Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers Lucy Elliott and Dominic Bannister both achieved top-ten places in the Reebok cross-country running meeting at Margate on Sunday, but both narrowly missed out on selection for the European Championships in Switzerland next month.

Elliot was seventh in the women's 5,000m senior race in 18mins 26secs.

The winner Liz Yelling (from Bedford and County AC) clocked 17mins 50secs.

In the men's race, over 9,500m, Bannister was ninth in 29mins 8secs. Repeating his earlier win at Birmingham in the series, Sam Haughian (Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow) returned a time of 28mins 15secs.

All the top runners in the UK were involved in the combined women's U17 and U20 race, and Shaftesbury were well represented.

The winner of the 3,500m event was Charlotte Dale (Invicta East Kent), with a time of 11mins 45secs.

The Shaftesbury contingent was led home by Jessica Nugent, who was 15th in 12mins 19secs. She was followed by Chloe Wilkinson, 27th in 12mins 37secs; Jade Wright, 44th in 12mins 49secs; Emma Hunt, 49th in 12mins 51secs; Jo Ankier, 80th in 13mins 20secs; Justine Nash, 119th in 14mins 02secs; and, Louise Griffiths, 147th in 15mins 13secs. The team took third place.

Shaftesbury's U15 girls were also third. Their first finisher in the 2,800m race was Lindsay Barr, who was 15th in 11mins 10secs. She was followed home by Sarah Waldron, 23rd in 11mins 20secs; Sian Bentley, 32nd in 11mins 29secs; Laura Hunt, 46th in 11mins 44secs; Genna Prince, 89th in 12mins 34secs; and, Siobhan Maddern, 109th in 14mins 19secs.

Shaftesbury will be strongly represented in the Barnet Borough team for the London Youth Games cross-country meeting for U17s at Parliament Hill Fields on Saturday. Runners-up to Havering last year, Barnet have bright prospects of coming out on top.

November 21, 2001 18:23