Surrey County Cross Country Champs., Lloyd Park, Croydon
A very, very Happy New Year
On a freezing cold early new year day the Belles senior team fought hard for every well earned position and lifted the Senior Women’s Surrey Cross Country championship trophy for the first time since 1993. It couldn’t have been a closer competition, with the Belles' first four runners scoring equal points with Ranelagh, but clinching the title on the merit of getting their four home first.
The field settled into their positions early on in the first lap with Jo Kelsey (Woking) and Eleanor Baker (South London) taking a strong lead. The Belles were never far behind with Tilly Heaton leading our girls, closely followed by Angela Walker, Juliette Clark, Erica Fogg and Syreeta Stracey - all in top 20 positions. By the end of lap one Jo’s lead was well established, with Sarah Seal of Ranelagh also having a fabulous race and moving into third place. The vests of Ranelagh, Belgrave and SLH dominated, as in the Surrey league, and at half way Ranelagh just had the edge on Belgrave, who similarly edged SLH.
It was on lap two that the Belles strength and endurance paid off. Tilly maintained her place as team leader, a personal triumph for her, and she managed to gain a place, moving into 6th. Juliette, as team captain, also gained a couple of places, although one was our very own Angela Walker. Watching Juliette fight to the line to overtake a Walton athlete made our supporters realise just how much this trophy was wanted. Angela’s Christmas break might have meant that she did not have the honour of being the first Belle home for the first time in a long while, but her 10th place overall was a brilliant result; and to see Erica Fogg just 3 seconds behind but more importantly ahead of Ranelagh’s next two scoring athletes, meant that the Belles were jubilant in their success.
However, there were more than just the four Belles out there racing their hardest. Syreeta Stracey, although not happy with her race, ran incredibly well finishing just outside the top 20 and Nina Mills completed the course as the Belle who’s possibly completed the most Surrey Champs over the years,
Rosie Powell, usually prominent in our Senior League team, ran as an individual in the U20’s age group and featured at the front end of the race, finishing 5th U20. Louise Collier, competing in the same race as Rosie, but as an U17 showed that she’s back from her injury worries of earlier in the season, and placed 6th. With another year as an U17 to go, Louise looks set to have a few more years of junior success ahead of her.
And much further north, and undoubtedly in much colder conditions, Louise Cooper placed 16th in the Lancashire cross country champs.
It’s been a great start to the year and long may it continue. With two Surrey league wins under our belt and two races still to go, it’s essential that we continue to up the ante and get our strongest teams out in order to lift the league title. Having not won the league since 1994, that’s another trophy that’s due our name on it…
It's another silver for Nasher
Two years ago on this very course Kevin Nash had a ding dong battle with Herne Hill's Dave Taylor. Neither took part last year at Banstead but back on the Lloyd Park loops the pair were at it again. This time Kevin made a slightly steadier start as Taylor and South London's Stuart Major broke away in the first 2km but by the time the opening lap had been completed Nasher was setting his sights on Taylor's back as Major's bold bid faded.
The second lap saw the Belgrave man close to within twenty metres - but that's as close as it got as the vastly experienced Taylor maintained his lead over the third and final circuit. It was Kevin's first race since August and after a brilliant 2003 summer season it looks as if he's got things just right as the major races of the winter season come into sight.
Once again we were unable to muster a Senior men's team but did have the pleasure of seeing Mark Humphrey win his first ever athletics medal of any sort as he came home a clear third in the Junior Men's event.
An unfit Mike Trees excelled to only narrowly miss out on silver in Berkshire while down in Dorset, Tom Barry had a brilliant run to keep within 15 seconds of the Inter-Counties and Schools champion.
Surrey CC Champs.
Senior Men 12 kms: 1 D.Taylor (Herne Hill) 40:22; 2 K.Nash (Belgrave) 40:35; 3 P.Haywood (Boxhill R) 41:06; 22 W.Cockerell 44:16; 35 W.Lynch 46:47; 97 Don Anderson M45 52:58; 169 finished.
U20 Men 8km: 1 P.Wicks (Windsor SE&H) 27:31; 3 M.Humphrey (Belgrave) 30:32.
Senior Women 8 kms: 1 J.Kelsey (Woking) 31:27; 2 E.Baker (SLH) 31:35; 3 S.Seal (Ranelagh) 32:58; 6 M.Heaton 33:31; 8 J.Clark W35 34:12; 10 A.Walker 34:19; 11 E.Fogg 34:22; 22 S.Stracey 36:17 69 N.Mills W55 44:44; 83 finished.
Teams: 1 Belgrave (6, 8, 9, 10) 33; 2 Ranelagh (3, 7, 11, 12) 33; 3 South London (2, 5, 14, 16) 37.
U20 Women 4.8km: 1 G.Carter (Guildford & Godalming) 19:11; 5 R.Powell 21:05.
U17 Women 4.8km: 1 D.Christmas (Crawley) 20:02; 6 L.Collier 23:12.
Berkshire CC Champs. Prospect Park, Reading. Senior Men. 1 R.Lee (Windsor SE&H) 37:06; 3 M.Trees M40 37:23.
Dorset CC Champs, Cranford Magna. U15 Boys: 1 M.Clarke (Poole) 11:01; 2 T.Barry 11:15.
Lancashire CC Champs, Witton Park, Blackburn. Senior Women. 1 S.Willimott (Blackburn) 22:48; 16 L.Cooper 26:10.
Restored from the club's earlier website, belgraveharriers.com, and published here as originally written.