Gateshead Harriers Open Medal Meeting

Three of Morpeth Harriers Throws specialists were in winning action at the Gateshead Harriers Open Medal Meeting, held at Gateshead Stadium on Sunday 15th April 2018.

Andrew Knight certainly maintained his excellent early season form in the Under 17 Men’s Shot Putt, by considerably improving on his lifetime personal best achieved in the previous weeks Kieran Maxwell Memorial Meeting at Darlington.

Not once, not twice, but in three of his six allotted Putts, he managed 16.59m, 16.75m,
and a superb 16.96m, which will sit as his new best, all that remains to be seen is, can he further improve.

If the athlete and his coach Paul Reed have anything to do with it, he will,
which will certainly make him uncatchable in his age group for the season.
Closest to him in Sunday’s competition was North Shields Poly’s
James Wordsworth, who on the day produced 13.79m.
Knight will also face Wordsworth in the forthcoming NEYDL Division 1 campaign this season.

Closest to Knight UK wise currently is Stratford’s Lewis Byng, who has a best of 15.79m,
so the Morpeth strongman is certainly in impressive form to say the least.

Although a little bit adrift of his best, Knight’s Morpeth club colleague Ruaridh Lang,
also coached by Reed made a steady start, by hurling a best of 40.78m in the Under 20 Men’s Discus.
Lang’s season will certainly improve as he seeks higher competition opportunities,
in addition to any Morpeth commitments.

In her first outing of the season, Bobbie Griffiths of Morpeth Harriers was a
clear winner of the Women’s Javelin competition, with her best throw of 39.95m.
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Morpeth had only one-track athlete in action, with Olivia Gent clocking 14.90s in the Under 13 Girls 70m Hurdles, which saw her finish fourth, and 32.42s in the 200m, where she was ninth fastest.