Clydesdale Harriers are Going Up!

The 4^th of August saw the final team meeting of the season’s athletic calendar in the CSSL league, which took place at the newly upgraded Ayrshire Athletics Arena in Kilmarnock.  Seven teams battled it out in division 2 with promotion to division 1 the prize. 

The teams were Clydesdale Harriers AC, Corstorphine AC, Shettleston Harriers AC, Motherwell AC, East Kilbride AC, Kirkintilloch Olympians AC and Lasswade AC.

The meeting includes events for under 11’s to Masters and offers clubs the opportunity to involve their athletes from age 9 to adult as one team. 

Clydesdale Harriers started the meeting confidently having finished in the top two in both previous meetings, but the calibre of the other teams was such that they knew they had to be on the top of their game throughout the day. It was a close contest and half way through the day Clydesdale, Lasswade and Motherwell were each in contention for the top spot.  Although a first or second place finish would be enough to secure promotion for Clydesdale, they were determined to go up as first place winners therefore finishing first on the day was the only option.

Throughout the day the club saw first and second place wins in most events including sprints, hurdles, distance, throws and jumps at every age level as well as some gutsy performances from adults and children, including several individual PB’s.   By the closing event Clydesdale found themselves 200 points ahead of their nearest rivals and league winners!

The girl’s teams for this match were- Under 11’s: Hannah Jordan, Isla Haddock, Erin Pryde and Carys Wilson.  Under 13’s- Chloe Allan, Cara Jordan, Carly Wishart, Caitlin Stuart, Natasha Shaw and Jade Steele-Milne.  Under 15’s, Iona Allan, Rachel Campbell, Anna Haddock, Rachel Meehan and Charlotte Ross. Under 17’s, Erin Ball, Karyn Glen, Emily Paxton, Sarah Thornley and Abbie Warrington. Senior and Master Women, Claire Reid, Kirsty Kelly, Fiona McCue, Marina McCallum, Ann Murray and Pamela McCrossan.

The boy’s teams were -Under 11’s, Zak Shannon, Grant Sloan, Stuart Aird and brothers Daniel and Ryan McKell.  Under 13’s, Jack Dolan, Aaron Belkevitz, Robert Whittock and Cairn Wallace.  Under 15’s, Brian Aird, Stephen Kane, Lewis Hay, Liam Milligan and David Wilson.  Under 17’s Tobi Akinkunmi, Phillip Allan, David Campbell, Darren Dolan and Andrew Hunter. Senior and Masters Men- Paul Carroll, Andrew Cusick, Tony Dolan, Jonathan Farrell, Martin King, Ryan Nelson, Anton Russell and Iain Robertson.

Clydesdale Harriers has had considerable success over many years and is witnessing this in every age group and level of competition. 

Head coach Phil Dolan, an experienced athlete and coach of many years has the support of coaches and athletes at every level.  He said, ‘We have a dedicated team of athletes and coaches who support each other and the club.  This was a team effort by many athletes over the season.  We have a number of athletes who rank at the highest level in Scotland and who represent their club and medal at Championship and National level.   The league however is about drawing on the strength and determination of all of all athletes and working together to produce a solid team performance and we did just that.’

For some athletes the summer season has come to a close while others are preparing for the Scottish and English age group championships.  Good luck to all who are taking part. As for the club, these dedicated athletes now prepare for the cross country season and indoor track and field league at the Emirates Arena, as well as the hard work involved in winter training.