Cheshire Cross Country Championships 2023: Vale Royal Athletics Club

Vale Royal individuals collected four gold, three silver and four bronze medals, while the club's teams won two gold, three silver and two bronze.

Days of heavy rain made the course at Knight's Grange, Winsford, a quagmire and combined with high winds on the day it made for challenging conditions.

Vale Royal's top performer over 1600m among the under 11s boys, and first medal winner for the club, was Billy Spann who came third. Together with teammates Max Roberts and Connor Venables the Vale Royal boys took second place in the team competition.

Jane Carrington was the club's first girl home, finishing 17th.

In the combined under 13s race covering 3000m, Gus Fraser was first over the line for Vale Royal, finishing in eighth place.

Ella Harvey was fifth girl to finish followed by Imogen Ward and Lily Coates. Together the girls earned a team bronze medal.

Alex Macnab was Vale Royal's first athlete home in the under 15s event raced over 4,100m, clinching a creditable fourth place. Together with Noah Simpson and Ethan price, the boys' team came second. Lauren Weedall ran a well-judged race to finish ninth in the under 15s girls' race.

U17s competitors faced two long laps, covering 5000m, with Harry Parker-McLain and Isaac Leydon setting a fast pace from the start and pulling away from the rest of the field over the first lap.

Vale Royal's Isaac Leydon. Picture: Rob Brown

By the start of the second lap, Leydon had pulled substantially clear of Parker-McLain and continued to extend his lead to finish 44 seconds ahead at the line. Rhys Bowden finished strongly to come home in fourth place and secure a further gold medal for the Vale Royal team.

Not to be outdone, Hope Smith won the women's race, finishing nearly two minutes ahead of the second placed athlete, while Molly Roberts crossed the line third for bronze.

Vale Royal's Hope Smith. Picture: Rob Brown

Underfoot conditions were worsening as the combined under 20s and senior women's race over 8,000m got started.

Holly Weedall took the race out alongside Warrington AC's Harriet Knowles-Jones, a former GB international making a comeback after illness issues. As the race progressed Knowles-Jones pulled away as Weedall tired but Grace Roberts came through the field for second place overall and first place in the under 20s category. Weedall was second under 20s runner, and with Ellie Bushill placing third they took the team gold medal.

Vale Royal's Holly Weedall chasing senior women's race winner Harriet Knowles Jones. Picture: Rob Brown

Vale Royal's women won team silver with Liz Renondeau and Sarah Murphy moving steadily through the field to finish sixth and seventh respectively.

Hollie Carrington and Anna Begbie made up the counting team. Additionally, substituting Helen Smith for Hollie Carrington the women also took second place in the veteran's team competition.

Final event of the day was the combined under 20s and senior men's race over 10,200 metres.

Trafford AC's James Knockton hung on to Vale Royal's Jake Wilson until the closing stages of the final lap before Wilson pulled away to win the under 20s race by 14 seconds.

Vale Royal's Jake Wilson. Picture: Rob Brown

Harry Dexter ran a brilliantly paced race, working his way through the field to cross the line in fourth place overall but second senior to take the silver medal.

Close behind, Andrew Miles collected the bronze medal. With Nathan Williams, John Humphries, Ryan Moore and Aaron Doyle making up the counting six, the team took gold.

Vale Royal's next six athletes, namely James Griffiths, Charlie Weaver, Oliver Williams, Patrick Stradling, Matt McCormack, and Rob Olliver, took the second team medal.