Duo triumph at South Shields as we bring you a round-up from recent cross-country events in Britain

With winter now kicking in across the UK, domestic cross-country events are becoming muddier and chillier. Our latest round-up includes the North Eastern Counties Championships and South of England Inter-Counties.

NORTH EASTERN COUNTIES CHAMPIONSHIPS, South Shields, December 10

Despite temperatures no higher than 2C and in wintery conditions, the event unfolded in occasionally sunny weather, Martin Duff reports.

The senior men’s race scored six in the team competition and Morpeth, led by second-placed Carl Avery, were comfortable team winners ahead of Gateshead for whom Inter-County winner Calum Johnson retained his title.

The 2020 English National champion was also second in this event twice, in 2017 and 2019, but it was his first race in nearly two months after a 48:00 fifth spot in the Great South Run.

Morpeth also had Dan Dixon a distant third and it was a similar result in the senior women’s race where Catriona MacDonald and Jane Hodgson were minor medallists, but behind race winner Philippa Stone, who won by nearly a minute. The Middlesbrough Mandale runner was third in the English National junior race back in 2017.

The under-20 and under-17 women ran and scored in the team race together but it was the younger Charlotte Dillon who got the better of under-20 winner Millie Breese, as these two were clear of the rest.

The younger men’s groups scored in the team battle separately and Josh Blevins was an easy junior men’s race winner but only two under-20 men’s trios closed in.

Joseph West moved up from fifth last year to win the under-17 event for Middlesbrough Mandale. Liam Roche just got the decision on Alex Boyer for a close second.

The Middlesbrough-based pair of Eden Creasy and Jacob Brown and were under-15 race winners.

Ben Beale took the under-13 boys’ race, while Olivia Murphy led twins Nell and Kitty Graham to a clean sweep in the girls’ event, as their Birtley continued their recent good form.

Men TEAM: 1 Morpeth 45; 2 Gateshead 167; 3 Sunderland 197; 4 Tyne Br 251; 5 NSP 302; 6 Wallsend 333; 7 NE Project 406; 8 Durham 411; 9 Elswick 416; 10 Houghton 467

U20 TEAM: 1 Morpeth 13; 2 Sunderland 28

U17 TEAM: 1 Morpeth 11; 2 Middlesbrough (Mandale) 25; 3 Darlington 36; 4 Tyne BR 54; 5 Elswick 70

U15 TEAM: 1 NSP 27; 2 Darlington 44; 3 Tynedale 50; 4 Gateshead 52; 5 Tyne Br 57; 6 Blaydon 75

U13 TEAM: 1 Darlington 17; 2 NSP 41; 3 Gosforth 51; 4 Blaydon 53; 5 Morpeth 54; 6 Wallsend 57

Women TEAM: 1 Morpeth 45; 2 Gateshead 54; 3 NSP 72; 4 Gosforth 98; 5 Elswick 128; 6 Tyne BR 134; 7 Heaton 136; 8 S Shields 149; 9 Tynedale 182; 10 Jesmond J 213

U20/U17 TEAM: 1 Gateshead 27; 2 NSP 29; 3 Durham 52; 4 Elswick 57; 5 Gosforth 76

U15 TEAM: 1 Darlington 22; 2 Middlesbrough (Mandale) 28; 3 Tynedale 31; 4 NSP 37; 5 Elswick 57; 6 Gosforth 86

U13 TEAM: 1 Birtley 6; 2 Darlington 37; 3 Gateshead 39; 4 Morpeth 49; 5 NSP 54; 6 Gosforth 68

SOUTH OF ENGLAND INTER-COUNTIES, Horspath, Oxford, December 10

Rachel Wiseman might have run in the South of England Masters Championships that was held alongside this event but instead won the senior women’s race for Essex, Martin Duff reports.

In the summer she had won the Southern inter-county 5000m title and tops the UK W40 rankings in that event and the road 5km. Behind, Eliza Hawthorne was the first of several Surrey placers who took the team title.

Numbers in the women’s race were significantly less than in the younger age groups, with just six of the dozen qualifying counties having teams and, as is normal in this fixture, there was no senior or junior men’s inter-county competition.

There were more women in the under-20 race, albeit less teams, but this age group continues to show signs of retaining athletes as they move up the age groups. Here, Alice Garner had one of the biggest wins coming home more than 200 metres clear of Hattie Reynolds as she led Hampshire to a team win.

Ben Peck has been challenging all winter and here got the better of Sam Plummer in the under-17 men’s event and led his Suffolk squad to a solid team win.

There was a close race in the under-17 women’s race before Yasmin Kashdan got home ahead of Annie Mann but her Sussex team were easily headed by Bucks who packed four in the top 11 home.

Alex Lennon has been dominating in the under-15 boys’ events this winter but here was pushed by Noah Scott-Donkin but still led Surrey to a team win.

Isla McGowan is on a purple patch of results, despite being headed in the Milton Keynes UK cross fixture and here enjoyed a 50-metre margin over Katie Pye, who led her Surrey quartet to their team win.

Surrey dominated the under-13 girls’ race but their runners were headed to the line by Sussex’s Isabella Buchanan. While George Watkin narrowly won the under-13 boys’ event.

Surrey came out on top in the overall team stakes with five wins, including a clean sweep of the two youngest age groups.

U17 Men TEAM: 1 Suffolk 48; 2 Essex 53; 3 Hants 65; 4 Herts 72; 5 Kent 75; 6 Surrey 85; 7 Cambridgeshire 107; 8 Sussex 129; 9 Oxfordshire 148; 10 Norfolk 172

U15 TEAM: 1 Surrey 38; 2 Kent 42; 3 Essex 49; 4 Sussex 78; 5 Suffolk 87; 6 Hants 107; 7 Norfolk 135; 8 Cambs 139; 9 Oxon 140; 10 Middx 53; 11 Herts 219; 12 Bucks 290

U13 TEAM: 1 Surrey 34; 2 Kent 55; 3 Essex 56; 4 Sussex 67; 5 Herts 93; 6 Middx 111; 7 Hants 169; 8 Bucks 17; 9 Oxon 194; 10 Cambs 201; 11 Suffolk 277; 12 Norfolk 365

Women TEAM: 1 Surrey 18; 2 Essex 33; 3 Sussex 71; 4 Kent 95; 5 Oxon 106; 6 Suffolk 165

U20 TEAM: 1 Hants 37; 2 Surrey 42; 3 Kent 59; 4 Sussex 77; 5 Middx 95

U17 TEAM: 1 Bucks 20; 2 Sussex 66; 3 Kent 67; 4 Middx 97; 5 Hants 117; 6 Essex 121; 7 Surrey 122; 8 Oxon 124; 9 Cambs 160; 10 Herts 167; 11 Suffolk 321

U15 TEAM: 1 Surrey 53; 2 Kent 86; 3 Suffolk 91; 4 Hants 98; 5 Middx 110; 6 Cambs 114; 7 Sussex 115; 8 Bucks 124; 9 Essex31; 10 Norfolk 151; 11 Oxon 162; 12 Herts 185

U13 TEAM: 1 Surrey 16; 2 Essex 40; 3 Sussex 45; 4 Hants 92; 5 Kent 108; 6 Bucks 133; 7 Middx 147; 8 Oxon 180; 9 Suffolk 198; 10 Herts 220; 11 Cambs 294; 12 Norfolk 376

SOUTH OF ENGLAND MASTERS CHAMPIONSHIPS, Horspath, Oxford, December 10

In a joint match with the South of England under-20 and young athletes’ inter-county match, southern masters again tackled the notorious Horspath hills, Martin Duff reports.

Despite the sunny weather, the frosty and bone hard ground had ruts and the surfaces were uneven but as the day wore on some of the going cut up.

The first three men were away from the rest before Michael Eccles, who was third last year, won for Bure Valley over David Fewell and Paul Howard. Craig Halsey was a well beaten fourth but helped Brighton & Hove City to a comfortable team win.

Behind, Ben Paviour moved up an age group and got the better of last year’s M50 champion Steve Winder but who, in any case, had opted to help his Epsom club to M40 silver team medals by moving down a group.

Andrew Leach and Morris Tarragano were in ahead of fellow M55 Ben Reynolds while, after just turning 60, Mark Cursons topped his new age group. The biggest winning margin was by M65 Tim Jones who was nearly two minutes ahead of David Wilcock.

The over-70 men had to run with the women and saw three-time M75 International Masters winner Peter Giles enjoy a narrow victory over the younger Des Michael in the over-70 race.

The women were all over-40 as the South of England do not recognise W35s as Masters. There, Alexandra Cook, who only competes sparingly, won her second major race in a week after winning the Chiltern League seven days earlier. The Wycombe Phoenix runner just prevailed over Gaby Carnwath with a third W40, Lisa Bailey, also close. They were followed home by a bevy of over-50 runners led by 56-year-old long time cross-country international Lucy Elliott, for a strong Winchester trio, who took team gold.

A minute later, Sophie Biggs led the W50’s ahead of Kathy Bailey. Four minutes down, Lynda Hembury, who tops the road rankings and who has not been headed in her age group for more than a year, led home the W65s.

Men

M40: 1 M Eccles (Bure) 33:38; 2 D Fewell (Chelm) 33:48; 3 P Howard (B&H) 33:56; 4 C Halsey (B&H) 34;39; 5 B Paviour (Herne H, M50) 34:43; 6 S Winder (E&E, M50) 35:07; 7 S Coombes (Herne H, M50) 35:18; 8 M Shore (THH, M45) 35:19; 9 T Jens (Strag, M45) 35:24; 10 J Caignard (Win) 35:31

M45: 3 A Hamilton (BMH) 35:4 9; 4 R Bidgood (Win) 35:58; 5 D Lloyd (Wyc P) 37:06; 6 S Williams (Newq & P) 37:17

M50: 4 D Burbidge (High) 36:56; 5 F Campbell (Head RR) 37:48; 6 F Donnelly (Read RR) 38:16

M55: 1 A Leach (NHRR) 35:52; 2 M Tarragano (B&H) 36:04; 3 B Reynolds (THH) 36:25; 4 M Tennyson (G&G) 37:11; 5 J Ratcliffe (Herne H) 39:24; 6 T Booth (G&G) 39:59

M60: 1 M Cursons (Harrow) 38:35; 2 R Beswick (B&B) 39:09; 3 D Ogden (S Lon) 39:10; 4 C Finill (Harr) 39:37; 5 P Cousins (Hay H) 40:15

M65: 1 T Jones (VoA) 42:51; 2 D Wilcock (Barn) 44:47

Overall TEAM: 1 Brighton & H 24; 2 Epsom & E 44; 3 Herne H 46; 4 Winchester 64; 5 Bure V 72; 6 Harrow 110; 7 Headington RR 111; 8 Thames V 118; 9 Guildford & G 126; 10 Thames H&H 130

M40 TEAM: 1 B&H 19; 2 E&E 34; 3 Winchester 47; 4 Bure V 52; 5 TVH 79; 6 Head RR 90

M50 TEAM: 1 Herne H 16; 2 G&G 38; 3 Read RR 40; 4 Highgate 63; 5 Winchester 80; 6 Head RR 83

M60 TEAM: 1 Barnet 51; 2 Haywards H 51; 3 Reading 62; 4 Winchester 78; 5 Hillingdon 80

M70 race: 1 P Giles (HW, M75) 29:29; 2 D Michael (Barn) 29:38; 3 S Plested (ESM) 30:32

M75: 2 P Newby (THH) 36:22

TEAM: none closed in

Women: 1 A Cook (Wyc P, W40) 23:23; 2 G Carnwath (Herne H, W40) 23:25; 3 L Bailey (Strag) 23:31; 4 L Elliott (Win, W55) 23:43; 5 S Biggs (Strag, W50) 24:42; 6 K Bailey (Win, W50) 25:09

W45: 1 K McIntyre (Strag) 25:34; 2 S Winter (Strag) 25:58; 3 M Hall (Gard CR) 26:01

W50: 3 S Fry (E’bourne) 25:19; 4 J Brown (E’bourne) 25:22; 5 J Gandee (Win) 25:33

W55: 2 A Critchlow (W4H) 25:35; 3 L Lumber (E’brne) 27:37

W60: 1 J Davies (Read RR) 28:08; 2 R Thevenet (Strag) 29:41

W65: 1 L Hembury (Tring) 27:53; 2 G Hueter (Oxf C) 32:36

W70: 1 R Pilbeam (Totton) 38:21

Overall TEAM: 1 Stragglers 19; 2 Winchester 20; 3 Eastbourne 44; 4 Winchester 70; 5 Barnet 76; 6 Reading 102; 7 Reading RR 103; 8 Portsmouth 110; 9 Hillingdon 113; 10 Stragglers B 123

W40 TEAM: 1 Stragglers 15; 2 Portsmouth 49; 3 Reading 63; 4 Stubb G 73; 5 Hillingdon 76

W50 TEAM: 1 Winchester 10; 2 Eastbourne 23; 3 Winchester B 45; 4 Hillingdon 64; 5 Read RR 80

W60 TEAM: 1 Read RR 22; 2 Stragglers 25

More to follow…