We scraped together just enough for men's and women's teams. It was only just after Christmas after all and a number of folks were away. Ensured we cemented our positions in both legs of the championship though!
KFL - Avery Hill Race Report (Rob Bright)
Paddock Wood AC finally got the better of Larkfield AC after a closely fought Kent Fitness League race at New Eltham on Sunday. The two clubs tied on the same number of points in the combined men/women’s team race which led to the contest being decided on final runner placings. Paddock Wood got the verdict, thus ending a run of 4 straight wins for the Larkfield team who still lead the championship by 4 points.
Larkfield had the consolation of providing the individual winner on the day for the first time in the club’s history. 22 year old Gareth Evans is better known as a triathlete and rarely competes in running events. Nevertheless, he found himself at the front of the field after the first mile of the 5.2 mile course around Avery Hill Park and proceeded to build up a lead of about 100 metres by the halfway point. He was chased down in the second half by Cambridge Harriers’ Rob Jackaman, but Evans managed to hang on with a margin of just 25 metres at the finish line. Minor Placings were filled by David Hall (Dartford RR) in third, also the leading over 40, and Mark Wilkins (Invicta) in 4th place.
Paddock Wood’s leading men were James Ridger and Gareth Robb who finished 8th and 10th. Mickael Hegesippe was a good 17th and former champ. Steve Roberts came out of retirement to finish 19th. Medway and Maidstone AC had three runners in the top 20 led in by 17 year old Anthony Pinol in 5th place.
The women’s race was fought out between Annabelle Stearns (Gravesend) and Clare Elms (Dulwich Runners), both leading masters on the Kent Cross Country scene. Elms started to pull away on the second lap and extended her lead to 30 seconds by the finish line. Gemma Marrs, returning to competition after a break came in third for Medway and Maidstone AC about 90 seconds adrift of the leaders. Paddock Wood’s consistent pair this season – Laura Burton and Victoria MacGregor both finished amongst the top 20 to set up their slender victory in the team race.
Meanwhile, Canterbury Harriers have quietly built up a lead of 4 points in the women’s team champs following another great run by Amy Hicks to finish 4th lady with excellent support from Jenni Van Deelen and Barbara Wenman in the top 20. Also, Sittingbourne have made great strides in the league this season – they produced an excellent team performance in the combined to finish 4th on the day (and incidentally, they have published a risqué club calendar).
Thanks as always to New Eltham Joggers for hosting this event and letting us into their nice warm clubhouse. The continuous white line which marked the route might have been less wobbly if Joe and Keith hadn’t hit the bottle the previous night !