Nine new personal bests were achieved by the 14 athletes from Morpeth Harriers & AC who competed at the sixth and final meeting of the NEGP series, sponsored once again by Start Fitness, and held as usual at Jarrow’s Monkton Stadium, on 10 August.
Eight athletes from the club took part in some very competitive 800m events, and Ross Charlton achieved a new personal best of 1m59.38s, the first time that the Modern Pentathlon Champion had got below the two-minute barrier, taking two and a half seconds off the last figures he had set in 2019. Two places behind Charlton was his young club colleague Joseph Close. The Under 17 athlete took a whole second off his previous figures when he crossed the finish line, posting a time of 1m59.93s. Bertie Marr was the next Morpeth Harrier to finish in the fastest 800m, two places behind Close in eighth spot, posting a new personal best time of 2m01.03s and taking a whole five seconds off his previous figures. Ralph Robson finished eleventh in the fastest 800m, posting a finishing time of 2m06.13s. In the second fastest 800m, Elliot Mavir took a second off his previous best when finishing eighth in 2m09.0s. Caitlin Flanagan took three seconds off her previous best, when finishing fifth in the third fastest 800m, posting a time of 2m19.42s. In the fourth fastest heat, fellow Morpeth Harrier and Under 17 athlete Tabitha Robson, younger sister of Ralph, improved her best by nine seconds for 800m, when she finished seventh, posting a finishing time of 2m28.80s. Charlotte Marshall improved her 800m time by five seconds when finishing fifth in the sixth fastest heat, posting a time of 2m49.54s. Charlotte’s elder brother Connor was a prominent figure in the fastest of two 3000m events, finishing third, with new figures of 8m43.97s for the seven and a half lap event, improving on his previous best by sixteen seconds. One place behind Connor, but around nine seconds adrift of him, was Under 17 club colleague Will DeVere-Owen, who posted a finishing time of 8m52.81s for his efforts. A Morpeth athlete who continues to show significant improvement is Under 20 Man James Tilley. James improved on his previous best by nineteen seconds, when finishing sixth, posting a time of 8m58.34s. Two places behind James was Under 15 Boy Ollie Calvert, who was running the distance for the first time. He posted a finishing time of 9m15.31s. Under 17 Ryan Davies posted a season’s best of 9m44.13s when finishing fourteenth. Under 15 Boy Harry Armstrong was also tackling the distance for the first time. He finished eleventh in the second fastest event, posting figures of 11m30.26s. The annual series of rural show across the county got underway at Powburn on 6 August in August, with the event again incorporating the lung-bursting 4 mile hill race.
Won by leading Northumberland fell runner Nick Swinburn in 29 minutes 7 seconds, Morpeth’s Richie Hughes, also in his NFRA vest, had a good run to come back in 7th place in 32 minutes with Paul Banks 19th in 36:20. The 8th Gateshead Trail Race took place on 13 August over a 10k route through the Derwent Walk Country Park with a start and finish at Blaydon Rugby Club.
With well over a thousand finishers the event continues to grow in popularity with six Harriers well placed in the final results. Won by James Nettleton in a time of 33 minutes 23 seconds with Blaydon’s Matthew Armstrong 2nd in 33:56, Morpeth’s Richard Johnson was in 3rd place in 34:05. Cat Macdonald had an excellent run once again to finish just outside the top ten overall but 1st Female athlete with a run of 37:59. Sarah Lawson was 45th and 5th Senior Female in 42:33 with Lindsey Quinn 66th and 7th in 44:03. Harry Armstrong made the top 100 in 98th and was 3rd U/18 in 45:21 with Margaret Macdonald 756th in 1:02:34. Temperatures in the mid twenties were not the only challenge to be overcome by runners taking part in the Quayside 3k and 5k races on 10 August, with the balmy weather bringing out hundreds to wine, dine and wander by the River Tyne but in the process creating something of an obstacle course which added to the existing benches and bollards along the northern banks of the river.
The event continues to grow its reputation as the fastest 5k race in the North East, with this year a number of runners from Leeds City making the journey up the A1 to take part while the race also incorporated this year the NECAA 5k Championships. The evening’s preliminary race, a 3k event for runners below the age of 17, saw Gateshead Harrier Josh Blevins 1st finisher in 8 minutes 57 seconds with Morpeth’s Millie Breese, whose efforts over the Summer have been very much focussed on the Triathlon, coming home in 10m 25s as 1st female finisher in 12th place overall. The first of the evening’s 5k races, an elite event for those able to run sub 20 minutes, saw a leading group featuring 2022 Blaydon Race winner Gateshead’s Calum Johnson quickly establish itself with Leeds City’s Graham Rush, 2nd to Johnson at Blaydon, also prominent. There was to be no catching Johnson as he raced away from the rest of the field to finish in 14:11, only an agonising one second off his own course record. Over 35 Rush was 2nd in 14:24 with NSP Harrier Dave Green 3rd in 14:46. Matthew Briggs was Morpeth’s first finisher, coming home in 15:21 in 7th place with new signing from Jarrow and Hebburn AC, Peter Smallcombe, next back in 15:38 in 12th place. Smallcombe was also 2nd U/20, with fellow U/20 Joe Armstrong 18th and 4th O/20 in 15:56. Andy Lawrence was 34th and 9th O/35 in 16:27, John Butters 45th in 16:47, and Mark Snowball 46th in 16:50. Butters, whose efforts over the Summer have been focussed on much longer and much hillier terrain was also 1st in the O/45 category. Anthony Liddle was 95th in 17:49 while O/65 Dave Nicholson was another category winner in 20:17. The women’s field was headed home by another Leeds City athlete, Georgia Malir, who finished in 17:10, with Sunderland Stroller’s Olympian marathon runner Aly Dixon 2nd in 17:45. Morpeth’s Cat Macdonald was 3rd woman home in 17:57 on a night that was very much a Macdonald family affair, with father Alistair finishing in 19:35 (174th and 4th O/55) just ahead of daughters, Lorna, 185th in 19:59, and Lindsey, 207th in 20:24. Margaret Macdonald had a fine run in the busier B race, finishing in 29:00. Gary Hall came 36th with a time of 20:33. It was a profitable journey down the A1 for the three Morpeth Harriers who travelled to Darlington on Sunday for the popular and oversubscribed Darlington 10k.
The well-supported two lap route through the town had over a thousand finishers with three from the club at the sharp end. Carl Avery was 1st home in 30 minutes 21 seconds with Finn Brodie 2nd in 30:34. Club colleague Alex Brown was 4th in 30:45, with only Billingham Marsh House Harrier Liam Aldridge separating them in 3rd place in 30:38. Alice Crane of Durham University was 1st Female finisher in 35:44, with Liverpudlian veteran Kirsty Longley 2nd in 35:53 and fellow vet Catherine Williamson of Loftus and Whitby 3rd in 37:31. |
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