Road Runners maintain top spot
The Hampshire Road Race League (HRRL) 2021-2022 tables have been updated following the second fixture at Lordshill 10k held on 19 September 2021.
An improving turn-out of 33 runners saw 12 Ladies and 21 Men ensure CoSARC maintained their “top of the league” status following their previous fixture success at Overton 5 mile.
A freak rainstorm just before the race start did nothing to dampen spirits and brought out the true camaraderie of the sport; seeing Philip Scrase of Alton Runners cover the exposed CoSARC bags with their gazebo tarpaulin - something the CoSARC runners knew nothing about until they crossed the finish line to find their bags bone dry.
The Men's A team (comprising of the first four finishers to cross the line) Ben Saunby, Richard Davidson, Rob Drag and Matt Sherfield, combined to see the club finish second behind hosts Lordshill, ensuring CoSARC remained first place in the top division – with another notable performance from Ben seeing him finishing in second place overall. Ben currently sits second place in the individual standings.
CoSARC Ladies A team (comprising of the first four finishers to cross the line) Samantha Noyce, Catherine Morgan-Smith, Heather Hitchins and Katie Clements, combined to see the club finish third behind hosts Lordshill and a strong Winchester team. That was enough to see them rise up from fourth spot to third in the top league; with Samantha Noyce and Catherine Morgan-Smith finding themselves sitting in the top 20 of the individual leagues.
James Mills, Al Moutray, Nicholas Cooke and John Duffy, ensured the Men's B team did enough to remain in second spot in the top division and keep the pressure on Stubbington B. Men's C team comprising of Derek Wood, Jonathan Kershaw, James Ballard and Nick Lay, put in a solid showing to lift themselves up a place to fourth in the top division. Having fielded an incomplete team at Overton 5 mile, the Men's D comprising of Dave Cox, Andrew Makin, Craig Weatherburn and Tim Fewins combined to lift themselves up a place to joint second, showing their credentials for a promotion challenge.
Zoe Lambard, Aly Sloan, Helen Carlton and Catherine Steele waltzed over the line to ensure Ladies B ended the day lying second in the top division having started the day in third and will look to maintain their bid for the league title. Meanwhile Ladies C comprising of Jo Marks, Alison Morris, Petra Oyston and Janine Kemm got off the mark for the season, leaping up to fourth spot. With only two points to the top, a promotion challenge is very much a reality. For the second race in succession, Ladies D were not alone in the league in falling foul to conflicting diaries and deferred races.
The next race on the HRRL calendar is the Gosport Half Marathon on 21 November 2021 where the club will hope to at least field the 16 Ladies and 16 Men needed to complete the teams and maintain what is shaping up to be an exciting season.
Full results and tables for the HRRL can be found at the link below.
http://www.hrrl.org.uk/default.htm
Craig Weatherburn