Harriers brave the weather in final races
LONGWOOD Harriers girls Under15s claimed second place in the West Yorkshire Cross Country League in the final round of races in Keighley.
And they had to do it in horrendous conditions, with the wet, muddy and slippy course – probably the hardest of the series – providing a real test for the athletes.
Holly Brewster lead the under-15 girls race for a short while until a slip on the muddy hill led to her knocking back in the positions – she finished in a reasonable fourth place and also third in the league overall.
Neve Hardcastle followed closely in fifth to finish fourth in the league, with Anna Basford in 19th, Roisin McGrath in 21st and Gina Speakman in 23rd. It all meant the team came out second overall, losing top place by two points to Harrogate Harriers, who finished strongly in Keighley to take the title.
Megan Stephenson and Hollie Fairburn ran in the first race of the day for the Under-11s, followed by the Under-13 girls, who finished sixth in the league overall with Megan Hughes, Sophie Wood, Lucy Hardcastle, Lucy Fairburn and Alice Kaye braving the elements.
The Under-13 boys had Tom White representing the club, the course was getting trickier, but he ran well in his first year in the Under-13s, finishing in 15th place in a time of 12 minutes and four seconds.
The Under-15 boys are still struggling to raise a team and Jack White had to pull out during the race due to injury, but came fifth in the league. Sam Heaton finished in 21st in the race but 17th in the league.
By the time it was the seniors’ turn, the course and weather had deteriorated in very challenging conditions.
The senior ladies team were again represented by Helen Roby, who was ranked 13th in the league, and Lindsay Roberts, who was ninth.
For the men, Josh Elderfield was 25th and James Scholes in 18th.
The club are now training for the Yorkshire and Northern Cross Country Championships in January.