Acorns AC ‘Mighty Oaks’ XC
Saturday saw the Acorns AC annual cross country, held at the Mid Ulster Sports Arena in Cookstown. The event is part of the ongoing Athletics NI XC League 2016/17 and saw a strong representation of Orangegrove AC.
The (in)famous ‘Acorns Hill’ was adjusted slightly this year to give the athletes a better run at it; this change seems to have been well received, but I don’t think many were thinking complimentary thoughts on the ascent!
The snow stayed away this year and the cold and dry weather conditions were excellent, but the rain earlier in the week soon resulted in a challenging course with a true cross country experience. The panoramic course while challenging proved enjoyable for the athletes.
JUNIORS
We were represented by Matthew Sykes in U13’s 1 mile race with an unofficial time of 6:50, and by;
Adam Sykes and Rory Hall-Thompson in the U15’s 2 mile race, with the unofficial times of 13:43 and 13:49 respectively.
Thanks to Gillian Sykes for the unofficial times; junior races are not chipped and results haven’t been published yet.
LADIES (3 miles)
The Ladies’ results were as follows:
| # | ||
|---|---|---|
| 22 | Sile Brennan | 23:06 |
| 35 | Pauline Bayliss | 24:29 |
| 57 | Alison Hall-Thompson | 26:44 |
| 63 | Jacqui Maxwell | 27:16 |
| 66 | Sharon Corken | 27:40 |
| 69 | Jill Holland | 27:51 |
| 72 | Lisa Flemming | 28:04 |
| 76 | Patricia Magill | 28:20 |
The race was won by Jessica Craig (North Down AC) – 19:17
MEN (4 miles)
The Men’s results were as follows:
| # | ||
|---|---|---|
| 16 | Andrew McIntyre | 26:11 |
| 40 | Michael Broadhead | 28:14 |
| 46 | Eric(a!) Fairfield | 28:34 |
| 59 | Robin Montgomery | 29:09 |
| 76 | Ian Grant | 30:28 |
| 78 | Brian Todd | 30:36 |
| 79 | Michael O’Donoghue | 30:38 |
| 85 | Stephen Anderson | 31:21 |
| 86 | Darren Houston | 31:24 |
| 96 | Chris Woods | 33:18 |
| 101 | Colin Sykes | 34:30 |
| 117 | Brian McFarland | 42:14 |
| 118 | Ian Reid | 47:47 |
The race was won by Seamus Lynch (Newcastle AC) – 22:43
