ANDY FOX REPORTS ON THE BUZZ AT THE NORTHERN RELAYS

Manx Harriers travelled to Warrington to compete against the cream of the North’s road runners at the weekend. It was a momentous occasion in many ways as the first ladies distance running team travelled off Island since

(probably) the last of the old Cross Country matches against North Wales and Shropshire in 1991. The trip proved to be successful and was a great experience for some of the younger squad members as well those a little longer in the tooth but equally inexperienced. The course at Warrington was “long” and very twisty which slowed times for all competitors somewhat. However, the weather was glorious, and the whole event proved to be quite a spectacle with approaching a thousand athletes competing on the day.

The Ladies were off first in what was a composite Manx team made up of 3 Harriers and 1 veteran club member. Surely there is a sign there for the sport and powers that be on the Island. 63 teams set out on the first of the 2.1 mile legs and Julie Harrison (the team captain) set off strongly. At about 1.5 miles Julie was finding the going tough but she dug deep to record the pleasing time of 13 minutes and 34 seconds to bring the team home in 43rd. place. This was very pleasing as 400m and 800m on the track has traditionally been more to Julie’s liking. The second leg saw Lyn McEvoy set off at a good pace which she kept up throughout her run. In doing so she ran 14.16 and caught 4 other teams. A great effort indeed. Third off was Cal Partington who is turning to running in a serious way now. She ran a storming leg to pass 9 other teams. Her time was 12.47 which was the quickest manx time on the day but also made her 10th. fastest for leg three out of the 52 teams still running at that stage. It was down to Diane Lawrence to bring the team home. Gaps were by now developing and so it was difficult to catch and pass teams. Diane ran well in what could be described as part of her comeback from serious injury. Her time was 13.24 and the team finished in a very creditable 29th. out of the 54 that completed all 4 legs.

This was a very pleasing run by the Manx ladies and hopefully they will feel inspired to compete in more off island events both as a team and individuals over this season. It has to be said that they should be potential team  medallists in the Lancashire Cross Country on this kind of form.

The men’s event was over 6 legs of 4.2 miles each, almost immediately after the Ladies had finished. Darren Gray, making his debut in the event, lead the team off in a fast and furious first leg in which 92 teams competed. Darren was pleased with his time of 22.27 which probably equates to about 21.20/30 for 4 miles. His position at the finish was 44th. which was a good solid start for the Harrier lads. On the second leg another debutante showed his metal. Keith Gerrard set off conservatively and then let rip over the 2nd. and 3rd. miles. He struggled a little over the final kilometre but still recorded the fastest Manx time of the day in 21.36 as he gained 10 places. He was actually the 16th. quickest out of the 90 runners on leg 2 an achievement which suggests he is putting his illness earlier this summer behind him and of course we must not forget that he is still only 17. Next off was Nick Percival, again a debutante in the event, but in a rich vein of form recently. Nick ran an excellent leg to record 22.35 and gain another 4 places for the team placing them in 30th. When one considers the run on Saturday and Nick’s new 5km. PB from August of 16.29 it has to be said that he is putting himself in line for A team on the track next year and probably some big performances over the cross country this winter. Andy Fox was the fourth runner off and ran a solid leg in 22.52 to gain 2 places and put the team in 28th. out of the 82 that completed that leg. Paul Jackson ran leg 5 in what was a great effort. Paul was only drafted into the team 4 days before due to the unavailability of others. Add to that his recent holiday and break from training and his dedication to the cause has to be admired. He ran hard and recorded a time of 26.57 which was very pleasing in the circumstances. He will have learnt greatly from this his first off island competition for the Harriers and will undoubtedly benefit from it in future competitions. That just left the evergreen, and on occasions bright red during the run, Dave Newton to bring the team home. Dave put in his usual 110% effort and recorded the very good time for an over 50 year old of 24.41. This meant the club finished 46th. out of the 75 teams that completed the 6 legs. A very respectable performance indeed.

Certainly all those who competed on the day enjoyed and learnt from the experience. On the journey home there was a definite buzz about the races to come and the big target of the Lancashire Cross Country Champs in early January. It will be interesting to see how these athletes do and whether their efforts on Saturday will inspire others to commit to the cause.