Athletics: Herne Hill Harriers senior women win Surrey Cross Country League race at Reigate
Herne Hill Harriers senior women’s team returned to winning ways on Mitcham Common on Saturday afternoon after a less than ideal 13th place in the first Surrey League cross country race at Reigate last month had got the team off to a disappointing start to the league season.
The turnout of 15 starters for this second league fixture was almost double the number who ran at the first race. The result moved them up to fifth in Division One at the midway point.
Herne Hill were superbly led by Steph McCall’s individual race-winning return, which will be an inspiration to other athletes who have been on the sidelines with injury for lengthy periods of time.
Superb back-up came in the form of Helena Corbin 14th, Sarah Grover 18th, Fiona de Mauny 20th and Julia Wedmore 24th as the entire Harriers A team of five runners closed in a higher position than their first finisher had at Reigate.
The B team of Katie Kedward 56th, Susan Mair 93rd, U20 Jemima Hayward-Bhika 109th, Sam Whiting 128th and Jess Winfield 133rd placed 21st overall of the 30 A and B teams.
The remaining Surrey League races are January 11 and February 8.
The U13 girls team scored a fine team win and also supplied the race winner as Lily-Rose Brown was first home. Eva O’Hanlon was fourth, Vivi Marshall was sixth and Grace O’Hanlon closed the winning A team in eighth place.
Further back-up was provided by Izzy Perry in ninth and Abbey Jeffcoat 14th.
There was only one U17 woman racing as Harriet Alexander placed 10th in her category. The sole U15 female representative was Sophia Ezeh in 29th.
There were Herne Hill U20 and U17 women racing at the British Athletics Cross Challenge race at Milton Keynes, where Phoebe Anderson (U20) was 15th with U17s Maisie Collis and Annabel Hobday finishing 60th and 74th.
At the men’s and boys’ Surrey League races on a very wet Wimbledon Common, Herne Hill supplied one individual race winner as Josh Lee-Baum came home first in the U13 boy.
His team were second – Oak Buchan ran well to finish fourth, Fabien Whitelock was 26th, Jon Goldston placed 28th and Barnabus Woodcraft was 32nd.
The combined U17/U15 team placed fourth, with Sam Camenzuli 13th, Charlie Krammer 19th, Harvey Kande 25th, Jacob Alley 43rd, Sammy Morgan 49th, Robin Bebbington 56th, Evan Cowell-New 62nd, Alexander Spaul 63rd, Diego Lister 66th and David Aisa-Miller 67th.
Herne Hill senior men’s A team placed sixth.
Nick Dewar came 27th which also earned him the accolade of being the 300th different Herne Hill A team scorer in the history of the league.
Remaining A team members were Richard Henderson 29th, Mike Cummings 32nd, Angus Butler 41st, Andrew Warburton 43rd, Andrew Clarke – in his last race before heading off to work in Egypt – 45th, Brandon Dewar 46th, Jack Dickenson 61st, Joe Elliott 62nd and M45 Simon Coombes 64th.
The B team of 10 were second behind the all-conquering Kent AC squad, courtesy of Josh Pewter, Jack Brotchie, Eoin Brady, Alex Hobley, Matt Cartwright, Raj Paranandi, Matthew Munro, Andrew Grigg, Myles Preston and Oliver Walker.
U20 Arlo Ludewick placed an excellent fifth in the Manchester League cross country, racing for his university team.
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