Chichester get better of top clubs to secure second spot
Chichester’s young athletes had a great start to their track and field season
Chichester made a strong start to their National Youth Development League campaign in blustery Portsmouth.
Division Two on paper looks to be one of the strongest for many years but the 33-athlete squad from Chichester coped well with the competition, especially as more than half the team were making their first appearances in this league. Under-15 girls
For once Chichester’s girls, rather than their boys, had the stronger squad and this was most clearly seen with the under-15 girls.
Of the 13 athletes in action, four were completely new to club competition, four more had progressed from last season’s under-13s and just five remained from the club’s league team from 2018.
One of these, Sophie Dudman, gave the club the best possible start with a convincing and fluent hurdles victory with newcomer Chloe Noble gaining second place in the B string for nearmaximum points.
Dudman was joined by Izzy Holcroft, Cassie Bailey and Eleanor Farquhar in the sprints with all four running well to keep up the club’s momentum.
A new combination of Cerys Dickinson and Amelia Mcgurk doubled up in the 800m and then, showing a good turn of speed, in the 300m, while Tamsin Anelay used her winter crosscountry fitness to good effect in the 1500m.
In the field events, Dickinson and Jamie Gibb formed a useful partnership in the high jump with Gibb clearing 1.35 in tricky, windy conditions. Gibb was joined by Lucy Hollyer in the long jump.
The four throws produced good points for Chichester with Bailey second in the shot with a throw of nearly seven metres.
In discus, hammer and javelin, Tatum Anwyl and Ruby Chandler joined forces with Noble to gain a number of top-three placings while
Maddie Byers joined the rest of the squad for the relays. Under-15 boys
With a number of regulars unavailable for this first match, the six under-15 boys in action did well to amass the points they did for a small squad.
Callum Hale joined Arthur Dearlove in the 100m while Nathan Ewins and Joe Mclarnon were as impressive over 200m.
Gabe White joined Hale in the longer 300m after the 800m.
In a testing 1500m into a fierce headwind on the back straight, Mclarnon and Hal Edgar finished stride for stride in just outside five minutes.
In the field events, Ewins produced the best performance with a good 1.54 clearance in the high jump for second place in the A string.
Dearlove and Hale scored well in the long jump and, in the absence of any specialist throwers, Dearlove and Edgar picked up useful points in the shot.