Hundreds of athletes descended upon Middlesbrough last weekend for two days of full on competition at the North East’s premier track and field meeting. Clubs from all over the region were represented, in all age groups from Under 13 and above in the ever popular NECAA Championships.
The weather had settled and the athletes could look forward to a dry, even sunny weekend ahead. It could well be time to slap on that sun cream again! As always, our Junior Harriers were out in force, even more so at this competition. In fact there were 27 of our junior squad (from Under 13 to Under 17) competing this weekend, many of them here for both days!
The event started, as usual, with the Hurdles and it was Ashton who was the first to get in on the action….and it was a great start for our young all rounder finishing in 3rd place, just outside his PB with a time of 17.13s. A medal in your first event; can’t be bad! It wasn’t too long before Ashton was up again, this time alongside team mates Alex, Harry and Matthew in the 1500m.
It was a solid run from all four boys and on more than one occasion it looked like Alex would be the victor. But the Hartlepool athlete just wouldn’t give up and in the end just beat Alex into 2nd place. A great race to watch and a new PB from Alex of 4:54.87. Harry was never far behind and looked strong as he crossed the finish line in 4th place, just a few seconds off getting a medal, but with a new PB of 5:09.81. Ashton was our next junior to finish with an excellent time of 5:30.61 in 8th place, with Matthew not far behindtaking 11th place in 5:49.89. Top running lads, well done.
Ashton was the only one to take part in a field event today; the High Jump. It was one of those day where things just didn’t go his way, and the more he tried the more frustrated he got. Never mind, Ash, sometimes that’s just the way it goes, we’re sure next time out you’ll smash your PB
RACE RESULTS – DAY 1
Under 13 Girls Tori Buckley, Libby Hammond Friends and team mates, Tori and Libby found themselves up against each other in their first event of the day, the 800m. It’s always been a close battle between the two of them and today was no exception. Just a couple of seconds could separate them, but in the end it was Tori that had the upper hand finishing in an excellent 6th place, with a new PB of 2:37.10. Libby was hot on her heels, crossing the line in 8th place just a fraction outside her PB. A great effort from both, well done girls!
Tori was back later that afternoon for the 200m Heats. Running in Heat 3 she put in a fantastic effort to finish in 4th place in a time of 30.85m, narrowly missing out on a place in the final. Great job, Tori, well done.
Under 15 Boys Nat Bell, Dylan Wilson As soon as the hurdles were finished, it was time for Nat in the 300m. The race was due to be split into two heats but as some athletes hadn’t registered they ran the eight that remained as a straight Final. On paper, Nat looked to be the favourite but after a lot of hanging around at the start with athletes getting cold, anything could happen. As it was, he pushed hard from the off, maintaining a good pace, and pulled awayto win comfortably with a new PB of 38.22. North East Champion! Nice one, Nat, well done!
Lunchtime arrived and it was time for Dylan to step up for the 1500m. This was a tough race for him today; a step up in age group and his first time out on the track as an Under 15. He dug deep and put in a great effort against the older competition,finishing in 15th place in a time of 5:15.02. Well done Dylan.
Under 15 Girls Lily Large, Olivia Bell, Kate Williams, Mia Wetherill
Lily was first up in the 800m. Like many of our juniors this year, this was a step up in age group, so it was going to be tough against the older competition. But Lily gave it all she had to produce another solid performance, finishing in 11th place in a time of 2:51.69. Olivia and Kate were both in action in the 200m. Olivia ran very well in Heat 1, finishing in a close 4th place. She just missed out on reaching the final but achieved an important PB, breaking that 30 second barrier with a time of 29.42s.
Kate ran in Heat 2 and put in a great effort to finish in 2nd place in 28.32s and made it through to the final. As you’d expect there was some tough competition for Kate in the final, but she ran it well and crossed the line in 5th place; an excellent result considering her age. Mia had a tough time in the 3000m up against some highly ranked athletes. She put in a great performance and finished an excellent 5th place in a time of 11:26.57. She was a little disappointed and was hoping for a medal today, but we thought she was fab and should be proud of her achievement! Well done to all our Under 15 girls.
Under 17 Boys Adam Russell, John Russell It was great to see the twins back in action again today. They’ve certainly established themselves as a force to be reckoned with during their time at DHAC, but today was going to be a test for them both; their first 1500m of the season, and older athletes to contend in their first year as Under 17’s. It was close at the front with Adam always staying in contention and John not far behind. After a furious last lap Adam crossed the line in 3rd place to take the bronze, knocking 5 seconds off his PB in the process! Just a few places behind, John finished in 8th place, smashing his PB by an amazing 9 seconds! Top running boys,well done to both!
Under 17 Girls Caitlin Minns, Megan Noble, Charlotte Rutter, Rosie Thompson
Caitlin’s only event today was the 200m. She was in the second of the two heats, up against some tough competition today – yet another Harrier who’s just moved up to a new age group! She put up a great battle and was only half a second off her PB as she crossed the line in 6th place. Great effort, Caitlin! In the 800m it was Megan Noble flying the flag for DHAC. Another tough race with some quality athletes taking part, she worked hard for the whole race and crossed the line with a season’s best of 2:34.80 in 7th place.
Charlotte had a busy day, competing in three events today. She kicked things off in the 80m Hurdles with a terrific performance; a new PB of 11.95s, and a bronze medal for 3rd place! Not a bad start to the day!
In the field events, Charlotte was back in action with the Javelin – not her strongest event but as an Under 17 she’ll be moving up to Heptathlons later in the season so this was a good chance to get in some competition practice.
In the end it was an excellent result, increasing her PB by over 2.5m to 19.35m to take 3rd place and another medal! Charlotte’s third and final event was something much more familiar to her; the long jump. A great competition from a field of 7 athletes, with Charlotte’s best on the day being 4.68m. Not a PB this time but enough to take 3rd place. That’s 3 events and 3 medals! Outstanding performance! Rosie’s only event today was the Discus. As usual she produced some excellent throws. Not quite a PB this time but a best of 25.80m was enough to take the bronze medal for 3rd place. Back again tomorrow for the Hammer throw.
RACE RESULTS – DAY 2
Under 13 Boys Ashton Harrison, Elwood Kelley, Matthew Vest, Alex Boyer, Harry Lyons, Josh Scott
The boys obviously meant business today with six of our Under 13 squad taking part, and five of them in the first event , the 800m. It was a proud moment to see the blue and white vests of Alex, Harry, Elwood, Ashton and Josh lining up at the start. At the gun the boys set off at a brisk pace and it was Alex and Harry who lead the DHAC boys in the battle against the Houghton Harriers athlete at the front. Gradually Alex and the Houghton athlete pulled away and it was a sprint to the finish to decide who took 1st place; on this occasion Alex had to settle for 2nd place, but a cracking time of 2:27.90 and a new PB.
Harry wasn’t far behind in 4th place also with a new PB of 2:33.63. 6th , 7th and 8th place were all taken up with those blue and white vests. Elwood and Ashton had a battle for the line; this time it was Elwood who just sneaked across first in 2:39.05, with Ashton less than half a second behind in 2:39.46. Josh was hot on their heels in 8th place, crossing the line in 2:41.18. A fantastic race lads, and a great effort from all, well done! Elwood was back again for more track action in the afternoon with the 200m. He ran in the second of two heats, finishing 4th with an impressive time of 29.75s, just 0.05s off his PB! Top sprinting, Elwoodwell done!
In the field events, Elwood was back in action, this time with team mate Matthew in the long jump. In a very competitive field of 15 athletes the boys had their work cut out today, but as usual they gave it their all! Elwood’s best on the day was an excellent 3.99m which was enough to take 6th place, with Matthew taking 13th place after a great jump of 3.43m. In one of the final events of the day, Aston was back again for the shot putt. It’s obvious that the Valhalla training he’s had this season has improved his throwing immensely. Yet again he smashed his PB with an increase of 55cm for a best of 6.68m, just missing out on a medal in 4th place. Tremendous stuff! Well done to Ashton and the rest of the Under 13 boys for an excellent day’s work!
On the track it was Zara and Libby doing their stuff in the 1500m, with Zara in her first season as an U13 and, more used to cross country, running her first ever track event for DHAC! Once again quite a large field with 11 athletes taking part. It was a tough race with the sun beating down but the girls looked comfortable for most of the race. As the field of runners stretched out it was Zara who was chasing down her old NYSD cross country rival, Eden Creasy from Middlesbrough. As they crossed the finish line Eden took 1st place, Elswick Harriers were 2nd and Zara took the bronze medal finishing in an excellent 5:17.73. Libby pushed hard producing a solid performance and, although not a PB this time, it wasn’t far off, finishingin 9th place in 5:35.31. A fantastic effort girls, well done!
Tori concentrated on her field events today, taking on the High Jump and the Shot. She produced some excellent jumps in the High Jump, with the bar gradually heading towards her PB of 1.28m. In the end Tori finished just short of that with an excellent 1.25m to take 6th place. Along with Ashton, Tori is a tremendous advertisement for the Valhalla coaching sessions, as their results speak volumes! Today she also smashed her PB with a best on the day of 6.81m to take 3rd place and the bronze medal! Libby was back again for the Long Jump; another large field of 11 competitors. She put in some excellent jumps today with her technique improving all the time. This showed when she finished with a new PB of 3.73m to finish in 9th place. Some great work from our talented trio, well done girls!
Under 15 Boys Daniel Richardson, Dylan Wilson
It was going to be tough for our boys today, both now in their first year at Under 15. Dylan was first up in the 800m. He pushed hard from start to finish, concentrating on his own race against the older boys. This showed as he crossed the line with a new PB of 2:30.82 to finish in 8th place. Daniel was in at the deep end with his first ever track 3000m for DHAC. Like Dylan, he focused on his own race and put in a cracking performance, also finishing in 8th place in a time of 10:24.26. Two fantastic runs; a testament to their coach, Bernadette, and definitelytwo lads to look out for next season. Well done to both!
Under 15 Girls Kate Williams, Olivia Bell, Macy Kelly, Emily Vest, Lily Thompson First up the sprinters, and Kate in the 100m. An excellent run in the second heat as she crossed the line in 3rd place with a new PB of 13.4s, securing a place in the final. Up against the older competition the final was going to be tough, but she did what anyone could ask of her, beating her PB from the heat with a time of 13.37 to finish in 6th place. Olivia has opted for the 300m this season and has really made her mark. Today she continued with another excellent performance in Heat 1, finishing 4th , beating her PB with a time of 45.36 and qualifying for the final.
Like Kate, Olivia was up against the older opposition in the final so a tough prospect lay ahead. But she did herself proud, crossing the line in 6th place with a new PB, and County Standard time of 44.59s. Great work girls, well done.
Macy and Emily both opted for one of their favourite distances, the 1500m; Macy in Heat 1 and Emily in Heat 2. Macy put in a great effort, another one of our juniors in their first year at their age group. She pushed hard finishing in 9th place with an excellent PB of 5:42.32. Emily also workedher socks off, also achieving a new PB with a time of 5:38.20, to finish in 8th place. Nice one, girls well done!
In the field events, Lily took on the Hammer Throw and the Shot today. This was her third competitive hammer throw this season, which produced the best result so far; a new PB of 24.6m which was enough to take 3rd place and the bronze medal! Lily was on fire today and producedanother PB in the shot with a best of 9.89m, finishing in 4th place. Looking good for next season! Great effort, Lily!
Under 17 Boys Daniel Boyer, Adam Russell, Liam Brittle
Adam was back again for the second day, this time with a new distance for him, the 800m….and instead of his brother to contend with he had DHAC team mate, Liam Brittle. It was a close battle between the two of them for most of the race and only one place could separate them at the line. Adam just got there first with an excellent time of 2:03.69 in 7th place, closely followed by Liam in 8th who was again just outside his PB with a time of 2:07.2. Dan opted for the longer distance of 3000m. This was his third race this season over the distance; good practice for his triathlon events! He put in a great effort to finish in 5th place in a terrific time of 9:30.78. Well done lads, a great effortfrom all.
Under 17 Girls Charlotte Rutter, Rosie Thompson
Charlotte was back for a second day, this time one of her specialities, the 100m. She ran in Heat 1 which was very close as all the athletes flew across the finish line. She finished in 4th place in a cracking time of 13.38m, earning a place in the final. Unfortunately she’d hurt her back the week before rowing for the school, so by the time the 100m final came round it was feelingpretty sore, so decided to withdraw.
Rosie was back again, this time for the Hammer Throw. As always it was maximum effort from Team Thompson producing a best on the day of 33.76m. Just a little short of her PB but enough to take 3rd place and Rosie’s second medal of the weekend! A top performance from both girls, well done!
Overall it was a tremendous weekend with some performances to remember from our Junior Harriers. With PB’s being beaten in almost every event, a fantastic medal count and even a North East Champion; you can’t ask for much more than that. A huge well done to everyone, you should be very proud of yourselves! #UTH!
Day 1 photos click here
Day 2 photos click here