The English Cross Country Relay Championships proved a reminder of the way Aldershot Farnham & District’s distance runners have dominated senior women’s competition lately. The club’s winning side was backed up by its B team in sixth and C team in ninth of the 106 that finished at Mansfield.
Lauren Hall, who anchored AFD to victory the last time the meeting was held, ran the second leg on Saturday and took the lead after setting off in fourth when Niamh Brown finished a dozen seconds behind Lincoln Wellington’s Abbie Donnelly (thirteenth in the last edition of the European Cross Country Championships).
Lilly Coward, who also anchored AFD to their gold medals at last month’s English Road Relay Championships, brought the trio home nearly half a minute ahead of second-placed Charnwood. Maisie Grice, Ruby Woolfe and Louise Small comprised the B team while the C trio was Katie Hughes, Nancy Scott and Laura Gent.
The senior men’s event, the only race over four legs, resulted in third place for Ben Bradley, Ricky Harvie, Luke Prior and Rian McCawley. There was another set of bronze medals for AFD’s Lottie Quinn, Katie Pye and Emmeline Orbell in the under-15 girls’ competition. Woody Jerome, Theo Doran and Will Barnicoat were fourth in the junior men’s contest and the u13 girls came tenth with Maya Jobbins, Martha Cruikshanks and Tilly Robertson.