Having qualified from the County Championships, a large group of Rugby & Northampton AC athletes took part in the annual Inter-County cross country championships on Saturday, competing against the rest of the UK. For the U13 boys, Freddie Harris had an outstanding run to claim 141st position and he was accompanied in the team by Jake Clarke and Willoughby Harrison. The U15 boys saw Arthur Tilt shine in finishing in 55th position with Ben Smith not far behind in 84th. Dominic Evans had perhaps had his best run to date whilst finishing in 88th position in the U17 race with further excellent runs from Ned Gilford, Louis Starr and Jasper Cooper. Finlay Ward is in his first year as an U20 but he defied the odds to finish in a superb 41st position. In the senior race, Jack Bond claimed an encouraging 187th place
The female side of the club was also well represented with three members in the U13 race. Claudia Terrell and Joanna Mulreany both had excellent races but it was Olivia McGhee who shone, claiming an incredible 34th position. The U15 race saw Ava Rogerson turn it a stellar performance to finish in 42nd position with Ava Farren, Jemima Cooper and Marni Walker all running really well. Madeleine Jacks was again in fine form to finish in 65th place in the U17 race and she was supported by Grace Darcy and Jemima Lambert.
The outstanding performance of the day, however, fell to Megan Stenhouse in the U20 race. Megan has been making steady improvements in recent times and this was borne out by one of the best ever runs by a R and N athlete. Competing against the elite of the country, Megan finished in an unbelievable 12th position, placing her in the top tier of cross country running in the country. Sophia Hill completed the R and N achievement as she raced to 120th position.
