Race 3 - Saturday 10 December 2016

The playing fields at Bolton Road / Duchy Road take no prisoners. For the youngest runners, there's the unenviable prospect of being able to see every step of the route in long, straight lines. For the older runners, you get the bonus of Mr Graham's hill which was added into the course in 2011 and has remained faithfully ever since. You're normally guaranteed good underfoot conditions at Bolton Road but the weather conspired to ensure that runners were faced with softer ground, just to heighten the challenge further.

The Year 3 and 4 boys were up first. Our usual suspects were joined by another debutant, Sam Sneddon. The boys equipped themselves well but like most of the runners, found the course exhausting. Jake Royle led the team home first in a fantastic 8th place, having weaved his way through heavy traffic in the early parts of the race. Harry Bayman a very strong race and was well inside the top ten for the majority of the race, eventually finishing in 19th place. Behind him, Connor Butler ran a typically brave race for 30th. Debutant Sam was next, followed quickly by Blake, Kieran and the then our youngest runner, Harry Johnson. Well done to all our boys.

It was business as usual in the Year 3 and 4 girls category as precocious talent, Jasmine Wright led the majority of the race to take a third consecutive win. Amelia Stringer continued her rich vein of form with another excellent run for 9th place. Just behind her, Asha Mistry ran a stunning race for 12th place while the ever improving Emily Johnson was a super 25th place. Caitlyn Lyth ran well to take 29th place and Sophie Potts showed good pacing to come home in a great 36th place. We were also delighted to welcome back the fantastic Evie, Darcey, Rose and Elizabeth to our team today. They each had solid runs for 52nd, 88th, 89th and 98th places respectively. A special mention needs yet again to be reserved for our youngest girls who continue to dazzle with courage and determination. They are mixing and matching pace with girls up to two years their senior! The junior girls race at our school cross country championships (in January) will be a fantastic spectacle with so many of our girls showing great potential. Well done to Scarlett (28th), Hermione (30th), Erin (57th), Claudia (70th), Megan (75th), Courtney (86th) and Izabell (92nd) who all had fine runs. You're all stars.

We had some season debuts in the Year 5 and 6 boys race which allowed us to field a larger team than usual. Sam Morrissey had an excellent run to lead the team home in a fine 18th place. Behind him, Blake Catterall (25th) and Matthew Greenwood (26th) were involved a personal battle for the majority of the race. Joseph Stringer (36th) and Tyler Weaver (48th) ran good steady races to complete our top five. Joshua Coppock (61st) and Louie Pearson (78th) gave masterclasses in how to run downhill. Both boys seemed to revel in the challenge of negotiating the tricky underfoot conditons. It must be all that minecraft practice! Joseph Seddon, Joe Ford, Matthew Hughes and Tom Morrissey toughed out the tricky conditions to round up our team, pushing one another most the way round, Well done, boys!

In the Year 5 and 6 girls race we had an amazing 6 runners inside the top 20! Millie Bayman ran her usual strong race for 3rd and was chased home by Marissa Caldwell in an excellent 5th place. Sophia Roiditis (12th) is making excellent progress and really looks at home on the tougher, longer distances. Anjali Mistry was a very welcome addition back into our team with a good run for 14th place. Khizzie Crompton and Bailey-Rae O'Keefe are showing excellent form and didn't seem phased at all by the distance and conditions Both girls paced their races beautifully for 19th and 20th places respectively. Our remaining runners, all from Year 5, ran strong races. A special mention must be given to Grace Aylett who lost close to a minute when her shoe came off in thick mud. With over a kilometre still to run, it made sense for Grace to fetch her shoe but getting it back on proved to be a bit tricky, thanks to the mud. Ever resilient, Grace calmly set off in pursuit of the many girls who had passed her and carved her way through to finish a very good 52nd place. Kara Pritchard ran another excellent race, just missing out on a certificate with 22nd place. Spookily, Erika Fowles and Khloe Boutler almost finished in identical positions to their previous race here just over 5 weeks ago! Lucy Thompson showed great determination to finish strongly in a fine 47th place- well done Lucy!

As ever, thank you to the many parents, friends and helpers for bringing your children along to represent James Brindley. The final race of the series is on Saturday 21 January 2017 at Buile Hill and will be followed by the presentation in the main banqueting hall. It usually takes between 30 mins to an hour to work out the final results but the medal ceremony is always worth sticking around for if you have the time.

James Brindley Results:

Year 3 and 4 Boys:

Name	Position
Jake Royle	8
Harry Bayman	19
Connor Butler	30
Sam Sneddon	66
Blake Farrow	83
Kieran Boulter	85
Harry Johnson	104

Year 3 and 4 Girls

Name	Position
Jasmine Wright	1
Amelia Stringer	9
Asha Mistry	12
Emily Johnson	25
Scarlett Aylett	28
Caitlyn Lyth	29
Hermione Crompton	30
Sophie Potts	36
Evie Thompson	52
Erin Carinci	57
Claudia Worrall	70
Megan Rees	75
Courtney Pritchard	86
Darcey Greenhalgh	88
Rose Ford	89
Izabell Booth	92
Elizabeth Eden	98

Year 5 and 6 Boys

Name	Position
Sam Morrissey	18
Blake Catterall	25
Matthew Greenwood	26
Joseph Stringer	36
Tyler Weaver	48
Joshua Coppock	61
Tom Morrissey	65
Louie Pearson	78
Joe Ford	79
Matthew Hughes	80
Joseph Seddon	81

Year 5 and 6 Girls

Name	Position
Millie Bayman	3
Marissa Caldwell	5
Sophia Roiditis	12
Anjali Mistry	14
Khizzie Crompton	19
Bailey-Rae O’Keefe	20
Kara Pritchard	22
Erika Fowles	37
Khloe Boulter	38
Lucy Thompson	47
Grace Aylett	52