HENRY LOSES OUT TO RANKING RIVAL
TYNEDALE HARRIER TAKES HOUGHTON YOUNGSTER’S NUMBER ONE SPOT
Houghton Harrier Henry Johnson has been knocked off the top of the UK Under -15 Boys’ 800m standings after being soundly beaten in the North East Grand Prix at Monkton Stadium.
Tynedale Harrier Daniel Joyce, the North East Under-15 300m champion (37.57sec), shattered his previous best to win in 1min 57.6sec. Johnson recorded 2.03.5.
In the North East Championship earlier this month, Johnson beat his rival to win gold in 1.59.04 to head the charts. Joyce was second in 1.59.55.
There were a number of outstanding performances from young Houghton Harriers at Monkton.
Triple North East gold medallist Philippa Ellis won the Under-15 200m in a grade one standard of 26.1 and then achieved a grade two standard in the shot with her third-place finish (10.13m).
Lydia James won a highly competitive Under-15 800m in 2.20.9 (grade two) and club-mates Nicole Phillips (2.25.4) and Anna Pigford (2.28.9) finished sixth and ninth respectively, with grade three and four performances.
Under-20 athlete Alex Brown finished third in the senior men’s 3000m (8.45.1).
Sunderland Harriers’ best results came from Under-17 Jordan Beavis’s win in the 200m (24.1) and Catherine Randles’ Under-13 win in the 800m (2.43.2).
Jarrow and Hebburn AC provided the winners of the George Ogle Memorial muli terrain race at Swalwell.
Lee Gifford (33.30) and Alex Sneddon (36.04) took the honours.
Sunderland Strollers had good runs from Chris Dwyer in fourth (35.21), Luke McCormack 11th (38.03) and Over-60 Malcolm Cox in 30th (42.13).
Sunderland Harrier Alice Smith finished fourth woman (38.04) in the North Shields Clive Cookson Cup 10k at Whitley Bay. The women’s winner was Birchfield Harrier Danielle Hodgkinson (35.41) and the men’s race was won by Tyne Bridge Harrier James Dunce (32.04).
Sunderland Strollers placed Mark Anderson in 23rd (36.20) and Michael Henderson in 41st (38.27).