U13 Race(2 miles approx)

Colin Oxlade 1;03.43 274th

Dave Warren 1;07.30 356th

Norman Hemming 1;11.11 425th

Dan Xio-Ho 1;39.16 115th

Andy Del Nevo 1;46.05 212th

Mark Bayliss 1;54.32 381st

Tough Guy is a six mile cross country race followed by a 2 mile army assult course, including rope bridges, tunnels and ice cold water jumps. There were 3283 competitors.

Sunday 18^th December Holy Run Reigate

Harriers Fun At The Holly Run

Croydon Harriers came home with a handful of medals in their latest Cross-Country race at the Holly Run in Reigate.

The Open Race, the largest of its kind in Southern England, attracted large fields in all age categories with Harriers of all generations thriving in their races.

The Under 13 team is rapidly gaining a formidable reputation as a force to be reckoned with and this was reinforced with a silver medal winning team performance.

Superb team tactics ensured the young Harriers came home as a group and in the process deservedly secured the runner’s up spot.

Seb Novell (6^th, 12:00) led the way with Will Mercer (8^th, 12:19) and Mark Plackett (10^th, 12:34) rounding off the scoring trio on the 2-mile course.

Scott Fanner also provided non-scoring support to the runner’s up, finishing in 13^th in a time of 12:44.

In the 3-mile Under 17 race, Mohamed Mohammed picked up individual bronze in 18:20, just ahead of Claudius Ricketts who was 4^th in 18:51. They both timed their sprints well in the latter stages, running smartly as a pair and their respective times were just reward.

The ever-improving Daisy Collingridge put in yet another impressive performance, finishing the 2-mile junior race in 12:42 for 13^th place out of the 72 strong field.

Croydon’s Senior Team were slightly depleted due to a race the previous day but still battled well, with Dave Warren (35^th, 39:34), Ashley George (58^th, 42:13) and Mark Bayliss (72^nd, 43:57) ensuring the Harriers finished in 6^th out of the 7 competing teams. Dan Xiao-Ho’s return from injury continues to go from strength to strength with a top 100 placing (86^th, 46:03), whilst Mustafa Daued (113^th, 50:08) finished strongly in his first race of the season. Completing the Harriers team was Matthew Kiernan finishing in 51:27 for 116^th out of the 134 competitors.

Croydon Harriers fought hard with limited resources in the Ellis Trophy, at Richmond Park on Saturday.

The course, a slight variant on what is used for the Surrey Veterans Championships, proved tricky to handle for the 100 strong field, due to the heavy rain that fell just moments before the race start.

Despite this though Nick Cambridge shield holder Colin Oxlade still produced a strong run, completing the 5.5-mile course in 34:33 for 24^th. Team Manager Andy Del Nevo (36:08, 42^nd) ran consistently, whilst reigning Surrey Octathlon champion George Thatcher continues to improve finishing in 47^th in 36:55. Paul Thatcher (37:58) returned from injury in a strong fashion, whilst Matthew Kiernan (103^rd, 44:50) just missed out on a top 100 place.

Croydon did have one more competitor…unfortunately he arrived 10 minutes late! Julian Dillow still gave Colin company on the 2^nd lap though and caused the race organisers a few headaches at the finish!

The Ellis Trophy was organised by Ranelagh Harriers and the 10 to score competition was won by Stragglers AC

Meanwhile, other Harriers were in action in the Gibb Cup at Farthing Downs. Keith Brown and Norman Hemming represented Croydon in the 10-mile race organised by South London Harriers. Race conditions were dry following downpour just before the start but pretty sticky running conditions underfoot in stretches.

37th Keith Brown 1-13-12
41st Norman Hemming 1-14-14
62nd Mark Bayliss 1-23-11

Dave Dymond led Croydon Harriers to a creditable 6^th place in the Surrey League at Richmond Park on Saturday. Dymond was the first Harrier home in the second fixture of the league, finishing in 29:47 for 22^nd position.

Darren Bradley was soon after in 29^th in 30:15, pushed all the way by Ian Wright (32^nd, 30:18) and Robbie McIntyre (33^rd, 30:20).

An under the weather Colin Oxlade (64^th, 31:42) headed the next group of Harriers with Andy Del Nevo (71^st, 31:56) and Dave Warren (78^th, 32:15) not far behind.

Sneaking inside the top 100 were Julian Dillow (97^th, 33:10) and Ashley George (98^th, 33:14) whilst Keith Brown rounded off the scoring ten in 35:14 for 128^th.

For the first time in Croydon Harriers living memory Jon McCallum provided non-scoring support for 130^th in 35:23, due to lateness. He fought valiantly to make up ground on the field that had nearly a ten-minute head start.

Norman Hemming (131^st, 35:27) was next, with Matthew Kiernan (161^st, 40:54) narrowly beating Eric Campbell (163^rd, 41:38).

170 runners completed the two lap five-mile race, hosted by Stragglers AC.

Ranelagh Harriers won the fixture, with Hercules Wimbledon and Dulwich Runners 2^nd and 3^rd respectively out of the 9 competing clubs.

In the junior section of the match, Croydon continued to battle with representatives in both U17+15 and U13 age groups.

In the U17+15 race, Claudius Ricketts finished 6^th in 15:43, with Mohamed Mohammed one place back in 15:48 out of the 35 competitors.

Meanwhile Will Mercer secured a podium place, crossing the line in 3^rd, in the U13 age group and 13^th overall. 

22^nd 0:29:47 DYMOND, Dave Croydon Harriers Veteran Men

29^th 0:30:15 BRADLEY, Darren Croydon Harriers NDB 52

32^nd 0:30:18 WRIGHT, Ian Croydon Harriers Veteran Men

33^rd 0:30:20 McINTYRE, Robbie Croydon Harriers Senior Men

64^th 0:31:42 OXLADE, Colin Croydon Harriers Veteran Men

71^st 0:31:56 DEL NERO, Andy Croydon Harriers Senior Men

78^th 0:32:15 WARREN, Dave Croydon Harriers Veteran Men

97^th 0:33:10 DILLON, Julian Croydon Harriers Veteran Men

98^th 0:33:14 GEORGE, Ashley Croydon Harriers Junior Men

128^th 0:35:14 BROWN, Keith Croydon Harriers Veteran Men

130^th 0:35:23 McCALLUM, Jon Croydon Harriers Senior Men

131^st 0:35:27 HEMMING, Norman Croydon Harriers Veteran Men

161^st 0:40:54 KIERNAN, Matthew Croydon Harriers Junior Men

163^rd 0:41:38 CAMPBELL, Eric Croydon Harriers Senior Men

6^th 0:15:43 CLAUDIUS, Ricketts Croydon Harriers Boys

7^th 0:15:48 MOHAMED, Mohammed Croydon Harriers Youths

13^th 0:16:44 MERCER, Will Croydon Harriers Colts

Robbie McIntyre spearheaded Croydon Harriers into the top 15 in the South of Thames Cross Country Championships at Lloyd Park on Saturday.

Despite this being McIntyre’s debut season, he has impressed many this year, with this being his best result yet finishing in 32:31 for 52nd.

Ian Wright pushed him all the way though, just a second back in 53rd, whilst Colin Oxlade returned to form to finish 73rd in 33:48.

The final member of the scoring quartet was Julian Dillow, who continued his good season with a placing of 76th, completing the 5 mile course in 34:01.

Jermaine Mays, who has competed for Great Britain in the 3000m Steeplechase, won the race and also helped his club, Kent AC, to the team honours.

The Harriers finished in 13th position, whilst the "B" team placed in 24th out of the 32 clubs who closed in.

Match One

Under 13 (1.75m approx)

1 George James E&E 12.30

2 Sebastian Novell Cro 12.38

3 Will Mercer Cro 13.19

4 Scott Fanner Cro 13.54

Teams

1 Croydon (2,3,4,14) 23

2 Epsom & Ewell (1,5,10,14) 30

3 Kingston & Polytechnic (6,7,8,11) 32

Under 15 (1.75m approx)

1 Ben Robson Cro 11.34

2 Alex Rice E&E 12.03

3 Martyn Payne Cro 12.18

10 Daisy Collingwood Cro 13.51

Teams

1 Kingston & Polytechnic (4,5,7,9) 25

2 Croydon (1,3,10,20) 34

3 Epsom & Ewell (2,8,12,14) 36

Croydon Harriers fought hard against the best clubs in South England to finish 17^th, at Priory Park in the Priory relays.

The race, celebrating its 50^th anniversary, produced testing conditions for the Harriers, with top class runners and a difficult hilly course challenging their efforts.

But they adapted well, with Andy Del Nevo (15:59) putting the club in 23^rd place on the 1^st leg of 6.

George Thatcher (15:49) took over and ran the fastest leg for Croydon to move them to 20^th.

Further progress was made by young Ben Robson (16:09), who handed over in 17^th, with Robbie McIntyre (15:50) maintaining position on leg 4.

Dan Xiao-Ho (17:56) also crossed the line in 17^th, whilst Colin Oxlade (16:07) anchored the Harriers home for a top 20 placing in 18^th.

Croydon’s time of 1:37:50 was 16 minutes back from overall winners Herne Hill Harriers.

The club also fielded a "B" team in the relays, they finished 23^rd out of the 38 clubs who fielded a complete team with 6 runners.

1^st Herne Hill Harriers 1:21:52

2^nd Blackheath & Bromley AC 1:24:23

 3^rd Belgrave Harriers 1:27:24

Croydon Harriers began the defence of their East Surrey league title in good fashion, finishing third in the opening fixture, at Lloyd Park on Saturday.

The Harriers, who hosted the race, adapted well in tricky conditions, which the heavy overnight rain caused.

Former Scottish International runner Jon McCallum led Croydon home in 29:46 for 3^rd place on the 5-mile course.

Darren Bradley (31:02) just missed out on a top 10 position crossing the line 11^th, whilst veterans Julian Dillow (23^rd, 33:24) and Andy Del Nevo (26^th, 33:41) continued their recent good form.

The last two "A" team places fell to Mikhail Popov (29^th, 33:59) and Robbie McIntyre (31^st: 34:06) who scrapped all the way in the latter stages.

Recovering from injury is always a stern test for athletes and Colin Oxlade continues to pass this test with flying colours, being the leader of the "B" team in 34:15 for 33^rd.

A photo finish was required to separate the Thatcher's latest battle, with younger brother Paul (29^th, 34:43) edging out Kevin (30^th) for the first time this season despite both being given the same time.

As has been the pattern so far this season, Keith Brown was tantalisingly close behind the brothers, finishing 54^th in 36:55.

Norman Hemming (65^th, 37:47) was next home, with non-scoring support from Matthew Kiernan (89^th, 43:17) 5 minutes back.

For the comeback of the afternoon you need look no further than Eric Campbell, who despite a bad start and being close to the back of the field, came storming through in the 2^nd half and almost beat this resident reporter! He finished in 43:30 for 91^st out of the 105 finishers.

Epsom and Ewell Harriers won the race, with Herne Hill Harriers a close second and Croydon third. The Croydon "B" team were 1^st out of the second-string teams and 8^th overall.

The women’s team for Croydon also produced drama with Sarah Guest (99^th, 48:00) tussling with good friend Clare Arnott (100^th, 48:11) throughout. They placed 13^th and 14^th respectively out of the female competitors.

Meanwhile, the future looks bright with the young Harriers putting on good performances despite tough competition.

George Thatcher, more renowned for his track exploits after representing Surrey this year, was first the member of the U17/15 team home in 11:54 for 7^th.

Josh Alexander (18^th, 14:07) and Elliot Osher (19^th, 14:18) both battled hard to ensure the hosts finished 5^th out of the 6 teams.

Daisy Collingridge was the third girl passed the line in 14:02, despite some competitors being two years older than her.

In the U13s race Croydon, as they have so many times before in this age group, proved that they are the best with an impressive performance.

Sebastian Novell (4^th, 13:07), Darren Proctor (5^th, 13:20), Will Mercer (6^th, 13:22) and Scott Fanner (10^th, 14:11) all gained top 10 finishes; which can only be ominous for the opposition.

15^th I Wright (Croy) M40-7 37:45

46th C Oxlade (Croy) M45-12 41:31

58th M Popov (Croy) M40-19 43:09

72th N Hemming (Croy) M50-13 44:41

With the cross-country season only a matter of weeks away, several Harriers took the opportunity to get their race sharpness up to scratch in the Switchback 5 mile race at Lloyd Park on Sunday.

The Harriers adapted well, in what is a variation of the club’s home course, and gained renewed optimism about their form going into the winter.

"Friendly" brotherly rivalry brought home Croydon’s first runners with Kevin Thatcher (10^th, 33:42) pipping younger sibling Paul (11^th, 33:43) in the home straight with a well-timed sprint finish.

Keith Brown (15^th, 34:21) was hot on their heels, whilst Norman Hemming (26^th, 36:03) ensured 4 Harriers would finish in the top half of the field.

Rounding off the team was Matthew Kiernan, completing the course in 41:15 for 45^th out of the 69 finishers.

Surrey Young Athletes XC Relays Croydon Harriers fielded four teams in the Surrey Young Athletes Cross-country relays at Stoke Park Guildford on Sunday.

The U17s, Jon Povey, Mohamed Mohammed and Claudius Ricketts, finished fourth out of 10 teams.

U15, Ben Robson and Jamie and Billy Thoroughgood finished 12th in 20:06.0.

The U15 girls, Ailsa Kirkham, Sophie Patterson and Daisy Collingridge, finished ninth of 24 teams.

The club's youngest team, the U13 boys, Scott Farmer, Seb Vovell and Will Mercer did well to finish seventh in a field of 21 in 19:54.0.