Saturday 26th October saw team AVEAC journey into the Peak District National Park, to take part in the first Derbyshire Athletics Cross Country Mini-League match. As with previous years, the fixture was again held at Buxton Rugby Club, on the southern edge of what I am reliably informed is England’s highest market town. Weather conditions were ideal for the five AVEAC athletes competing at the event, mild temperature and dry, albeit slightly overcast.
Under 11s
In the Under 11 Girls category Flo Protheroe was the only AVEAC athlete to compete, crossing the finishing line in 7mins 5secs to finish sixth. There were two athletes competing in the Under 11 Boys category, with both Dylan Knowles and Benjamin McLaren lining up for the club. Dylan recorded a time of 5mins 32secs as he crossed the line in first place, with Benjamin finishing in 6mins 21secs to claim tenth place.
The two teams came away from the event with 20 and 23 points respectively.
Under 13s
Unfortunately, no AVEAC Under 13 athletes were able to attend, and as such the teams scored the maximum points for the match, with our girls team being awarded 33 points and our boys 30 points.
Under 15s
Madeleine Turner was the sole AVEAC athlete competing in the Under 15 Girls category, comfortably crossing the line in first place, with a time of 12mins 49secs. Harvey Glover in the Under 15 Boys category ran alongside his club mate for a large portion of the race, finishing in 13mins 1sec to claim third place.
The two teams in this age category ended the match with total points of 9 for the girls and 15 for the boys.
Overall
The club left Buxton with a total of 130 points, putting us in third place overall, just ahead of Chesterfield, but some way behind Derby and High Peak.
1. Derby AC – 79 Points
2. High Peak AC – 89 Points
3. AVEAC – 130 Points
4. Chesterfield AC – 132 Points
5. Heanor Running Club – 140 Points
6. Buxton AC – 143 Points
With points awarded in each age category based on the finishing positions of a minimum of three athletes competing in each age group (where numbers drop below this, the ‘missing’ athletes earn points as if finishing in the position behind the last competitor in their age group), to stand any chance of emulating our track and field success in the summer, it’s imperative that we improve our numbers for the remaining events in this series.
Next Events
Up next for our cross country fans is the second North Midlands Cross Country League match being held at West Glebe Park in Corby on Saturday 9th November. This is followed by the middle match of the Derbyshire Athletics series, hosted by AVEAC at our home facilities at Rutland Sports Park on Saturday 23rd November.
Report – Dan Humphrey, Photos – Chris Rigby