NYSD Cross Country Eston - 4th November 2007

Kelley Haniver

Richmond and Zetland Harriers continued to go from strength to strength in the third of the NYSD Cross Country league meetings at Flatts Lane Country Park, Eston on Sunday 4th November; a completely new venue on the calendar. With 33 competing athletes, the team once again did themselves proud, as there were numerous team wins and fantastic individual performances. Overall the Club claimed 3 team victories, throughout the day on the hilly course, racing through woodland and across fields.

The Under 13 Boys got proceedings underway once again and did not disappoint, with what is becoming an habitual victory, with Fergus Roberts well clear of the rest of the field, while James King was second athlete home overall and Daniel Overin took a fantastic 4th position, putting the team in a fantastic position. Andrew Parkinson had another great run to finish 15th overall and team mates Thomas Bingley and Ben Purkiss rounded off another great performance, crossing the line in 22nd and 23rd place to bring the team into first place. Amy Coulson continues to get better and stronger in the Under 13 Girls age group, coming in 2nd overall and with Rosie Stirr and Kerry Robson putting in strong runs to take 17th and 24th places respectively, the team finished a convincing 3rd on the day.

Maddy Winzer once again reigned supreme in the Under 15 Girls race, beating close competition on this occasion and had the additional company of fellow Richmond and Zetland athlete, Rachel Holloway, who put in a good performance to take 23rd position in the field. A good day was about to get even better, when the seemingly unstoppable quartet in the Under 15 Boys event, started their quest for another victory. This time around, Thomas Allen exchanged places with team mate Sam Wood, as they finished in 4th and 5th positions, only 5 seconds apart. Next came Marc Scott only another 14 seconds adrift in 7th, while George Robinson made the winning margin very comfortable, by promptly taking 9th place overall and seizing the team victory once more. The senior ladies team had another changed line-up this time around, with some familiar and new face alike and with 6 athletes, they claimed a fantastic win on the new course. Kelley Haniver once again acted at the front runner and was first Harrier home, taking 4th place and Jenny Hands produced another excellent performance, finishing in 5th. Sarah Gregory claimed her highest finish yet in this field with 12th overall and Rosie Adams cemented her first outing of the Cross Country season, by taking a well-earned 15th place. Fiona Hughes continued to improve her form yet again and moved up to 24th position, while Jenny Fenwick showed team sprit and determination to cross the line in 37th place, putting the team in pole position. Adam Scott had another strong outing over the course to claim 10th overall in the Under 17 Mens race, putting in another gutsy performance, being the sole representative in this age group.

The squad in the senior men’s race also saw some changes, with 11 team members lining up, bolstering their overall league position once again, taking 2nd place by a comfortable margin. Jon Orange was forced to withdraw on the first lap, however, Rich Hunt took up the mantle and crossed the line in a fantastic 3rd place overall, scoring highly for the team. Next home was Ken Harker in 9th place, giving another good account of himself on the undulating course, while Tad Zaranko and Shaun Purkiss battled it out over the 10K distance, with Tad just slightly ahead on the line to finish in 18th and Shaun in 19th. Ian Scott continued to hold his strong form and crossed the line in 27th place, with Tony Ryder only a few seconds behind in 28th. Paul Roberts had another convincing outing, once again putting in a sterling effort to claim 25th place overall, while Steve Lambert asserted himself on the terrain with 67th place. Jim Robinson kept the flag flying in the Vet 3 category, coming in 71st across the line and 2nd in his age group, while Ray Robson showed good pacing over the distance to finish in 95th. Paul Goad also made the top 100 finishers with his 99th position, making the team extremely pleased with another excellent showing.

RZH Results: Under 13 Boys – 1st Fergus Roberts, 2nd James King, 4th Daniel Overin, 15th Andrew Parkinson, 22nd Thomas Bingley & 23rd Ben Purkiss, Team 1st. Under 13 Girls – 2nd Amy Coulson, 17th Rosie Stirr & 24th Kerry Robson, Team 3rd. Under 15 Boys – 4th Thomas Allen, 5th Sam Wood, 7th Marc Scott & 9th George Robinson, Team 1st. Under 15 Girls – 1st Maddy Winzer & 23rd Rachel Holloway. Under 17 Men – 10th Adam Scott. Senior/Vet/U20/U17 Ladies – 4th Kelley Haniver, 5th Jenny Hands, 12th Sarah Gregory, 15th Rosie Adams, 24th Fiona Hughes & 37th Jenny Fenwick, Team 1st. Senior/Vet/U20 Men – 3rd Rich Hunt, 9th Ken Harker, 18th Tad Zaranko, 19th Shaun Purkiss, 27th Ian Scott, 28th Tony Ryder, 35th Paul Roberts, 67th Steve Lambert, 71st Jim Robinson, 95th Ray Robson & 99th Paul Goad, Team 2nd.