No reason to be cross for star turn Roberts
Nicole Roberts made up for her disappointing run in last year's Under-17 race when she finished a superb 13th in the Junior Women's event at the McCain's UK Inter-Counties Cross Country Championships.
The meeting at Birmingham's Cofton Park, which for both the Seniors and Juniors was being used as the trials for the World Championships in Poland, saw Roberts get off to an excellent start in her 6km race. She was in the leading group in the early stages before Surrey's Emelia Gorecka pushed on to stake her claim for a place in the G B team for the Worlds.
Roberts came home in 22.17 in the race which she is still eligible to compete in next year. Gorecka took the title in 20.40 from Cornwall's Annabel Gummow (20.51) and Hannah Walker (Herts) who took the bronze in 21.00 to also clinch her place in the Worlds.
In the corresponding men's 8km race Jonathan Goringe produced a solid run for 72nd place in a time of 28.07 as Middlesex's Richard Goodman came out on top after a close battle throughout with Ben Norris. He won by two seconds in 25.04 while Scotland West's Calum Hawkins (25.26) clinched the third automatic qualifying place for Poland.
Both the county Senior Women and the Under-13 Boys team showed a big improvement on last year. The ladies finished a fine 21st with Kirsty Gallagher fronting the team with her best ever Inter Counties run. She ran the 8km distance in 30.52 for 62nd while Sian Edwards, competing for the first time in the Senior race, ran 31.22 for 75th. Louise Thompson (159th), Maree Jesson (172nd), Rebecca Hall (186th) and Nikki Harris (217th) also scored for the county.
Scotland East's Freya Murray pulled away from the holder Steph Twell (Hampshire) in the final kilometre to take the title by nine seconds in 27.21.
Kettering Town Harrier Helen Rollins ran the distance in 31.34 to finish 81st for Leicestershire.
Jack Murphy and Josh Cara had a titanic battle to front the county team which came 20th in the Under-13 Boys 3km race. Despite recording the same time of 10.24 Murphy just edged out Cara in a repeat of the County to place 40th – a massive improvement on his 221st of 12 months ago.
Cara was 41st as Tom Holden led Surrey to the team title when he achieved a narrow victory by just one second from Christian Von Eitzen (Oxfordshire).
Over the same course Ellie Welch ran well to finish 68th in 12.06 in the Under-13 Girls event while her Corby AC colleagues Helena Keenan, who recorded 12.03 for 59th and Georgia Bevins (65th in 12.06) both performed well in the colours of Leicestershire.
At the head of the field Katie Rowe (Hampshire) just bagged the title by one second from Georgia Tuckfield (Essex) in a time of 11.19.
The Under-17 pair of Rory Grant and Gabriella Moriarty both turned in fine efforts in their respective races. The former was 55th with his time for the 6km distance being 20.11 while Moriarty clocked 20.56 for 62nd place over the Ladies 5km course.
With the late withdrawal of Matt Almond because of food poisoning it was Job King who led home the Senior Men's team. He ran a solid race for 123rd position while also helping the county to 26th in the team stakes were Stuart Nelson (155th), Martin Johnson (184th), Chris Curtis (192nd), Troy Garrity (198th) and Craig Mattocks, who was 212th.
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Weather for Kettering
Sunday 27 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 25 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 12 C to 26 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: North east
