special to Irish Runner.com by Eoghan Young-Murphy

On Sunday, Olympian Maria McCambridge will attempt to get her season off to a flying start in the Rathfarnham 5km Road Race, the event that traditionally attracts the country's finest distance runners.

A big entry is likely to be complimented by a whole host of stars, with the Dubliner intent on breaking the course record of 15:25 she set last year. Since then, she has made great progress under the auspices of her coach and husband, marathoner Gary Crossan, and looks on course to crack the time.

But McCambridge is unlikely to stroll unopposed to victory; World University Games 5,000m bronze medalist Jolene Byrne will be confident of supplanting her nemesis.

Byrne has abdicated her job in the accounting profession in an attempt to further an international career that has blossomed over the past year. Last year she displayed her versatility on the domestic scene by landing the National Cross Country Championships and 1500m titles.

Yet McCambridge has a score to settle: she was the runner-up on both occasions. Who is likely to prevail on this occasion is a matter of conjecture but a thrilling race is most definitely on the cards.

Former Irish Metric Mile hope James Nolan will be hoping to show that his recent woeful showing in the Great North Mile was not an accurate reflection of his current fitness, though it would be a shock of mammoth proportions if he were stave off seasoned road racer Peter Matthews.

His Dundrum teammate, Noel Berkeley, will fancy his chances if among striking distance of leaders win the closing stages, as will Briton Peter Riley, who showed a terrific turn of pace in Sunday's annual Rockford Roof Tiles 4.2-mile Road Race to carve a whopping sixteen seconds off Dave Taylor's long-standing record with a winning time of 18 minutes 30 seconds.