A mix of hail and sunshine matched the range of results of the grand finale of the Chris Brasher College League on Sunday at the Selwyn Relays. The rather poor conditions were unfortunately matched with a fairly dismal turnout from the colleges.
However, some of the racing showed brighter signs of promise. The incredible effort by one man Homerton team, Matt Clark completing all 16km himself certainly got the spectators talking. Even more so when they learned he had still managed to finish second overall only to the ever-present leaders from Jesus. The former Club Captain, James Kelly, also got the crowd excited as he made a bid on the fancy-dress course record set a few years back by Rich Ward in a dress! Unfortunately, the lactic of a first leg effort and the slippy ground put to rest Kelly’s chances as he finished 20 seconds adrift of the target in his commendable Superman attire.
In terms of the real racing, a consistent effort from the 2nd Division Girton team saw them take the overall title being the first full team home (due to invalid Jesus and Homerton teams) largely thanks to a surprise appearance from elusive Blues runner Aidan McGowan. Behind them came a close race between Trinity and Magdalene with the latter just clinching it to cement their already secured promotion and Division II victory.
Although, both men’s teams lagged well behind the ladies of Trinity to begin with thanks to an incredibly quick clocking by Naomi Taschimowitz that left the boys stumbling in her wake. It was a commanding lead that would remain unchallenged with strong runs from Paulina Golec and Joan Lasenby taking Trinity home to a safe first spot and Women’s Division I title. A notably absent Emmanuel squad left the way open for the women of Magdalene to claim second place. The individual league titles were both reclaimed by their current holders, James Kelly and Polly Keen.
And so the conclusion of the league begins to sum up what has been a mixed year for Cambridge running. A Varsity defeat and a non-appearance at BUCS would suggest it has been a year of disappointment and depression. Yet, one need only turn to the increasingly competitive nature of the college league to see that within the University, running has never been more popular, with Trinity, Emma and Magdalene all fighting it out in the Women’s Division, whilst underdogs Magdalene and Girton made great strides towards the Men’s top flight taking the scalps of Trinity, Clare and Downing along the way. Furthermore the season is not over as CUH&H turn at last to the National Cross Country Championships next weekend in Leeds where Taschimowitz and Kelly promise to continue to fly the flag high for the Light Blues. The league may be over but the running goes on…