All to race for in junior class

The Emerald club's promotions on Sunday at Ballyboughal (11.0) - the Liam Toolin memorial race for seniors and the Colm Boyd memorial for juniors - are the final events to count in the Callcard Classic Leagues and although Raymond Clarke has the senior category all sewn up Mark Scanlon could be foiled of top junior honours.

Clarke won two of the nine races and collected points in five other events to accumulate a total of 61. David Peelo is second with 44 and Tommy Evans has 39.

Next is Ciaran Power 35, Ian Chivers 30, Paddy Moriarty and Bill Moore on 28, Richie McCauley 27, Karl Donnelly 22 and Declan McMackin 21 so the scrap there is for the minor league placings.

Power and Moriarty are on duty with an under-23 Irish team in Austria over the weekend - they ride at Linz with French-based Michael McNena, Aidan Duff, Brian Kenneally and Dermot Finnegan. They stay on there for the European under-23 road race championship at Villach the following weekend when Scott Hamilton travels out to contest the time trial. Barry Monaghan has another assignment as manager.

Donnelly's appeal to reduce his eight-week suspension for using a prohibited substance was rejected at the FIC meeting in Kanturk so he remains out for the rest of the season.

Scanlon has 45 points after five events in the junior league to 33 for Thomas Hogan with Derek Finnegan on 30 and with 15 points going to the winner, 12 for second, nine for third and on down to one point for 10th it could go all the way to the line. Emmet Hogan has 27 points followed by Simon Kelly 26 and David McQuaid 25.

Clarke is the only home based man chosen for the Irish team to go to the Tour of Hokkaido in Japan from September 14th to 20th. With him will be Andy Roche, Morgan Fox, Padraic Quinn and Leslie McKay. Peter Crinnion is manager.

Sunday, September 21st, is National Bike Day, sponsored by Specsavers Opticians in association with the National Council for the Blind. With about a thousand fun cycle outings scheduled over a wide range of venues that day a great opportunity is provided for young and old to get out on bikes and raise funds for the NCBI. Sean Kelly, who has been in Canada with the Blazing Saddles group, will be out supporting the activity in Galway.