Junior Boys grab Silver at Nottingham

The Sussex Schools junior boy’s team turned up trumps at the England Schools Cross Country championships at Wollaton Park, Nottingham when they finished a splendid second in the team event.

Conditions underfoot were pretty good and, apart from a couple of brief hail showers condition were generally fine.

Over all it was a disappointing championship for Sussex but the Junior Boys certainly did the business placing a marvellous and unexpected second to Surrey scoring 294 points to the winners 187 with Cheshire in third place with 301.

Joe Smith (Oakmeeds), who had won the South East Inter-counties at Bexhill last month, led the challenge with a splendid 12^th place out of a field of four hundred plus runners beating County Schools champion George Poole (Eastbourne Coll), who also had a fine run to finish in 26^th place which was a good effort.

Leo Brewer (Brighton College) also squeezed inside the Top Fifty placing 43^rd and the scoring six all finished in the Top One hundred, which is a pretty good at this event, with Ethan Fincham (Angmering) 54^th, Joseph Martin (Ardingly) 59^th and Max Brazier (Patcham) 100^th.

The only other Sussex runner to make the top twenty five in any of the six races was Stephen Ferroni (BACA), in the Senior (U19) race, who it was hoped would challenge for a medal. He confessed to “having and awful race” finishing in 24^th place and leading his team into 17^th team spot out of the 44 competing counties.

In this age group Jack Leitch (BHASVIC) and Brodie Denholm (Brighton College) squeezed inside the Top one hundred placings 95^th and 97^th respectively.

Maya Ramnarine (Robertsbridge) ran well to lead the Junior (U15) girl’s home in 15^th spot placing 46^th and Amelia Wright (Farlington) 81^st.

There was almost panic after a loose dog played havoc with the leaders soon after the start and County Schools champion, Olivia McDonald (Seaford College), pulled a muscle when trying to avoid the melee but bravely finished placing 106^th.

The senior girls finished in 14^th place with Louise Nash (William Parker) placing 81^st and Rosie Ellis (Chichester) 94^th while the Intermediate (U17) took 19^th place being led home by Poppy Mercer (Cavendish) in a creditable 53^rd position.

Ben Collins (Chichester High) and Seaford Head’s Ben Martin battled out the Sussex honours in the Intermediate boys event finishing 76^th and 78^th respectively and the team struggled home in 33rd place.