Sunday 11th February saw Rugby and Northampton AC’s youngsters travel to Aldersley Stadium, Wolverhampton for the final race of the West Midlands Cross Country League. All our young athletes competed with determination on a wet and muddy course.
The fifth league race saw many great performances.
In the under 17 Women’s race Rebecca Eaton continued to show fine form, with an excellent 6th place. Jemima Cooper also gained a top twenty place, finishing in 16th. The under 17 Men dominated the team race on the day, with great runs from Ibrahim Achchi in second place and Arthur Tilt in third. The ever reliable and ever consistent Dylan Mander completed the scoring team in 14th position.
The under 15 Girls team have had a tremendous league season, and again stormed to victory in the team race. Olivia McGhee led the team home with her fifth victory in five league races, and all five scoring runners finished in the top 19. In addition to Olivia’s first place, Peyton Almond was 7th, Claudia Terrell 13th, Merryn Hutchins-Morant 18th and Esther Hutchins-Morant 19th. The under 15 Boys achieved third place in the team competition, with Jack Twining the leading Rugby and Northampton runner in 11th place.
The under 13 Girls ran hard against very strong competition, led home by Amelie Heron in 23rd position. The under 13 Boys packed extremely well with five runners in the top 34, to gain third team place.
The under 11 Girls all ran with great fortitude, and Elsie Rudkin-Wilson continued her great league form with 7th individual place. The under 11 Boys achieved an excellent second place in the team race on the day, as Jan Hemmington in 7th and Rex Nicklin in 9th led the team home.
As this was the final league race of the season, overall awards were decided. Rugby and Northampton AC claimed first place overall in the team competition! The tremendous team effort of the under 15 Girls throughout the five league races saw them gain first team place overall, while the under 11 Boys, under 13 Boys and under 17 Men all achieved second places overall in their team competitions. The under 15 Boys grabbed third team place overall. Olivia McGhee’s tremendous performances in all the league races gave her a well deserved individual first place overall in the under 15 Girls category. Ibrahim Achchi’s dedication was rewarded with individual second place overall in the under 17 Men age group.
Congratulations to all the young athletes who have participated in the West Midlands Cross Country League this season; every one of you made a contribution to the magnificent success of the club in winning the overall league title. Well done