Shropshire Young Athletes League X Country - Oswestry

Shrewsbury AC were represented in numbers at the second meeting in this seasons X Country League, with 11
of our young athletes making the trip to Oswestry last weekend.

With 5 debutants wearing our colours we had an increased presence across the races. Conditions were good underfoot, but head-on winds for half the route made for a tough afternoons racing.

U11 Girls
Eve Lucas was our first debutant in action, and our sole runner in this race. Despite loosing a shoe halfway around the course she managed to finish strongly in 24th place!

U11 Boys
SAC continue to compete strongly in this event with Ross Kirby leading home Luke Howes in 7th & 8th positions respectively.
Ryan Lawendon finished 18th, a great run on his first race, and only 9yrs old!


U13 Girls
Elizabeth Hooper & Abbie Lewis were the two new faces in this race representing SAC, as they joined Becky Peet for the one and a half lap course. Elizabeth ran a strong race throughout to finish 22nd, while Becky & Abbie finished 37th & 38th.

U13 Boys
Ben Ashcroft made the 3000m distance look easy with a comfortable win, following up his 2nd place at Newport. Leading from the start, Ben showed no signs of letting up with a polished performance. Daniel Lucas finished 15th in his first race in Shrewsbury colours, a solid run
from him, while Andrew Hickman came home 19th in his first X Country race of the season after stepping up in distance from the 1500m U11 category last year.

U15 Girls
In the days final race, Lydia Peet was our runner. She earned a 16th position with a well timed sprint to the line to gain a place over one of her rivals from Ludlow Runners.



Well done to all the Athletes, and thanks to parents for your support. Next event is the Much Wenlock fixture on November 16th.

2nd Meeting Cross Country at Telford

League Table after 2nd Round, with Shrewsbury still top after the 2nd meeting at Telford. Full report to follow.

Men's Division 1

Team Points

Shrewsbury AC 227
Telford AC 312
Eryri Harriers 444
Colwyn Bay AC 528
Wrexham AC 532
Abergele Harriers 799
Tattenhall Runners 932
Buckley Runners 1536

Colwyn Bay - North Wales X Country League

There was nostalgia in the air as well as success when Shrewsbury Athletic Club runners competed in the first North Wales Cross Country League race at Colwyn Bay on Saturday.

Mike James, fresh from his recent success in the Stretton Skyline, stormed to 2nd place behind Telford AC’s international star Chris Davies, while Club legend, Ian Coupland showed that he had lost none of his outstanding form since last wearing a Shrewsbury vest some years ago, with a welcome return in 5th place. It was also great to see Duncan Beale again, finishing in a close grouping with Kevin Francis and Club captain Graham Jones, the trio finishing in 24th, 25th and 27th places. Steve Hatton and Steve Waters , both in close proximity, completed the team placings in 42nd and 43rd places. A great start to the campaign, placing first in the team event, followed by Abergele and Telford (subject to official confirmation)

Anna Bartlett, building on another successful summer fell season, fought her way to 2nd place in the Womens’ race.

Most notable, however, was the appearance of Club legend and elder statesman, Evan Williams. Evan, much to the delight of club colleagues and acquaintances from the other North Wales clubs, lined up to compete in a North Wales cross country event for the first time for many years, proving that age is no barrier, by finishing 3rd in the over 70 Mens’ Veteran category. With so many Club, Welsh records and even a world record achieved over the years, Evan had just enough time to go over old times with his many friends, before it was time to board the Club coach to leave for home.

All in all, a memorable day.

Colwyn Bay Results:
2 Mike James
5 Ian Coupland
24 Duncan Beale
25 Kevin Francis
27 Graham Jones
42 Steve Hatton
43 Steve Waters
45 Dominic Kirby
67 Steve Turk
71 Chris Wakeman
113 Duncan Rose
120 Ben Nash
127 Derek Owen
143 Dan Fleetwood
155 Steve Oliver


Ladies Race
2 Anna Bartlett
71 Sheila Richards

Over 70 Mens Race
3 Evan Williams