Saturday 27th January saw Rugby and Northampton AC athletes take part in the Midland
Counties Cross Country Championships at Newbold Comyn Leamington. It was an absolutely
incredible day for the club, with three athletes becoming Midlands Counties individual champions
and two teams also becoming Midland Counties champions. In addition there were two individual
silver medals and one bronze achieved, and one silver team award and two bronze team awards,
together with a host of other excellent performances demonstrating the club’s strength.
The under 13 Girls race started proceedings, with a competitive race seeing Amelie Heron leading
home our team in a creditable 21st position. The under 13 Boys ran with the utmost
determination, and were rewarded with an unexpected silver medal in the team event. Congratulations to the team of Miles Taylor, David Allen, Alex Kampta and Isaac Brierley- York!
In the under 15 Girls race Olivia McGhee became the Midland Counties champion, with an
unchallenged victory. Claudia Terrell and Esther and Merryn Hutchins-Morant all ran with great
resolve ; the efforts of the four girls were rewarded with an excellent bronze team medal. The
under 15 Boys missed a team medal by just two points.They were led home by Jack Twining in
20th position, with Stanley Sage close behind in 21st.
The under 17 Men all ran superbly, with the team becoming Midland Counties champions with a
very convincing victory. Ibrahim Achchi in 2nd and Malachy Collins in 3rd both gained individual
medals, and the team scoring was completed by Arthur Tilt in 7th and Ben Smith in 8th. In the
under 17 Women’s race Ava Rogerson achieved a creditable 25th place.
Rugby and Northampton’s under 20 Men were most impressive. Finlay Ward ran an excellent race
to become Midland Counties individual champion, and the team also became Midland
champions, with determined runs from Thomas Brinkley, Louis Starr, Ned Gilford and Dominic
Evans. All of Rugby and Northampton’s competitors in this race gained top 19 places. Our under
20 women added a bronze team medal to the club’s haul, with strong runs from Madeleine Jacks
6th, Grace Darcy 10th and Jemima Lambert 26th.
The club’s Senior Women worked hard to gain 12th team place out of 22 teams. This race
incorporated the Midland Masters’ championships, and two Rugby and Northampton runners
gained medals in their age categories – Kate Williams with a silver medal and Angela Copson with
a gold. Well done to you both! The final race of the day was the Senior Men, and Rugby and
Northampton achieved a creditable 9th place out of 21 teams. The team were led home by
George Goodwin who gained a superb 13th place in a very competitive field of almost 300
runners.
It was a superb day of cross country running, and every competitor from the club played a vital
part in the great overall success for Rugby and Northampton AC. Congratulations to all the club’s
runners.
