June 8th - PETERBOROUGH

June 29th - STEVENAGE

July 13th - IPSWICH

August 3rd - BURY ST EDMUNDS

September 14th - Finals. Venues to be confirmed.

Last year the attendance at these meetings was disappointing although those who did compete enjoyed the day. First event starts at 12.00 although it is helpful if all athletes could be there by 11.15. There is a new vest available for those competing in this combined club team although I am not sure of the cost. We urgently require help with this particular competition. On the day we are responsible for at least one field event and we should also supply a track judge or timekeeper. We also need someone to act as team manager/co-coordinator with Gina from Ryston Runners as I am unable to attend many of the above meetings this season.

EAST ANGLIAN LEAGUE – REPORT OF 2ND MEETING HELD AT LYNNSPORT, KINGS LYNN

Athletes from West Norfolk Athletics Club turned out in force for the second East Anglian League meeting of the season held at Lynnsport.

In the Under 11 Girls which like the boys are non-scoring, Lucy Edwards won the Long Jump competition with a great leap of 3m37. Jade Nicholson also continued her progress with a jump also over 3m. Alesha Cain ran a brave and promising 600m alongside Annelise Ward with both girls setting their benchmarks for future competition. In the Under11 Boys Tom Middleton and James Greenhalgh again faced a hugely competitive battle for the top positions and both came away from the meeting with notable achievements in all their three events. Luke Carton gained valuable experience in his events as did Ryan Coates for his 600m (2m20s) and Cane Young especially in the Long Jump (3m32).

With a depleted squad, Natasha Gamble and Grace Whomes enjoyed their day as Under 13 Girls.

The Under 13 Boys however caused a sensation on the day by finishing 2nd despite only having three athletes. This was entirely due to the quality of the performances. Craig Brooks achieved 2nd places in both the 100m and 200m (29.2s) and 1st in the Long Jump (4m23). Mathew Bailey not only won his Hurdles event but continued his progress in the Shot for 2nd place (5m89). Joining the team for his seasonal debut, Jack Dennis won the B String Shot in his first ever competition and also achieved a fine 2nd place in the 100m B String event.

The Under 15 Boys had their best turnout for some time and were enthused by the running of Henry Loughlin especially in the 800m which he won with a time of 2m15.2s. Alex Tuck and Gareth Searle highlighted the Club’s plethora of talent in the High Jump at present by winning the A and B String events both reaching 1m40. Competing for the first time this season, Jordan Nurse achieved good 3rd places in both the 100m and Long Jump A String events.

Josh Chaplain-Barton ran a fine 400m in the Under 17 Men group finishing 2nd (55.7). Daniel Tate and Jonathan Knox made successful debuts in the Long Jump both finishing 2nd in the respective A and B String events.

The Senior Men had a highly successful day very close to the winners ending in 2nd place. With the versatile and effective Lee Tunmore at the core of the action, there were some sterling performances. Jim Robinson cruised to victory in the 800m (2m00.5s) and Jon Laybourne finished just behind the leader and well clear of the rest of the field in the 3000m (9m 26.7s). Ian Reeve had a busy day and as well as winning B String Discus brought the Relay team home in a tremendous 3rd place. John Greenhalgh made a welcome return to action with a fine 3rd in the Triple Jump (A String) and Lewis Ely made up for a disappointing High Jump with a strong 100m individual and a delightful relay run on the second leg which witnessed the best changeover (with Lee Tunmore) seen at Lynnsport for a very long time. Ben Collison again made a major contribution with his brave run in the 3000m and Chris Ely again accrued points successfully in several Field events. A last minute step into the breach by Donnie Bowen in the Javelin event proved highly fruitful.

Again proving that the Club has an abundance of talented Under 15 Girls, the team finished 2nd on the day and well clear of 3rd place, accruing 99 event points. Apart from middle distance running this team is competitive in every single event. Again the Club’s High Jumpers came to the fore with maximum event points from Rebecca Russell (1m40) and Emma Tilbrook (1m35). The Javelin also yielded maximum points with throws from Freya Leserve (26m23) and Charlotte Redhead (22m52). Sam Avey again had a variety of events and in her first ever Discus attained 2nd place (B String). Jess Paterson ran a strong 100m and her Long Jump would have accrued major points had she not been a non scorer, emphasising the depth of talent in this age group. Jade Dennis ran well in the 800m but then raised her performance level still further with a super Long Jump of 4m03.

The Under 17/Senior Ladies were only just edged out of 2nd place by a single event point. What a difference has been evident this season with virtually every event keenly contested. Shanice Burch not unsurprisingly put maximum points on the score board with wins in the 100m, 200m, and Long Jump as well as bringing the Relay team home in 2nd place in an exciting finale. We will miss Sofie Casson when she returns to her native Australia, not only for her performances (3rd in A String 300m the pick of the day) but also for her commitment. Despite being younger than many of the competitive ladies in this composite age grouping, Rebecca Daines continues to achieve both personally and for the team. Her 3rd in the 800m (2m29.3) was particularly pleasing especially as we welcomed Molly James for her seasonal debut in the same event where she finished 2nd (B String). Kath Johnson again provided the backbone of the side and in a very busy day her events ranged from the High Jump (4th A String – 1m30) to the Shot Putt to the 1500m! Joining the Ladies, Laura Vincent provided the older athletes with a stern test of their credentials and again achieved a pb in her developing Triple Jump. Kate Davies kept her concentration and spurred on by team-mate Kath Johnson, finished just behind her in the1500m for 3rd place (B String). Leigh Ely joined in the fun with important cameo performances in the Shot and Discus and giving valuable support to the club’s other ladies in those events. Hayley Wisbey also made her seasonal debut and put in some determined sprints capped by a wonderful throw in her first ever Javelin event. To complete the team we welcomed the experienced and talented Melanie Brown as a non scorer who achieved the 3rd best time on the day for 100m in this age grouping.

Overall the Club finished a highly commendable 3rd with a massive 479.5 event points. Next meeting is again at Lynnsport on 22nd June. Every single team within the Club has a further chance to excel and improve their League positions then.

Richard Vincent (Team Manager) (01553 670306)

PLEASE NOTE TO TAKE PART IN ANY ATHLETICS MEETING FOR WEST NORFOLK AC YOU MUST BE A CLUB MEMBER. MEMBERSHIP FORMS AVAILABLE FROM CATH JOHNSON ON TRAINING NIGHTS.

West Norfolk AC train on Thurs at Lynnsport (8-13s 7pm -8pm) and Seniors plus over 13's from 8pm to 9pm.