Brighton & Hove AC U15-Tomer Tarragano– was part of the Sussex junior boys team who brought home bronze from the the English Schools Cross-country championships at Blackburn on Saturday. Phoebe Connolly was a scoring member of the senior girls’ team who came seventh. These two team results were the best for Sussex this year.
In tough, muddy conditions with a testing hill, this was not a course for the faint hearted. The junior boys (U15) got the best of the conditions as they were the second race off. Theirs was an unexpected third place and Tomer in the scoring six just squeezed into the top 100, in 99th place.
Despite losing their top two runners the senior girls (U19) continued their recent fine form placing seventh of the forty plus competing teams. Phoebe Connolly in her first English Schools’ came through in 135th place. Also competing in the event for the first time were junior girls Niamh Halloren and Olivia Monk. They came in 163rd and 257th respectively. Niamh will still be a junior girl next year.
For the senior boy’s County champion Stephen Ferroni was having a brilliant run and had worked his way into second place when, with the finish in sight, he ran into an iron post and was floored. After medical attention he was stretchered away and took no further part in the race although he was allowed to return home stretched out on the back seat of the coach. Had Ferroni managed to finish in second place then Sussex could have expected to have finished fourth in the team event.
Both the intermediate (U17) teams finished in 29th place with Brodie Denholm 56th and Nancy Jones 97th leading the Girls home.
Results B&H athletes:
Junior Girls: Niamh Halloren (163), Olivia Monk (257)
Junior Boys: Tomer Tarragano (99)
Intermediate Girls: Nancy Jones (97)
Intermediate Boys: Brodie Denholm (56)
Senior Girls: Phoebe Connolly (135)
Senior Boys:Stephen Ferroni (DNF).