Northumberland Schools Track & Field Championships

Hurdles specialist Amy Lott (left) in action in the 75m Hurdles at Hexham

A total of thirty-five athletes from the ranks of Morpeth Harriers took part in the annual Northumberland Schools Track and Field Championships, held at the Tynedale Athletics Track at Wentworth Leisure Centre in Hexham,
on Saturday 9th June 2018.

Out of those athletes, a total fourteen wins, ten second places, and four third places were achieved, along with nine new personal bests, that also included three brand new championship bests, one of them being inaugural.

A most notable championship best, was the one achieved by Senior Girl Bobbie Griffiths,
whose best throw of 38.46m, broke the previous figures by slightly over two metres.
It also saw Griffiths achieve the remarkable feat of having produced championship bests
in all of her age groups in schools’ competitions.
Griffiths was also Morpeth’s only Senior Girl in action at the event.

Morpeth’s two other Championship bests came from their Junior Girls section.
In the sports heaviest event, i.e. the Hammer, Jessica Gardiner threw a new personal best of 35.94m,
which was not only a new personal best for the 3kg weight, it also beat the old best by a massive eleven metres.

Another Morpeth athlete alongside Gardiner in the event was Hurdles specialist Amy Lott,
whose modest effort of 20.19m gave her third place.
Gardiner also won the 1kg Discus, with a best of 25.94m.

In what was a new inaugural event, Morpeth’s Mia Belton snatched victory from
North Tyneside’s Alicia Beverley in the Junior Girls 300m,
setting a new personal and championship best of 43.9s.

Gardiner and Belton were two of Morpeth’s four winners from the Junior Girls events,
with the other two coming from Hurdler Amy Lott, and Javelin specialist Alice Geoghegan.

After achieving a new personal best of 11.5s in her earlier run heat of the 75m Hurdles,
Lott produced 11.7s to win her final from Tynedale’s Kate Smith, with third place
going to her Morpeth club colleague Geoghegan in 12.4s, having achieved
third place in her earlier heat, by producing a lifetime best of 12.2s.

Geoghegan had her moment of glory in the Field however, by winning the Javelin,
by producing a personal best effort of 25.66m, winning by a clear two metres
from another club colleague Rosie Winter (23.81m).

Winter also finished second in the Junior Girls 200m in 27.4s,
after earlier finishing second in her heat, when posting a new personal best of 27.3s.

Another Morpeth second placing, came in the 800m, when Rhiannon Hedley
posted a time of 2m23.6s, which was around a couple of seconds adrift of her lifetime best.

Another Morpeth Junior Girl in action was Rebecca Bradley,
who finished fourth in the 1500m, posting a new personal best time of 5m13.4s.

An equal number of Morpeth winners came in the Senior Boys events,
courtesy of Matthew Waterfield (400m) in 50.8s, Rory Leonard (800m) 1m55.0s, a new personal best,
Kieran Hedley (1500m), a seasons best of 3m57.6s, and Ruaridh Lang (1.75kg Discus) 40.52m.
Taylor Glover finished second to Hedley in the 1500m in 4m03.1s.

The biggest Morpeth participation on the day, came from the Junior Boys,
where no less than ten athletes from the club were in competitive action.

They managed two firsts, two seconds, and one third, with no less than five new personal bests being produced.
The two wins came from Ben Waterfield in the 800m, and Daniel Dowd in the Javelin.

North Eastern Under 15 Boys Champion Waterfield, took the 800m title in 2m10.9s,
winning by just under two seconds from Tynedale athlete Charlie Daley.

Other Morpeth athletes competing in the 800m were Dylan Gooding,
who finished fourth, posting a new personal best time of 2m17.9s,
and Bobby Stone, who was ninth in a seasons best 2m24.7s.

Meanwhile Dowd won the Javelin with a best throw of 36.08m,
winning by just under nine metres from North Tyneside’s Jay Harvey.

Ben Waterfield just lost out on countback in the High Jump to Tynedale’s Rhys Findlay, with a clearance of 1.55m.
Bobby Stone finished sixth in the competition, with a new personal best clearance of 1.40m.

Euan Duffin posted new figures of 4m27.0s, when finishing an excellent second to
North Shields Poly athlete Josh Blevins of North Tyneside in the 1500m.
Other Morpeth Harriers competing in the Junior Boys 1500m were
Ben Walker (7th) 4m51.7s, and Dylan Davies (8th) 4m54.7s.

Max Marr produced new figures of 5.28m, when finishing third in the Long Jump.
On the track, Marr finished second in his heat of the 100m, posting a new personal best of 12.5s,
however in the later run final, he could only clock 12.9s, which saw him finish fifth.

Morpeth’s Josh Adams posted new figures of 25.4s, when finishing third in his heat of the 200m,
but despite improving even more to 25.3s in the later run final, it was only good enough for fifth.

In the 300m, Morpeth’s Charlie Lane qualified for the final by finishing third in his heat with 41.7s,
however in the later run final, he finished fifth in 42.4s.

The Intermediate Boys events saw the Morpeth contingent produce two wins,
two seconds, and two thirds, and no less than five personal bests.

Rowan Bennett won the 1500m final in 4m13.5s, winning by almost three seconds
from club colleague Tom Balsdon, who posted brand new figures of 4m16.2s.

Other Morpeth Harriers in action in the 1500m were Ross Charlton, who finished fourth in 4m30.7s,
and Andrew Hudspith, who finished ninth, in a new personal best of 4m49.1s.

The other Morpeth Intermediate Boy winner was Ethan Stephenson,
who despite a slight injury produced 12.70m in the Triple Jump.
Matthew Heslop produced excellent new figures of 11.78m, when finishing third.

The 3000m, saw Newcastle athlete Sam Charlton, who runs for Wallsend Harriers,
produce a new championship best of 8m58.4s, as Morpeth’s Daniel Melling finished second in 9m36.3s.

David Sanderson of Morpeth finished third in the 1.5kg Discus, producing a best effort of 27.89m.

Despite running two seasons bests of 12.1s and 24.9s respectively in the Intermediate Boys
100m and 200m Heats, Morpeth’s Robbie Anderson finished fifth and fourth in the respective later run finals,
where he posted times of 12.2s and 25.7s.

Holly Peck’s win in the 1500m (5m02.8s), and Lily Heaton’s second in the 800m (2m27.6s),
were the best Morpeth track performances to come from the Intermediate Girls events.

Heaton had also run a personal best of 45.4s, when finishing fourth in a tough 300m final,
having clocked 45.6s in her earlier run heat.

In the Intermediate Girls Field Events, Morpeth’s Elena Saunders finished
second in the 3kg Shot, with a personal best effort of 10.10m.
She also produced a personal best effort when finishing sixth in the 500g Javelin, with 16.85m.