O'Neill picked for Kiwi boat

ROWING:SEAN O'NEILL, who rowed for Ireland at the Beijing Olympics, has been picked in the New Zealand team for this year's World Cup series. The Limerick man has lived in New Zealand for most of the last decade and has dual citizenship. He impressed in the recent trials on Lake Karapiro, which will stage the championships late this year.

O’Neill has been chosen in one of the two coxless fours which will race in the World Cup regattas. The form of the two crews will be assessed prior to final trials in August for the Karapiro 2010 selected boat.

O’Neill (29), will team up with three young oarsmen: Jade Uru, Hamish Burson and David Eade, who stroked the New Zealand coxed four to gold last year at the World Under-23 Championships.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, UCD’s senior men confidently landed their third consecutive Gannon Cup title over the course from O’Connell Bridge to St James’s Gate.

But Trinity’s women stole the show with a dramatic demonstration of how patience and persistence can yield big rewards.

In the women’s race, for the Corcoran Cup, UCD had the preferred north station and opened up a half-length lead by Capel Street Bridge.

They stretched this to almost a length through the next four bridges, but Trinity’s young crew clung on, not letting their opponents build a clear-water lead.

Coming up to Watling Street Bridge, the last on the course, Trinity pushed and suddenly UCD looked vulnerable. With their lead disappearing, their number three rower, Amy Bulman, dramatically caught a crab (missed a stroke) and the boat stopped dead. Trinity rowed on to win by a distance.

Trinity coach Andrew Coleman said his crew knew their best hope from the south station was to produce a sparkling finish. They key, he said, was that UCD could never push their lead into clear water.

“They could never snap the elastic,” Coleman said.

UCD’s men’s crew tore the elastic apart by the middle of the race for the Gannon Cup, and had four lengths to spare at the end.

This was a powerful performance by a uniformly strong crew, which was stroked by Peter Grogan, and had two other Offaly men in the three and five seat in brothers Andrew and Dave Neale.

The novice races were also divided. UCD won the women’s to gain the Moorhead Trophy, while Trinity won the Dan Quinn Shield.