Shanahan Cup Round Two Sees Teams Compete at Dun Laoghaire

8th November 2025

Afloat.ie Team

Teams compete fiercely at Dun Laoghaire Harbour during Round Two of the Shanahan Cup.

Round Two of the Shanahan Cup brought another 16 teams and 96 sailors to the waters of Dun Laoghaire Harbour. While World Sailing delegates and attendees spruced up ahead of the World Sailing Annual Awards, a busy day of team racing was underway on the water!

Light airs dominated conditions throughout the day. Of the 48 races scheduled, the Irish National Sailing & Powerboat School (INSS) Race Committee successfully completed 24—enough to produce a balanced set of results. When combined with the opening round on Wednesday, 1st October, Gonzaga College Team 1 and St. Andrew’s College Team 1 are now tied on 40 series points at the top of the leaderboard. St. Andrew’s College Team 2 holds third place overall.

Racing began promptly at 10 am in a promising southeasterly breeze, but as the morning progressed, the wind dropped away. The race committee worked efficiently to run races whenever conditions allowed, ensuring fair and competitive sailing across all flights.

The Shanahan Cup continued in its mission of encouraging participation and development at every level of team racing. “It’s of equal importance that the experienced teams have good racing while the less experienced teams have a chance to take part and develop skills as well as confidence to enter more events”, says Glyn Williams of the INSS. This grassroots, participation-oriented, internally organised event has grown in the 6 years since inception from approximately 8 teams once a year to a fully booked 16-team event running 4-5 times each academic year.

The approach has meant that boats not typically associated with team racing make an appearance on the course. RS Sailing Ireland supports the event and utilises a combined INSS and RS Sailing Ireland fleet of RS Fevas and RS Zests to accommodate the large number of participants.

Race Umpires Ailbe Mooney and Vincent Delany joined the INSS team on the water, with Glyn Williams of INSS extending thanks to both for their support:

“We would like to extend our gratitude to Vincent and Ailbe for umpiring, and again to Eunice Kennedy for assisting in preparations,” said Williams.

The Shanahan Cup now pauses for Christmas, with two further rounds scheduled in the New Year. The collaboration between the Irish National Sailing & Powerboat School and Gonzaga College to run the event has many advantages, not least the excellent insight into school sports schedules that allow for the selection of optimal dates for inter-school racing. The next series dates will be announced shortly!

Download results below as a pdf

Downloads

Results and Series Points - Wednesday 5th November 2025.pdf (86 Downloads)

Published in Team Racing, Youth Sailing, INSS

Published in Team Racing

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About Team Racing

Team racing in sailing is an exciting, strategy-focused format where two teams, usually with three boats each, compete to achieve the best combined score by the end of the race. Unlike fleet racing, where individual performance matters most, team racing emphasises teamwork, tactics, and boat positioning to outmanoeuvre the opposing team.

Each team typically has three boats, often two-person dinghies like the Firefly class. The boats from each team are distinguished by their unique sail colours or numbers.

Points are assigned to finishing positions, with 1 point for 1st place, 2 points for 2nd place, and so on. The team with the lowest combined score wins. The target is to achieve a "winning combination" of points. In a six-boat race (three per team), winning combinations include scores like 10 points or less for a 1-2-6 or a 2-3-5 finish.

Teams can slow down or block opposing boats, especially in an advantageous position. A boat ahead can "cover" an opponent, manoeuvring to block the wind and slow them down.

Teams often employ manoeuvres to help slower boats catch up or pass opponents, switching positions if needed. This keeps the team in a winning configuration.

At key turning points, boats can execute mark traps, where they intentionally slow down or position themselves to block opponents, forcing them into bad turns or causing them to lose speed.

Team racing follows standard sailing rules but with some additions tailored to team tactics. For example, a "fouling" boat (one that breaks a rule) must complete a penalty turn or even multiple turns, depending on the rule violation. Penalty management is crucial as it can make or break a team's success in the race.

Constant communication is key as team members coordinate strategies, adjust for wind shifts, and adapt to changes in the race. They signal intentions, warn of opponents' moves, and ensure every team member’s position is optimized.

In short, team racing combines fast-paced sailing with strategic teamwork. While speed is essential, winning often depends more on positioning, communication, and the ability to execute effective tactics as a team.