Southern Athletics League Report - Match 4
Southern Athletics League, Div 1, Match 4
Battersea Park, Saturday 8 July
It was a beautiful day as a determined Belgrave team set up to use the home ground advantage to boost ourselves out of the relegation zone. Facing clubs Bracknell AC, Harrow AC and Marshal Milton Keynes who all sat above us on the league table and with a strong team on paper we knew this was our chance to prove to the other clubs what a formidable force Belgrave can be.
Men’s Team
Sprints and Hurdles
It was a welcome return to the fold for Sam Ige as he cruised to victory in both the 100m and 200m A races hot off a run at the Nationals the weekend before. Pierre Walker also ran well in the 100m B race just missing out on the win with a dip on the line before running a solid 200m non-scoring run. Meanwhile Matthew Ayoola put in an improved run in the 100m and 200m non-scoring where he was joined by Antonio Jose Araque who made his final run for the club with two solid runs whilst Rayon Edwards, Inza Dosso and Thomas Kemball all had strong runs also.
In the 400m Gareth Holden ran a solid race to finish second to the Harrow athlete in the A race whilst team debutante Jack Olsen pushed all the way for a brilliant win in the B race before running a strong 200m B race to finish second. Thomas Steindler and Connor O’Rourke also battled it out in the non-scoring 400m where Thomas edged it out for the win.
Meanwhile Sam Shore continued his undefeated run in the 400m hurdles where he was joined by Mike Burlsem who made it maximum points for the event with a win in the B race. After his success in the 400 he opted in to help the team out in the 110m hurdles B slot where he accompanied A string runner and debutante Jack Singleton who ran well for a third place finish whilst Mike took second in the B.
Middle Distance
Neville Harris and Adam Cameron once again paired up in the 800m with Alfonso Leone joining in as a non-scorer. Neville led the field out the whole way and dragged Adam around behind him as he clocked another solid sub-2min run to take the win with Adam finishing just behind him to ensure victory in the B race with a PB just shy of the 2min barrier.
The 1500m saw an epic debut from Andrew Fyfe in a classically tactical race. He was joined by team mates Arne Dumez (B string) and Scott Mills (non-scorer) as the field jogged around at a leisurely pace for the opening couple of laps before Andy decided it was time to go 800 out and bolted like a man with purpose leaving the other athletes in his wake to take victory in the A race whilst Arne finished second in the B race.
Hurting from about two laps in an under the weather Matt Welsh pushed on bravely as he ran close to team mate Andrius Jaksevicius in a strong 3000m race where they were joined by non-scorer Patrick McDougall. Pushing all the way the boys battled it out before Matt pushed away at the end to take the win in the A and a new PB whilst Andrius was not far behind to ensure maximum points with a B race win and a PB himself. It was then onto the 3000m steeplechase where Nick Buckle in his “pre-10km Sunday race preparations” offered his services to the team where he jogged around to a brilliant second place in the A race.
Throws
It was a welcome return to the team for Pete Mayfield as he put in some strong performances as he kick starts his gradual return from injury post-surgery. It was victory for Pete in the B shot put with Grant Sprigings accompanying him to take the win in the A string ensuring maximum points. Then onto the hammer throw where Chris Privett pushed all the way for second in the A whilst Tom Ikeda nabbed the win in the B. The javelin results also proved fruitful for Tom as he again won the B string whilst Harvey King threw strongly to take second in the A. The day was then rounded out with a double victory for our brilliant throwers in the discus as Chris Privett and Pete Mayfield smashed the A and B string competitions respectively.
Jumps
There was some welcome coverage for our men’s jumps in the form of Jack Singleton as he took on the high jump and long jump to add much needed points to the team pot. Pete Mayfield also proved a saviour stepping up to cover the pole vault despite dubious equipment to add another couple of points. Gareth Holden again saved the day by volunteering for the triple jump ensuring another two points for the team and Tom Ikeda had another crack at the high jump to add another point whilst Pierre Walker also put his hand up to plug a gap in the long jump.
Relays
The men’s teams put on a dominant display in both relays to showcase their team strengths. The 4x100 team of Antonio Jose Araque, Mike Burlsem, Pierre Walker and Sam Ige put in a great team run as they clung to the three other teams before Sam ran a storming anchor leg to blow the other teams out of the water and seal victory for the team. The day was rounded out with another dominant performance in the 4x400 team with a brilliant display from, Jack Olsen, Mike Burslem, Gareth Holden and Adam Cameron as the boys increased their lead from leg to leg to take the win.
Women’s Team
Sprints and Hurdles
The day started with the 400m hurdles with Rose O’Brien taking on the A position this time around to storm to victory with team mate Helen Brown filling the gap brilliantly in the B race to finish second. It was then onto the 100m where Laura Reilly ran strongly to finish second in the A race whilst Sandra Dike backed her up with a solid run to also finish second in the B race. Then onto the 400m with another impressive run from Monique Krefting who edged out the MK athlete to win the A race whilst Electra Lanyon pushed all the way for second place in the B race. The 100m hurdles were on next and a questionable starter call meant Laura Reilly was unluckily left sitting in the blocks whilst the rest of the field taking on the amateur standing start approach trailed off into the distance. This meant that Rose O’Brien was promoted to the A race in the post results with a not too terrible run to post a PB and second place. Rounding out the sprints for the day was the 200m with Monique Krefting and Sandra Dike teaming up to run brilliantly for second places in both the A and B respectively.
Middle Distance
The home advantage proved fruitful for our ladies as it was PBs across the board with Keri Mackenzie and Fiona Maddocks smashing the field in 800 to both post PBs and maximum points with wins in the A race and B race. The form then continued in the 1500 with Lizzie Goldie-Scot storming home passing the Harrow athlete in the last 20m to the cheers of the home crowd as she smashed her PB to go under 5mins and take a win in the A race whilst Jojo Rhodes ran solidly not too far behind to win the B race with the rest of the field well behind.
Sophie Harris put in yet another strong performance in the 5000m where she took on the heat and ran effectively a time trial as she lapped the field at least twice to clock an impressive 17:03:04 time and win with over a minute buffer to the next athlete. She was joined by the ever vigilant Samantha Amend who still in the throes of a battle with glandular, managed a strong run to ease to victory in the B race and clock up another double win for the ladies middle distance team whilst Katie French and Maureen Noel also braved the heat to put in strong runs as non-scrorers.
The day was then rounded out with the steeplechase as Rose O’Brien returned to the event for a trot around with Helen Brown as the ladies both finished second to add more points to the overall total.
Throws
The duo of Mia Callenburg and Leanne Bettis kicked off the day with a tough hammer competition coming from the MK and Harrow ladies with Mia being pipped to third in the A whilst Leanne was bolstered to first in the B string, they were also joined by Ellen Hunter as a non-scorer finally getting a throw on the board for the season. It was then onto shot put with where Harrow and MK again proved formidable with Mia and Vilma Thompson both finishing third in the A and B strings respectively. The javelin was up next with Marieke Meleen and Leanne Bettis pushing back against the MK and Harrow throwers to come away with victory in both the A and B respectively. The ladies then rounded out the day with their continued dominance in the discus with Mia Callenberg and Leanne Bettis both winning their respective A and B strings to round out another successful turn in the field.
Jumps
It was a seasons best for both Evie Grogan and birthday girl Georgia Patterson in the high jump with Evie taking second place in the A and Georgia enjoying the win in the B. Meanwhile Mia Callenberg and Emma Watkins took care of the triple jump with Mia finishing third in the A and Emma second in the B. Ayse Hussein put in a solid display in the long jump A with her first jump of the season whilst Emma took care of the B string with both finishing in third place. Meanwhile pole vault was again entertained with the displays of skill from Ellen Hunter and Rose O’Brien as they nabbed a few extra points for the team.
Relays
The forces of Emma Watkins, Mia Callenburg, Sandra Dike and Keri Mackenzie combined for the 4x100 where some excellent changeovers and a brilliant third leg from Sandra pushed the other teams all the way to a close third place finish. The 4x400 team of Keri Mackenzie, Carla Doukrou, Sophie Harris and Rose O’Brien battled it out with some gutsy runs from Keri and Sophie to again be pipped to third place.
The team put in some excellent performances on both the track and field with PBs coming left right and centre and a multitude of wins not only ensured we won but that we did it in style. The dominant display from the home team has pushed us out of the relegation zone with the overall match points helping our position on the SAL league table substantially.
Thank You
As always our brilliant officials make it possible for us to compete and earn us vital points. A massive thank you to Tony and Gillian Fairclough, Charlie Dickinson, Bob Bridges, Don Anderson, John Hall, Richard McMillan and Robert Norville who led the way with ensuring the day ran smoothly; to Jodie Albrow for sorting out the results on the day; to Andrea Lynch and Sian Goodlad for making sure our officials were fed and watered whilst also recruiting runners off the street; to the adhoc helpers in the field Aidan Grace, Sophie Grace Laning, Jeff Laning, Adam Cameron, Rachel Basford, Jojo Rhodes, Ed Caltieri, Matt Threadgold – you all put in a true show of team work to keep the show moving along. The Battersea staff – Jimmy and John – were all over the hurdles and setting up the track whilst dealing with the leaky steeplechase water jump. Also a big thank you to all family and friends that were there on the day to cheer us on!
Team Managers Match Awards
Man of the Match – Sam Ige for his dominant runs in the 100, 200 and awesome anchor leg for the 4x100.
Woman of the Match – Lizzie Goldie-Scot for her gutsy win and PB in the 1500.