ROSE LAMBE won the women's mini marathon in 1993 and last year came third in the Dublin marathon. From those two races, she knows that Monday's trial is not beyond her ability.

In between those races, she has learned one valuable lesson. In the Dublin race of two years ago, she pulled out after 22 miserable miles. She was better prepared for that race than she ever had been, but she couldn't finish. She remembers it was a very windy day and that she was caught off guard.

She remembers that the English women set off at a fast pace and that she went with them. She remembers that she found herself alone after 13 miles.

"It was very lonely, believe me. It took nothing out of my legs, it was all mental. When I found myself on my own I panicked and I just couldn't claw them back."

A year later, she was 20 miles into the Dublin run and couldn't believe how fresh her legs were feeling.

"I just breezed past two English girls, increased the pace at the end going up the hill in the Phoenix Park and ended up third. The experience definitely helped.

"The year before I might have panicked. Last year I didn't. Just kept going. You need a lot of patience. You need to know when not to go and when it doesn't suit."

Having run in the World Championships, in Rome in 1987 in the 10,000 metres, Lambe is not unused to big events.

"I usually ran at the front, but facing Liz McColgan and others it was a different market altogether. I'd really no idea at all back then."

Every year the Monaghan mother of two has bettered her time and this year she has set a target of 2:40.

"I'm going for a time this year. It would be a personal goal I'm after, now that I've been at it long enough."

Last year's winner, England's Trudi Thompson, who set a personal best of 2:38, has being running personal bests over shorter distances throughout the summer.

Danielle Sanderson ran a 2:36.29 in Helsinki in 1994, while Haley Nash from Wales took seventh place at the Commonwealth Games in a time of 2:35.39. All of them can easily do 2:40 if the day is kind to them.

But 37 year old Lambe knows that if sheds in contention towards the end of the race then the time will look after itself. Her popularity with the home crowd is bound to give her an additional lift.

If it's frosty with no wind, that's ideal. If there's a breeze then you'll get it the whole way," she says.