ORPINGTON Road Runners men’s team have been crowned Kent county marathon champions after producing a commanding performance at the Kent coastal marathon.

The Margate race also doubled as this year’s Kent county championships.

Jason Cherriman produced the best individual performance for Orpington after finishing third in 3hr00m26s.

Steven Nimmo (3hr03m14s) was the second Orpington runner to cross the line and finished just behind Cherriman in fourth, although this was good enough to win the vets O40 open competition.

Next home was Gavin Kitchingham in sixth place with a time of 3hr05m32s, also winning the vets O40 category in the Kent championships in the process.

He was followed home by Ian Hailes (3hr06m17s), who placed seventh overall and third in the senior men’s open competition.

The fifth Orpington runner in the top 10 was Federico Dorati, finishing ninth in a time of 3hr08m01s in his first ever marathon.

These performances also ensured the squad were winners of the men’s team event, both in the open competition and the county championships.