual domination of this event but couldn’t quite take the overall win.
It was a close call, with England winning nine team golds to Ireland’s eight.
The other home countries went home with a silver and bronze team medals.
Non-stop rain meant that the course in Santry Park – which was multi-lap and very flat – was a quagmire even before the end of the first race.
The women’s race started proceedings with 144 athletes taking part and featured Holmfirth’s Berry in the W40 category.
There was an easy win for Ireland’s Anne-Marie McGlynn.
She had run for Ireland’s senior team in the European Cross Country championships and was making her debut in the event, winning W35 gold.
Second place went to four-time overall winner Telford’s Claire Martin, who won the W40 title for her sixth successive gold medal.
Stockport runner Louise Rudd, who last year won W35 gold behind Berry, here took W40 silver.
Berry was battling with Ireland’s second W35 athlete Nathasha Adams, determined to make it a two, three, four finish for England.
The pair were running very close together into the third lap, but Berry broke away in the final kilometre to take fourth place and individual W40 bronze and secure the gold for England’s W40 team.
Results: 1st Anne-Marie McGlynn (Ireland) W35 20.57, 2nd Claire Martin, (England, Telford AC) W40 21.48, 3rd Louise Rudd, (England, Stockport Harriers) W40 22.04, 4th Helen Berry (England, Holmfirth Harriers) W40 22.21, 5th Natasha Adams (Ireland) W35 22:25.
