Rory Townsend has picked up Team Ireland's second victory in two days on Rás Tailteann, with one of the breakthrough riders of the season, Odhran Doogan (Orwell Wheelers), going close today and taking 2nd place.
Doogan, at just 18-years-old, is the youngest rider in the race and has put a big deposit down on U23 international selection with his performances so far this week. However, the talented Townsend, who has won international UCI-ranked races, was just a bit too strong for young Doogan today.
Matteo Cigala, an Italian rider based in Ireland and riding for Carlow Dan Morrissey, rounded out the podium on a day when attack after attack was fired off the front of the bunch but nothing stuck.
Daire Feeley, the Cork VeloRevolution rider in the yellow jersey, rode out of his skin again today to defend the race lead on the 154km stage from Lisdoonvarna to Kilbeggan. Along with his team, he was very active in joining some attacks and closing down others.
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And now after a very fast day, but one with no major change to the overall, Feeley goes into tomorrow's stage 5 to Co Louth - the final day of action - with a margin of almost one minute on his nearest rival; stage 2 winner Louis Sutton (Broracer-Ale).
After Townsend, Doogan and Cigala, Joe Hill (Spirit Bontrager-BSS Rotor) was 4th on today’s stage followed by Conor Murnane (UCD Cycling Club) in 5th. James Harrison (Isle of Man) was 6th with Danny McDonald (Burren Cycling Club) 7th, Daniel Kain (Spokes Racing Team) 8th, Kevin McCambridge (Trinity Racing) 9th and stage 2 winner Louis Suton (Brocar-Ale), who rounded out the top 10.
With tomorrow’s stage into Blackrock, Co Louth, to come, Feeley has 51 seconds over Sutton in the general classification with yesterday’s stage winner, Adam Ward (Team Ireland) in 3rd at 1:06. Today’s winner, Townsend, is 4th at 1:29, with stage 1 winner Matthew Teggart (Cycling Ulster) in 5th at 1:40 and Luke Smith (Moynalty CC) in 6th at 1:41).
As well as leading the race overall, Feeley is also top in the
mountains classification while Townsend leads the points classification.
How it unfolded
During the first three stages of this Rás Tailteann, the focus was on who was jumping off the front and trying to gain time. While there were no shortage of attacks today, it was a different race. On the road to Kilbeggan all the damage was being out the back of the field.
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A day of crosswinds and tailwinds ramped up the speed – with prolonged periods in the gutter – and meant taking shelter behind the man ahead was a luxury enjoyed by only those doing the damage on, and near, the front.
What resulted was a pattern repeated over and over again; lone riders or breakaway groups getting clear but the speed being just too fast to establish a gap, while that same speed spat riders out the back at a relentless rate.
However, as we said, plenty of riders tried, including Archie Ryan (Team Ireland), who got clear with Tom Martin (Spain Brocar Ale) with about 50km covered.
After they were caught it was the turn of Kevin McCambridge (Clare Burren CC) and Paul Kennedy (Clare Burren CC); the latter a former hurler who took up cycling years ago to lose weight and who had clearly dusted himself down from a crash earlier in the week and was back in the game today.
Those two pulled out a gap of about 10 seconds, which held for a long time before jumping out close to 40 seconds during a stall in the bunch. That resulted in four riders getting clear in a chasing group; Thomas Dekker from (West Frisia), Tom Regan (Seven Springs), Tom Murphy (Galway Bay) and Conor Hennebry (Carlow Dan Morrissey).
The result of that exchange off the front was McCambridge going solo. The 20-year-old got away on his own, around Loughrea, with about 65km covered. The field was lined out at 60km per hour at times after McCambridge, yet he was holding them off and even gaining for a period.
However, after a lengthy period off the front on his own – and having built a of about 30 seconds, he was recaptured with approximately 80km covered.
A 12-man chasing group did try to get across to him, but yellow jersey Feeley jumped into that group, which provoked a strong reaction from the main field and closed down the move as McCambridge still led out front solo.
Then came a very strong counter attack after McCambridge, featuring Feeley – again – with stage 1 winner Matt Teggart (Cycling Ulster), Rory Townsend (Team Ireland) and Lee Rosie (Scotland Spokes Racing Team).
The average speed in the first 90km of the stage was 50km per hour, though it wasn’t until a section of crosswinds before Athlone that a breakaway threatened to pull out a gap. About a dozen riders, including yellow jersey Feeley, rode away on the front, with the race leader one of the key men driving it on.
They were quickly caught only for a seven-man group to go clear and gain about 20 seconds, though some of them went the wrong way at a roundabout.
In that group were: Darragh McCarter (Dublin Spellman Port), John Brosnan (Killarney CC), Cillian Murphy (Galway Bay CC), Ole-Henrik Bang-Andreasen (Trinity Racing), Frazier Carr (Britain Spirit BSS), Joseph Rees (Britain Embark Bikestrong) and Stefan Appelman (West Frisia),
They persisted for a prolonged period off the front, gaining over 30 seconds, before Carr and Ban-Andreasen attacked them and rode away. While they persisted out front until the 10km to go marker, they were eventually caught, paving the way for a bunch sprint won by Townsend from Doogan and Cigala.
