Manchester Marathon

On a breezy day, Samantha Amend placed second in a fine 2:44:15, only giving best to Georgie Bruinvels' outstanding 2:37 on debut.Supervet Helen Smethurst returned to the marathon after a 7-year hiatus to record a most respectable 3:16, whilst second-claimer Sarah Murphy "can't quite believe" a sub-2:55 outing for 9th.Congrats to all.Meanwhile, over in Boston, James Kelly fell victim to the course's brutal second half, with a 2:27:01 after a 70:45 half-way split.  Not a bad time that at all, but Jim would have been hoping to worry the magic 2:20 barrier.As the saying goes in Boston, if you're a runner called Kelly [sic], you either have to change your name, or run like greased lightning.  [Two different Kelleys were great Boston champions and mainstays from the 1930's thru to the 60's.]