Hercules Wimbledon round-up: SAL Division Two victory maintains 100 per cent start as promotion hopes grow

Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club won round two of the Southern Athletics League Division Two West at Carshalton last weekend, writes George Mallett.

The Wimbledon Park-based club have won their opening two fixtures and have high hopes of promotion to the top division at the end of the year.

Team manager Keith Scofield was proud of his athletes but is keen to keep the momentum going into the final fixtures.

He said: “It was a brilliant team win against a strong Basingstoke side at home, meaning we now go into tough away matches at Oxford and Aldershot.

“We need everyone out and all showing the same can-do attitude but it was brilliant seeing all the sprints and endurance events being dominated by the club.”

Freddie Arkell is an U20 athlete is multiple national junior finalist and proved unafraid of mixing it with the senior athletes.

He was almost two-tenths of a second clear of his nearest opposition to win the men’s A 100m in 10.89s. Antonio Douglas’ 11.11 in the B 100m ensured a clean sweep.

Devonte Casely-Hayford was second in the A 200m race (23.24), narrowly ahead of U20 Dominic Smith-Fray (23.32) who ensured maximum points in the B string.

The women went one better, winning A and B strings in the m and 200m. Hannah Bell (12.48) was a clear winner in the 100m A race with Kyra Stone second on the track and winner of the B race in 12.91.

Both athletes rallied to do the same over 200m ensuring some useful points in the sprints.

Momentum continued over one lap for the men and it is all the more impressive considering both athletes are U17s. Conor Kelly ran 50.94 to win the A string by more than 3.5 seconds and Joshua Martin finished second overall to comfortably win the 400m B race (52.99).

Hercules’s distance squad have shown considerable form on the roads and cross-country and have carried this through to the track by winning all male events with the exception of the steeplechase. Will Leslie’s 1:59.54 saw him lead a Hercules one-two with Oliver Carrington closing well to take the B-string in 1:59.83.

Carrington came back to win the 1,500m A race thanks to a strong final kick. He said: “It was great to battle with my training partners in the 800m and 1,500m. It’s really built up the excitement for what’s to come for the rest of the season.”

Carrington battled with Daniel Cliffe, who comfortably won the B-string 1,500m. Cliffe’s run came shortly after he was a clear winner in the 3,000m (8:45.64). Joe Croft ensured yet another clean sweep by winning the B string.

Bettina Urlbauer dipped under 2:30 to win the women’s 800m A race, with Ariana Shala second in the women’s B race.

Matilde Lomba won the A races in both the 1,500m and 5,000m. Gina Galbraith ensured a 5,000m sweep with a B string win, finishing in the exact same time and unable to be separated from Lomba in a photo finish. Lomba was backed up by Niamh Thompson, the U20 took second in the 1,500m B race.

Lulu Weisz competed in four events. She won the womens’s A 400m hurdles, with Victoria Johnston taking the B string, as well as the Women’s A Triple Jump.

There were further wins for Pete McLeod in the men’s A triple jump and Mark Andrews in the B string, Victoria Johnston in the women’s B 400m hurdles, Niamh Thompson and Lisa Thomas in the women’s A and B 1,500m steeplechase and the men’s 4x100m team.