Last weeks league crit saw a repeat win for Conor Murnane, and Liam Rowsome taking a maiden triumph from a break, while the weekend was packed with results - Barry Dace winning in the vets, Neal Hudson taking silver on the road, and Orla Hendron an actual silver on the track. Fionn Sheridan also won bronze, and Ciara Kinch placed in the National League race.

With the league now done and dusted, we dip back into the final two rounds - Brian McArdle's ascendency on Kilmashogue, and Sean Barry's victory in Glencullen.

The winners of the first 2014 Orwell crit came from both ends of the spectrun - young rising star Conor Murnane, and experienced Rás veteran Brian Ahern. Read on for more!

Last week we had two wins from two breakaways, as Pat O'Brien showed just why he's top of the league at the moment, then leaving his rivals Barry Dace and Jamie Busher behind. Graham Scanlon and Keith Harte did the same to the rest of Limit and Semi-limit, with the former coming out on top for a fine win.

While Pat O'Brien unleashed his trademark sprint to take the Scratch race, the talk of the night was newcomer Greg O'Donnell's outstanding win from Limit.
Update: Now with extra on-bike footage from Scratch race!

It deeply saddens us to report the sudden passing of our beautiful friend and clubmate, Patrick O'Brien, yesterday afternoon.

Pat was not just a talent on the bike, but an ever-giving and constantly positive presence off it. Winner of the 2014 Orwell League, a man of the Rás and a manager of the Rás, he was always ready to help out and assist, to give his time, knowledge and encouragement to others, and he will be very much missed by all of us.

Our condolences to his friends and family at this difficult time, particularly his fiancé Eileen. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.

The opening round of the 2014 Orwell League saw some super fast times set for the Pine Forest course, with Eric Downey resuming where he left off for the 2013 league - at the top.

We've been remiss in our racing coverage, with the women in particular scoring a number of fine results - Sandra Telford with a Corkagh Park win, and Ciara Kinch 4th in the Meath GP. Read on for much, much more!

It wasn’t a night for fast times, but Brian McArdle braved the cold and the damp to finish fastest in the league’s round five 10TT at Batterstown. Read on for all the results!

We've a pile of racing to catch up on apart from the Roche GP, with the Sallygap race being won by Séamus Nolan, the vets getting a slew of results including 2nd in the As for Barry Dace, and the Sheridans flooding the track league final overall.

A weekend’s worth of racing in Roundwood paid dividends for Fionn Sheridan, taking two prizes, including the coveted Kieran Hammond trophy. Keith Harte and David Maher placed in the Roundwood GP, while several members scored results in the Hammond Memorial TT event. And last week in the league, Uisneach Sheridan, Paul Tansey and Brian Ahern won the sprints in Corkagh Park.

Aidan Collins brought home the best results of the weekend for the club, with a 4th in the Stamullen GP on Sunday, and an unplaced prize on Friday. Odhrán Connors and Stephen Barry also featured in Stamullen, while the Orwell women were active in Nenagh, with a TTT win, and placings for Ciara Kinch and Monica Marconi.

On a gorgeous night in Corkagh Park, it was two strong riders with perfect timing who came out best - Bryan Geary in the Limit race, and David Swift in the Scratch.

As well as Eugène Dillon's audax ride, another 23 Orwells undertook the Raid Pyrénéen with the help of Marmot Tours. Siobhain Duggan stepped up to the challenge of trying to summarise the five days of cycling and cols, as well as the fun and camaraderie! Have a read below!

With racing in Roundwood and Newbridge at the weekend, Orwell were as active as ever, with podium finishes for Jules De Meester and Stephen Rowan, placings for Ken O'Neill, Richard Cattle and Scott Gilchrist, as well as prizes for Bryan Geary and Sandra Telford. We've a race report from Bryan Geary below from a race where breaks came and went throughout, for your reading pleasure!

Previous holder of the 25TT title, Tom Blennerhassett retook it in imperious style in R15 of the club league, while Ann Horan blazed to the women's title by nearly a minute over her nearest rival. R16 saw the lowest turnout yet for a round, with Eoin Byrne emerging triumphant in horrendous conditions.

Eric Downey showed that his form hasn't dipped much since his 2013 overall league win, while Valdis Andersons got the victory that has eluded him since he was upgraded to Scratch that same season after running riot in Corkagh Park.

The races came thick and fast over the weekend, with Kilmessan hosting two days of events for Ciara Kinch and Orla Hendron to take envelopes home from, and the Ballinrobe 2 Day taking place out west, with Pat O'Brien, Neal Hudson, Ronan Grimes and Aideen Keenan all putting in strong performances, and Keenan winning the women's prize there. This all followed the club TTT, won by a team featuring Colum Bradley, Daniel McElroy, and Sean and Conor Murnane.