Steve Smythe continues our end-of-season merit rankings by taking a look at the under-17 performances

This event was fairly easy to rank. Will Barnicoat won the National and Inter-Counties and was first under-17 in the English Schools and the Liverpool and Milton Keynes under-20 races. He also ran well for Britain in the European under-20 race. His one loss of note was a narrow defeat in the South of England race.

Road 5km record-holder Flynn Jennings followed him home in the National and a number of other races and narrowly gets the edge over Loughborough runner-up Oliver Smart who missed the National.

National bronze medallist Mo Ali follows.

Hamish Reilly gets fifth following his Inter-Counties bronze and he beat Northern champion Archie Lowe in two big races. The Middlesbrough athlete takes sixth spot.

Northern runner-up Matthew Knowles was consistently good and ranks seventh.

ESAA intermediate champion Fraser Sproul, who was third in the Northern race, is the best of the first years in the age group and ranks eighth.

Louis Small, who was second in the ESAA race, was not helped by a poor National but he did win at Liverpool and completes the top 10 alongside Southern champion Matt Taylor who ran well apart from a slight blip at the Schools race.

Welsh champion Osian Perrin needed more races to rank higher than 11th but did beat Stirling winner Jenson Connell in two early season races.

Midlands champion Liam Rawlings was also fourth in the National but otherwise did not hit those heights.

Harry Hudson, who had a consistent record, is 14th ahead of Kent champion Oliver Bright, who ran well in the National but less so in the other big races.

National seventh-placer Alexander Parson was not helped by a 64th at Loughborough but ranks above Fergus Scott, ESAA bronze medallist Woody Jerome, Rhys Archer and Thomas Archer, who all finished the season well.

Just missing out are Matthew Ramsden, Raif Serif and Scottish champion Lucas Cairns, who was not helped by a 27th at Loughborough and 41st at Cardiff.

Athletes who achieved the following were considered for the rankings: Top 25: Milt K (6 U17); Top 20 ESSB (10 U17); Top 15: CAU, National; Top 10: ESIB; Top 8: Liverpool; Top 5: Sth, Cardiff; Top 3 Mids, Nth, Scotland, Stirling

Key of major events: BBO = BUCS = British Univ, Card = Cardiff, CAU = Inter-Counties, EC = European, ECR = English X Relays, Elgoibar = Elg, ESIB = English Schools Inter Boys, ESSB = English Schools senior boys, Kerk = Kerkrade, Liv = Liverpool, LYG = London Youth Games, Mids = Midlands,  Mil K = Milton Keynes, Nat = National; NE = North East, Nth = North, NSIC = Northern Schools IC,Rots= Rotselaar, Santi = Santiponce, ScEDL = Scottish East District League, Sco = Scotland, SCR= Scottish Relays, SES = South East Schools, SSC = Scottish short course, Sth = South, Stirl = Stirling, SWIC = South West Inter Counties, SWS = South West Schools, Tri C = Tri Counties

1 Will Barnicoat (WSEH) (2019: 3)
1 Nat 22:42, 1 CAU 20:41, 5 ESSB (1 U17) 21:06, 2 Sth 21:54, 5 Liv U20 21:35, 22 EC 19:30, 6 Mil K (1 U17) 18:59, 1 SES 22:54, 1 Holly, 1 BBO, ECR 9:17

2 Flynn Jennings (Bide) (2019: -)
2 Nat 22:46, 5 CAU 21:09, 6 ESSB (2 U17) 21:07, 3 Sth 21:55, 1 SWIC 18:20, 15 Liv U20 22:02 (2 U17), 11 Mil K 19:09 (3 U17), 1 Card 17:12, 2 Devon, 1 Dev Sch

3 Oliver Smart (Tav) (2019: 6)
2 CAU 20:52, 8 ESSB (3 U17) 21:17, 2 SWIC 18:47, 1 SWS, 1 Devon, 56 Liv U20 22:53, 10 Mil K 19:08 (2 U17), 2 Card 17:16

4 Mo Ali (ESM) (2019: 4)
3 Nat 23:23, 8 CAU 21:34, 11 ESSB 21:24 (4 U17), 4 Sth 22:17, 1 SIC 15:08, 1 Lon Sch, 1 Midx

5 Hamish Reilly (M&M) (2019: -)
3 CAU 20:55, 19 ESSB 21:51 (9 U17), 7 Kent, 1 Sx Lge 30/11

6 Archie Lowe (M’bro) (2019: -)
4 CAU 21:06, 12 Nat 23:50, 1 Nth 19:50, 34 ESSB 22:15, 2 Stirl 19:59,4 Liv 18:33, 1 NSIC 23:51, 1 NE 20:12, ECR 9:09, NCR 6:56

7 Matthew Knowles (L&M) (2019: -)
6 CAU 21:11, 12 ESSB 21:25 (5 U17), 2 Nth 19:51, 5 Liv 18:39, 1 Lancs, 1 Lancs Sch, ECR 9:29

8 Fraser Sproul (Kend) (2019: 3 U15)
10 Nat 23:42, 1 ESIB 18:08; 3 Nth 20:04; 1 NSIC 20:13, 19 Liv 19:02, 23 Mil K 19:27, 1 DS 20:18, 1 Cumb, ECR 9:32

9 Louis Small (Ash) (2019: 1 U15)
7 CAU 21:15, 2 ESIB 18:14, 32 Nat 24:31, 7 Sth 22:48, 1 Liv 18:26, 3 Card 17:38, 4 SIC 15:23, 2 Kent, SthCR 10:09, Kt Lge, 1, 1

10 Matt Taylor (Ton) (2019: 8 U15)
5 Nat 23:28, 9 CAU 21:35, 15 ESIB 19:03, 1 Sth 21:50, 1 Kent Sch, 3 Kent, 5 SIC 15:25, ECR 9:45, Kt Lge 3, 2, 2, 2

11 Osian Perrin (Menai) (2019: -)
1 Wel 15:42, 11 Liv 18:48, 4 Card 17:40, 16 Stirl U20 24:48

12 Jenson Connell (Mans) (2019: -)
9 Nat 23:40, 18 ESSB 21:47 (8 U17), 26 CAU 22:07, 1 Stirl 19:39, 15 Liv 18:55, 32 Mil K 19:38, 10 Card 18:10, 1 Derb, ECR 9:17

13 Liam Rawlings (Osw) (2019: 16)
4 Nat 23:26, 40 CAU 22:25, 27 ESSB 22:04, 1 Mids 20:07, 37 Liv 19:30, 27 Mil K 19:33, 22 Card 18:33, 1 Shrops, 1 Shrops Sch

14 Harry Hudson (KuH) (2019: -)
15 Nat 23:55, 10 CAU 21:37, 31 ESSB 22:11, 8 Nth 20:29, 1 Humbs, ECR 9:34, NCR 7:37

15 Oliver Bright (B&B) (2019: -)
6 Nat 23:30, 22 CAU 22:13, 33 ESSB 22:13, 1 Kent, 2 Lon Sch, 2 LYG 16:56, 1 KL 13/12, ECR 9:21

16 Alexander Parsons (Bath) (2019: -)
7 Nat 23:32, 64 CAU 22:57, 29 ESSB 22:06, 9 SWS 23:08, 4 SWIC 19:12, 13 Liv 18:51, 38 Mil K 19:55, 23 Card 18:35, 1 Tri C 17:38, 1 Avon Sch

17 Fergus Scott (R&N) (2019: -)
8 Nat 23:32, 3 Mids 20:18, 13 ESSB 21:29 (6 U17), 105 Mil K 22:33, ECR 9:09

18 Woody Jerome (AFD) (2019: 9 U15)
11 CAU 21:38, 3 ESIB 18:22, 27 Nat 24:24, 1 SySch, 8 SIC 15:39, Hants Lge 6, 1, 3, 2

19 Rhys Ashton (L&M) (2019: 6 U15)
11 Nat 23:44, 4 ESIB 18:24, 13 CAU 21:48, 28 Liv 19:18, 1 Lancs, 2 Mid Lancs Lge 9/11, ECR 9:53, NCR 7:29

20 Thomas Archer (Lon Hth) (2019: 14 U15)
13 Nat 23:51, 6 ESIB 18:36, 17 CAU 21:55, 5 Sth 22:39, 7 Liv 18:43, 6 SIC 15:35,4 LYG 17:19, 1 NOT 15:40, 3 Knole 4 Midx, 1 Esx Sch, 1 Met L: 14:01

Click here for senior men’s rankings and here for senior women’s. Under-20 men’s and women’s rankings can be found here and here.