Track & Field fixture lists sent to every club member

With the outdoor track & field season fast approaching, every member of the club has been sent a league fixture list specific to them.

Whether you are 8 years old and taking part in the quadkids at the Wessex League or 80 years old and taking part in the Hampshire vets league, you know the dates of the fixtures and how the teams are chosen.

This is a historic year for WADAC as we compete in the NAL for the very first time and we are looking forward to record numbers of athlets representing the club in league matches this year.

Super Weekly track & field preview

What a week of action for the clubs athletes.

The highlight is tomorrow’s Loughborough International where Arabella Wilson (coach Andy Fisher) is making her GB juniors debut in the 400m hurdles match race. Bella will line up in the main match against athletes from senior teams from England, Scotland, Wales, a Loughborough select team and an NAL select team. Bella isn’t the only WADAC athlete taking part however as Mia Judd (coach Tony Bateman) has been given a guest spot in an exciting high jump competition featuring Emily Borthwick & KJT as well as star GB junior Thea Brown. Elsie Brindle (coach Mark Upton) also features in one of the 400m guest races.

Today sees the clubs senior team make their SAL Div 1 debut in Southampton. the club will be fielding a strong team in their very first match at this level. Also tomorrow, the club’s U13 & U15 young athletes take part in their 2nd league match in the lower age group YDL in Bromley after coming 2nd in the first match in Woodford last month.

Monday sees the vets take on match 2 of the Hampshire vets league in Portsmouth and on Wednesday it is the clubs 2nd Open meeting of the season this time an evening meeting. Finally it is the Hampshire schools multi-event champs on Thursday in Andover.

That is quite a week with another Super week of action to come the following week.

Vets men & women are 4th in opening league match

A small but beautifully formed group of our Masters athletes took part in the first of the Hampshire vets league matches in Basingstoke on Monday night.

The mens team were joint 4th with Overton and recorded wins in the 2km walk through Marcin Wojtowicz (coach Derek Smith) and the B string 400m through Tim Smales (coach David Vosser).

The womens team were 4th although just 2 points behind 2nd placed Aldershot and recorded 5 wins on the night in the V50 100m through Kathryn Miles (coach Dave Sherry), the 2km walk through Vicky Gill (coach David Vosser), the A & B string 400m through Sian Lewis & Vicky Gill respectively (Sian coached by David Vosser) and the V50 triple jump through Kathryn Miles.

The next vets league match takes place on the Monday the 20th May in Portsmouth.

Weekly track & Field preview

The outdoor season is now well under way and this is reflected in a busy week of track & field. The first round of Upper age group (U17/U20) YDL league matches take place tomorrow with our club along with composite partners City of Portsmouth AC in the Premier league for the first time and we are fielding a strong team that make the way to Eton to compete against tough opposition.

The vets league gets underway on Monday night in Basingstoke & Team Managers Andy & Amanda will be leading our masters athletes in Hampshire league action.

Finally, a world athletics permit Combined events meeting takes place today & tomorrow in Yeovil in the shape of the Somerset Schools CE champs and Abi Belward & Seni Purnell (both coached by Andy Fisher) will be in action.

Which track & field leagues are we in

With the Summer season fast approaching, it is worth famliarising yourself with which leagues the club competes in and which you are eligible for.

The club competes in 5 track & field leagues. These are great for team spirit and fun and brings a team element to what is an individual sport.

We are in division 1 of the Southern Athletics League or SAL and this league is eligible to those in the U17 age group and above. The team is selected by the head coaches but there is room for everyone that wants to take part.

We are in the premier league South of the upper age group Youth Development league or YDL where we compete as a composite team with the City of Portsmouth AC. This league is eligible to those in the U17 & U20 age groups and is selected by the Head coaches but there is plenty of room for everyone that wants to take part. We are also in the premier league of the lower age group of the YDL. This is eligible to the U13 & U15 age groups with the teams selected by the Head Coaches. We recognise there is not always room for everyone in this league where we field our strongest age group team so also compete in the Wessex League which is a development league with selection prioritised for those young athletes not selected for the YDL. This league is for U13-U17 with a few spaces for U20 non scorers and an U11 quadkids competition.

Finally, we compete in the Hampshire vets league which is for those age 35+ and this friendly league team is selected by the Vets Team Managers.

If you are in any doubt about which league is right for you please talk to your coach and we look forward to seeing you compete in league matches in 2024.

Women win Hampshire Vets League

In nailbiting finish

The Hampshire vets league came down to a nailbiting conclusion on Monday but the womens team prevailed over local rivals Southampton AC by just 8 points to take the overall league title. The ladies lost the match on the day but the 6 point margin wasn't enough for Southampton to overtake WADAC who had a 14 point lead going into the match with each team winning 2 of the 4 league matches each.

The mens team came 4th on the day and finished the season in 4th place overall in the league.

With usual hosts Ashford having done more than their fair share, it would appear that there will be no Southern Counties league final this year (the final takes place between all the winners of the county leagues) unless a new host can be found which is unlikely at this short notice.

A big thanks to Team Managers Heather & Andy Gannaway who have marshalled the troops excellently this season and to all the officials who turned out to ensure the matches took place.

The vets ladies become the 2nd track & field team to secure a league title this year after the lower age group YDL team won their league and hopefully the club hasn't finished its pursuit of silverware just yet.

Vets women win match 3

More league results to catch up on starting with the 3rd round match of the Hampshire vets league which was held at our own track last Monday. Hosting any league match is a huge logistical challenge and a big thank you to vets Team Managers Andy Gannaway & Heather Sheffield for doing this.
nThe women won the match just pipping neighbours Southampton AC by a couple of points with the highlight being a new V60 club record in the triple jump by Alison Fenwick (coach David Vosser). The men were 4th in the face of very strong opposition.
nGoing into the last round match in Aldershort on the 24th July, the women have a slender lead over Southampton at the top of the league table with the men in 4th place.
nFull results of last Monday's match can be found through the link below.
nhttps://www.hampshirevetsleagu...