Harriers Success at Last Ever South East Lancs Cross Country League Race

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At Heaton Park on Saturday 17th, the curtain closed on the South East Lancs Cross Country League, 113 years since the League was established and in the 100th year of competition. It was fitting to see the iconic red and black vests giving a good account in the final fixture of a league in which the club has seen considerable success historically. Matilda MacDonald (11:54) placed 11th in the U11 girls’ race. Louis Yates led the way in the U13 Boys’ race, finishing 7th (11:53), with Ben Essex-Crosby (13:33) and Toby MacDonald (13:57) completing a solid 3rd place team performance. Flynn Harris was 4th (20:20) in the U15 boys’ race, with Ben Higgins (7th, 22:32) and Matthew MacDonald (9th, 23:14) close behind.

Left to right – Leo Orrell, Flynn Harris, Matthew MacDonald,Ben Higgins. 2nd place team in the U15 boys’ race at the last ever South East Lancs cross country league race. Picture courtesy of Alya Harris.

Horwich were runaway team winners in the U15 girls’ race, with Kitty Crossland 2nd (20:51), Ava Winstanley 3rd (21:51) and Isobel Reid 5th (22:18). Millie Reid (7th, 23:36) and Maya Ghosh (11th, 25:07) also ran well. Winstanley and Crossland couldn’t be separated in the overall league placing, sharing 2nd place. The U15 girls dominated the overall team standings, coming 1st in each of the four races and 1st overall. Tia Harris was also on the podium in the U17 Women’s race; she placed 2nd in a time of 29:09 and 3rd overall in the league.

In the senior women’s race, Samantha Sale took an impressive 10th place (35:31) to finish 9th overall senior woman in the league. Helen MacDonald was 3rd V40 and secured a brilliant 2nd place in her age group overall. Helen’s husband Adam wasn’t to be outdone; he, too, was 2nd V45 in the overall men’s standings after a 3rd place in his age group on the day (38:56). Meanwhile, Mark Walsh was 2nd V55 (39:37).

On Sunday 18th, the 42nd Four Villages Half Marathon took place in Helsby, Cheshire. Luke Foley placed 6th overall in grizzly conditions, posting an impressive time of 01:11:44 despite the icy rain. On the same day, Graham Schofield (48:13) and Julie Williamson (01:16:10) took on the undulating East Lancashire Hospice 10k in Great Harwood. According to the organisers, “Over the years, this much-loved event has raised over £135,000 thanks to the incredible dedication of local runners, families and supporters.”

The parkrun roundup saw Grace Freary (21:43) finish as 8th female at Heaton Park, where Tony Hesketh also ran 28:34 before assisting with the cross country event. Jason (24:05) and Janet (32:43) Middleton took their parkrun tourism to Edinburgh. Gareth Webb was 13th in 22:13 at Bolton and Paul Murray (44:45) conquered “the Beast” at Witton. At Haigh Woodland, Paul Wilcockson (22:58) and Paul Kaye (23:16) did battle, while Isaac Parker finished a strong 5th (19:15) at Coldham’s Common in Cambridge. Peel saw a return for Hayley Winder (23:41), with Andrew Storey (26:53) and Steve Jackson (29:46) also in attendance.