Pembrey Country Park staged the annual cross-country clash between England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland

England dominated the 2022 SIAB Schools Cross Country International as they took the six team events and 11 of the 12 available individual medals and all four individual titles on a bright, sunny day in Wales on Saturday (March 26).

Jake Meyburgh had been the only athlete this year over any age group to achieve a UK Inter-Counties, English National, English Schools and English area title but he was unable to win a sixth major title this year as English Schools runner-up Alex Lennon, who is normally in the under-15 age group to Meyburgh’s under-13, repeated his Surrey Schools victory with a 14:06 win to 14:12 in this junior boys’ race.

England took the first five places with Isaac Stabler third in 14:14 as Ireland’s Sean Corry was the best of the rest in sixth.

The only athlete to achieve an English Schools and Schools International double was junior girl Shaikira King. She used her track speed to fight off the challenge of English National champion Isabella Waugh with a 10:52 clocking to 10:55.

England took the first six places in this junior girls’ race with Isla McGowan a close third in 10:57. In seventh, Scotland’s Freya Campbell was the best non-English athlete, just ahead of Wales’ Millie Gold in eighth.

In the English Schools intermediate girls race in Kent earlier this month, English National champion Jess Bailey had fought off the challenge of Innes Fitzgerald. However Fitzgerald, who has unusually only ever raced schools races and parkruns, was a clear winner on Saturday, the biggest of the day, in 14:41 to Bailey’s 15:07.

The former English Schools and English National winner Zoe Gilbody, who is a year younger than the top two, was third in 15:16 as again England had the top six.

Wales Beca Bown in seventh and Ireland’s Clodagh Gill in eighth were the only athletes to get among the English competitors.

The English were less dominant in the intermediate boys’ contest as English National champion Robert Price, who is a year younger than most of his opponents, reversed English Schools form with Brandon Pye as he won in 20:36 and he was followed in by Ireland’s Cormac Dixon (20:42) with Pye third in 20:46.

Scotland’s Corey Campbell was a close fourth in 20:47 as England had to wait until 13th for their final scorer though they still won very easily.

England’s intermediate mixed 4x1500m relay team of Miles Waterworth, Rebecca Flaherty , Matthew Pickering and Scarlett Livingstone won in 19:59 from Ireland’s 20:25, Scotland’s 20:30 and Wales’ 20:32.

RESULTS: SIAB Schools International

The order was slightly different in the junior relay which Finlay Goodman, Katie Webb, Ruben Price and Eva Jha combined for a 20:50 victory ahead of Ireland (21:13), Wales (21:20) and Scotland (21:40).