WADAC juniors seal Hampshire XC League titles

The fourth and final raceday of the 2021-22 Hampshire Cross Country League took place at Popham Airfield on Saturday. WADAC’s junior teams were hoping to complete another successful season with various individual and team wins, both on the day and in the final league tables for the season.
nThe weather on arrival at Popham was breezy, after the extreme winds of the previous 24 hours, but dry. Dry, that was, until the moment that the club tent had just about been secured on the chalky ground, at which point the rain set in and remained until just after the final junior race.
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nWinchester’s U13 girls had already secured their team gold medals for the season, with a race to spare, but there were individual seasonal honours to be fought for, with the trio of Kate Atkinson, Poppy Taylor and Grace Baker all in with a shout. It was a notable day for Grace, as she finished in front of her team-mates for the first time, in 6th, with Kate 7th and Poppy 9th. Those results were good enough to earn season’s bronzes for Kate and Poppy, but despite her great run, Grace just missed out, by one point across the whole season. As ever, there was quality support for the scoring team in the forms of Alexandra Dickinson, Ellie Jepson, Elodie Gill and, once again, Amber Price, still U11 but racing at U13 for the second time.
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nLike their counterparts, WADAC’s U13 boys had already secured the team title for 2021-22, but there was a shoot-out to come between team-mates Casper Wilson and Ethan Skipwith for the individual title. Casper decided to go hard and early, despite the conditions, and was rewarded with the win that he needed to add the League title to the Championships that he won in January. Ethan finished a clear 2nd, thus tying with Casper on points for the season, and winning the silver medal on countback. Seth Noott’s 5th place on the day also secured a seasonal bronze medal, so a fabulous set of results from these three, and backed-up well again by Ollie Corrie (10th in the season’s table), Oliver Foden and Iosu Harfield, all in the top 16 on Saturday, followed closely by Tom Savill and Mikel Harfield.
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nOne title that was very much still open at the start of the day was the U15 girls, with WADAC having put together a challenge in the second half of the season that seemed unlikely at the turn of the year. Darcy Hawkins was also looking to complete her fine season with an individual medal, and so she did, another strong run securing second on the day and silver medal for the season, despite being at the bottom of the age-group. Another progressive run from Eva Johnson (9th) and a continuing revival from Scarlett Anderson (18th) gave WADAC’s girls the points they needed for the team third place on the day, but more importantly, team silver medals for the season, which no-one could have predicted in December. Eva’s result also saw her finish 8th in the seasonal table. Good runs too from Katie Pugh, Isla McAulay and Amelie Gill, finishing in a bunch in the early 20s, showed that the club finally has some strength in depth in this cohort, which bodes well for next season.
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nThe U15 boys were another WADAC set that had already secured seasonal team golds, and Will Atkins in a superb campaign was already sure of individual silver, which he underlined by finishing second on the day. Ruben Price and James Lewis had bronze medals to fight for however, and they too both completed the job in awful conditions, with Ruben another fine 4th place from lower year. Although James struggled uncharacteristically, it was still good enough to seal yet another team win. There was good support too from Sam Wilkinson, Adam Perry on debut, and the dependable Will Dickinson.
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nJust as our U15 girls had seemed unlikely contenders after two races earlier in the season, so or U17 Women had looked like dead certs for the seasonal title. But a series of illnesses and injuries has well and truly scuppered their chances of team honours. Nevertheless, the two who were able to make the start line on Saturday did their customary top job, with Amelia Moore finishing 2nd on the day and sealing a seasonal silver medal, and Ellie McErlean 9th on the day and 8th place for the season.
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nThe final junior race category, as always, was the U17 Men, and here again there were medal places to be contested. Despite also having to field a weakened team for the second time in a row, the boys, crucially, had critical mass, in the form of three runners not two. With Ben Chesterfield 9th, Harry Harvey 10th and Ben Schofield 14th, those points were enough for third team on the day and team silver medals for the season, though Ben C and Harry were just outside the individual medals in 6th and 7th respectively.
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nSo, in a season cut short by all the things that we’ve grown used to, and athlete availability similarly unpredictable, once again it’s been both the quality and quantity of WADAC athletes that have seen the club dominate proceedings at junior level. With a strong U11 cohort moving through to U13 next season, the hope must be that this great run can continue. Thanks to all the coaches, volunteers and parent helpers that have kept the show on the road this season.
nFull results from the Hampshire Athletics website, here for girls : Hampshire Athletics - Hampshire Cross-Country League - 19 February 2022 - Girls and here for boys : Hampshire Athletics - Hampshire Cross-Country League - 19 February 2022 - Boys