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| The Sussex Schools Cross-country championships at Lancing tomorrow (Saturday) breaks new ground as it moves to only its fifth venue in the fifty year history of the race.
Road works at Stanmer Park has ruled its traditional course for this year but Don Smith and Maureen Stephens have worked hard to make sure that the event is going to be a cracker.
As always it is difficult to predict winners as the age grouping are one year different to the ones that have been used all season in Sussex county events.
The senior Boys and Girls open the racing at 10.30.
In the Boys event James McCarthy (Bhasvic) and Finn McNally (Cardinal Newman) have battled out most of the Under 20 races in Sussex this season but what of Aaron Stone (Sackville) who has been missing from the scene so far this season.
The pointers are for McCarthy to win from McNally but we should not rule out William Parker’s Ross Skelton who has had won a couple of Sussex League U17 races this year and moves up to the senior age group.
In the girls event the Sion girls Abigail Fowlie and Brittany Saville appear to be in a class of their own this season and although Fowlie has generally had the better of their encounters this season there is not likely to be much to choose between the two.
The Intermediate events with Charlie Grice (Cardinal Newman) and Farlington’s Johanna Spannagl, who have both dominated their U17 events in Sussex this season, look to be strong favourites.
Although Abigail Ashbee-Simmonds (St Bedes) looks likely to chase Spannagl home there is a group of runners who could battle for the minor medals behind Grice including Blatchington Mill’s Jake Elliott, the County U15 champion.
Juniors are always the most difficult group to second guess as there is frequently little to choose between the bottom end of the U15 age groups and the leading U13 performers.
With Weald’s Bernie Spannagl not really showing his true form so far this season his Horsham Blue Star club mate Ben Collier (Tanbridge House) could emerge though Will Durkin (Ardingly), I do not know if he is young enough for the Juniors or will compete as a Intermediate, will be the favourite, if he is young enough.
For the girls Grace Baker (Rye) has dominated the U15 age group in Sussex this season and unless U13 champion and runner up Rebecca Elphick and Grace Cook from St. Richards can stay with the Rye runner’s pace in the early stages she looks like adding another title to her name.
The first twenty runners in each age group will be invited to run for a Sussex Schools team at Reigate on 6th February but for the leading runners their eyes will be on gaining a place in the English Schools Inter-county championships at Manchester on 20th March.
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