BANBURY HARRIERS SUCCESSFUL SEASON
Banbury Harriers are certainly having their most successful track and field season for a decade and arguable ever.
This has been noticed by Mike Hughes the clubs former hurdles coach and lifelong supporter. He pinpoints the highlights of this week and the next few weeks.
Firstly this has been accomplished without a doubt with a great deal of hard work from the athletes but most of all from the small band of coaches in the club that have dedicated an immense time and energy for this to happen.
This last weekend saw no fewer than twelve athletes from the club taking part in the English Schools Championships at The Alexander Stadium, Birmingham.
The outstanding performance came from Emily Thompson in the senior girls 800metres reaching the final. She did not quite match her performance of last year when gaining silver. This year she was fourth in a race defended well by Khahisa Mhlanga. Both girls adopted similar race pattern as last year with Mhlanga going out from the start and Thompson going with her. At the bell this had not changed and Mhlanga went onto win in a time of 2m 06.66s this was two seconds outside her record breaking run of last year. Thompson was caught on the race to the line by Thamsin McGraw and Anne Burt, needless to say with a time of 2m 9.30s this was a season best.
The highlights from the boys was a lifetime best by Christopher Charles in the junior 80metre hurdles with a time of 11.77s, and he missed a final place by one tenth of a second. Seb Hartwell in the senior boys 400m had the ninth fastest time thus missing the final by one place.
The other nine athletes senior girls Rebecca Scott, Abbey Anson and Shannon Dawes, inter girl Alexandra Scrivener, junior girls Tegan Armstrong, Maddie Dowden and Regan Sellers. In the boys also inter Kody Johnson and senior OllieSpiro.
Dawes also has been selected to throw the javelin on Wednesday 25th this month, to compete for the Midland Under20’s against the other four areas plus the three home nations in an Internatnal at Swansea.
This coming weekend the Regional Final of UK Youth Development League takes place at Banbury on Saturday. The club will be aiming to gain promotion to the under13/15’s Midland Premier League. On the 29th of this month the under17/20 will hope to do likewise at Derby.
In the Heart of England athletic league the club as just regained Division One status after a three year spell in Division Two.
Congratulations to everyone involved in this summer of sunshine for Banbury Harriers.
By Mike Hughes.
