The English schools cross country Cup is a competition whereby schools compete in teams in first round regional competitions, aiming to progress through to the London final and ultimately the English Schools Final. Six athletes are allowed to enter into each race with the first four runners scoring for their school. The teams with the highest score in the first regional rounds progress through to the next round.
The selection process for the Junior boys team was an easy one for the PE department. With commitment to distance running, Lewis Warren was the first student selected. His school rival Kieran Aubrey was also chosen as on previous occasions when these boys had battled against each other, they had pushed each other to perform well. The other students selected were Jules Rickeard, known for his grit and determination on the rugby field, Ezekiel Davis, all round athlete, Fergus Paten Year 7 Faculty Cup Cross Country winner and first timer Ryan Curran who had shown promise in his Year 7 PE baseline testing. The PE department were expecting big things from this team.
The event took place at Alleny’s school and again Harris Crystal Palace were up against the likes of Dulwich College and Allenyn’s, both prestigious private schools with a history of producing good cross country runners. The rain was lashing down but this did not dampen the spirits of the team, only their well kept hairstyles.
The Year 7 girl’s team were running on tired legs after competing in two events already this week. They performed well in the tough conditions and against athletes one year their senior. Sadia Kabeya finished 21st, Sasha Weller-Dawburn beat her rival from previous races in 41st to Lkeyah Ferguson’s 48th. First timer Gabriella Butt finished 54th and again, these students should be proud of their performances. They will definitely enjoy a restful weekend after three events this week.
After standing on the start line for a while with soaking wet vests the Junior Boys race began. Lewis Warren had confidence in his running due to ample experience and took to the front of the pack, closely followed by Kieran. These two boys played cat and mouse at the front of the pack for the majority of the race, never slipping behind 5th place. The other boys took things steady over the first lap working their way through the pack of athletes who had got their pacing wrong over the 2500m course.
After the first lap, it was clear to see that Lewis Warren meant business; he was tracking second place closely and these boys closed the gap in the final stages of the race on first place who perhaps suffered the effects of his fast first lap. Kieran battled on at the front of the race also and Fergus, a year young in the age group worked his way up to the top 10 position. He even had time to smile for photographs. Fergus was closely followed by the other green vests of his team mates.
During the final stages of the race, the boys knew that they had to progress through the field as their combined score counted. They fought hard for every place and finished in the following positions: Lewis Warren 2nd, Kieran Aubrey 4th, Fergus Paten 6th, Ezekiel Davis 15th, Jules Rickeard 16th and Ryan Curran 69th. The team performed so well that at the finishing funnel a member of staff commented "wow, who is this green team?" I was very pleased to inform him that we were Harris Crystal Palace and rightly so, the boys walked away from the event very proud. We wait to hear the official results but with a score of 27points, it is likely that the boys have qualified for the next stage of the competition. Things also look promising for the Croydon Schools Cross Country next week also.
Well done team!
Ms Whitehead
Deputy Head of Physical Education
Deputy Head of Physical Education
