Written by DH
Here is David Hillyer's match report.
The not-quite-complete results can be downloaded from both - www.thepowerof10.info - and - www.topsinathletics.info
“We are the Champions” – Queen 1977
“We are the Champions” – K&P NJAL Team 2009
The NJAL team travelled to a windy and overcast High Wycombe to attempt to win the Brent Division title at the first attempt. A fifth place finish would have sufficed, but the team was not prepared to settle for that as they won their 3rd match out of 4 in emphatic style to finish as winners with a considerable lead over the other teams. Yet again the team was outstanding with many superb performances in unfavourable conditions. The support they gave to their team mates was exceptional and they were a joy to manage.
The only slight dampeners on the day were 2 injuries sustained right at the end of the match, when firstly Tariq Fadare pulled up with a hamstring problem and shortly afterwards Adam Wicks needed medical attention for what looked to be a serious foot injury. There was a certain irony as Tariq had, for the first time this season, felt fit enough to compete in other events apart from the High Jump and Adam’s injury resulted from slipping down a grass bank after he had finished competing. The sight of them receiving assistance at either end of the home straight brought an end to what had been a momentous day. I must thank both Dave Brewer and Granville Baveystock who acted as temporary “ambulance” drivers to ferry the lads back to Kingston. Early reports are that Tariq’s leg is sore but may not be quite as bad an injury as first feared. Adam was later diagnosed at Kingston Hospital as having ligament damage and severe bruising. I wish them both a full recovery, although it is likely we will be without them for the Final.
So, the Team has made the Promotion Final to be held at Barnet Copthall on Sunday 30th August. The Match result and Final League Table are as follows:
Match Result
League Table
1
Kingston & Polytechnic
425
8
1
Kingston & Polytechnic
1709
31
2
City of Portsmouth AC
356
7
2
NWC Herts
1326
23
3
Vale of Aylesbury AC
247
6
3
City of Portsmouth AC
1187
23
4
NWC Herts
236
5
4
Vale of Aylesbury AC
1110
21
5
Thames Valley Harriers
208
4
5
Reading AC
1003
17
6
Wycombe Phoenix
191
3
6
Thames Valley Harriers
977
16
7
Reading AC
96
2
7
Wycombe Phoenix
605
9
8
Marshall Milton Keynes
0
0
8
Marshall Milton Keynes
133
2
The scores do not include the result of the Women’s Javelin as the Results card appears to have gone missing. Also missing are the points awarded for officials. This is unlikely to affect the result as the Women’s Javelin is one of our stronger events, so the margin of victory is likely to be greater. All the other results will be found on the NJAL and Power of 10 websites. There were yet again numerous highlights:
Performance of the day:
This has to go to Tom Parry for his victory in the 400 hurdles. Up against an opponent from Reading with whom he has had several close tussles in the past, Tom led early on only to be passed by his rival. However, a late surge from the final hurdle saw Tom just get the judge’s verdict. His time of 55.9 (only 0.6 outside his Club Record) was outstanding given that the last 100 metres was run into a really strong headwind.
Yet again there were other excellent performances with “double” victories in the Men’s 100, the Men’s Pole Vault, both Men’s hurdles events and the Women’s 800. Special mention should be given to Dida Alsaffar, who turned up unexpectedly and then competed in the 800, 400 and 3000 metres in the space of an hour. He even volunteered to do the 1500 until he was reminded he had to drive home.
Hilarious moment of the day:
This has to go to Will “Usain” Trimble in the 100 metres B race. After a couple of false starts, the race eventually got under way with Will getting a fantastic start. Halfway down the track he seemed to suddenly doubt why he was so far in front and started to look around in sheer astonishment to see where the rest were and had he in fact missed the recall gun. His face had to be seen to be believed as he still couldn’t understand after the race had finished why he had won, to the delight of his team mates who were by this time in stitches.
Close behind were firstly Amelia Maugouber and Hannah Fay who decided to compete in the 3000 metres and kept a steady pace of running and chatting until 50 metres from the line when Hannah put on a “sprint” finish. Ironically, Amelia earned more points as she was the only B sting in the race. The second close contender was, some would say in bad taste, the sight of Adam being wrapped up like a turkey at Christmas in a foil “blanket” to keep him warm. The scrum that took place to get photos of him nearly needed crowd control experts to sort out.
A further 3 athletes made their NJAL debut bringing the number of those who have competed for us to 35. The team on this occasion was as follows:
Girls: Rahannah Gillette-Vernon, Maddy Hardwick, Mary Iheke, Harriet Lester, Emily McIlwain, Molly Renfer, Leanne Bettis, Amelia Maugouber and Hannah Fay.
Boys: Dida Alsaffar, Elliott Baveystock, Ciaran Costello, Patrick Hillyer, Kyan Koranteng, Gordon Lester, Asher Nelson, Tom Parry, Jordan Smith-Bent, Will Trimble, Adam Wicks, and Tariq Fadare.
Of the above, Rahannah, Emily, Harriet, Leanne, Amelia, Asher, Elliott, Gordon, Patrick, Tom P, Will, Adam and Tariq competed in all the matches. Amelia and Tom P were our top individual points scorers.
Once again I thank all of the Team, as well as fellow Team Manager, Michele Wicks. We both feel that the suggestion that we should be competing in this league has been fully vindicated. Thanks also go to Clare Nelson, Debbie Vernon, Camilla Thrush, and Maurice Joyce, together with David Stead (from Dorking & Mole Valley) who ensured that we fielded a complete set of officials. Clare yet again drove the minibus. I would also like to thank all the family and friends who turned up to support the team.
The Final now looms and it is impossible to gauge how well we will do. Our original targets did not envisage a top 3 placing in our division let alone a virtual total domination in topping the table. There is no doubt that things will be harder at Barnet Copthall, so there will be no predictions. Also, because it is the holiday period there are likely to be athletes who are not available and there are now also injury doubts as well. It is vital that Michele and I know who is available for the Final as soon as possible (as well as preferred travel arrangements). If you have not competed for the team this season you will unfortunately not be eligible for the Final. As yet I am unsure what time the Final starts (and therefore what time the bus will leave) and whether non-scoring events will be held. I also am uncertain about the provision of officials. As soon as I have more details I will pass them on.
All that is left for me to say is well done, you have been a great team to manage and let’s look forward to doing well in the Final on Sunday 30th August.
