Cross country
Another busy season for cross country with some tremendous results across all levels of competition .
Although our season was cut short by the arrival of Covid-19 , it was still jam-packed with competitive fixtures . We began with the Will Bolton Relays , a fun season-opener to get everyone back into racing after a long summer . There were some great results , with the senior boys finishing fourth , the senior girls fifth and the U15 boys sixth . Next up was the Thomas Trophy , a fixture for the juniors which saw the girls ’ team win for the third year in a row , including an individual win from Eva Mathew . Then came our first home fixture , the Simon Houghton Trophy . The boys ’ race saw some fantastic results with Sevenoaks coming in first ( Fenton Davoren ), second ( Edoardo Leone ) and third ( Ingmar Gunn ). Alex Evans also had a great run to lead the girls ’ team home . This definitely encouraged everyone to train hard in order to better this performance in the Knole Run .
After some good training during Michaelmas half term , we all came back refreshed and excited for our next relay event : the Haskell Trophy at RGS Guildford . Although only 3.2km a lap , this was a deceptively tough course involving plenty of hills . Fenton Davoren ’ s strong final lap brought home third place for the boys , whilst the girls secured fourth place . The Junior Knole Run in November came around with plenty of rain and mud , making the course even more challenging . Nevertheless , this didn ’ t stop the girls ’ team from placing an excellent second . The highlight of Michaelmas term was the national round of the ESAA cup at Mount St Mary ’ s School in Derbyshire in December where the junior girls ’ team ( Amber Croll ,
Eva Mathew , Serena Manca , Eliza Muysken , Alexia Scotiniadis and Summer Knight-Thompson ), having qualified in the county and regional rounds , placed third in the country out of 415 schools !
After Christmas , everyone was buzzing for the Senior Knole Run , our flagship home fixture . The girls came fifth overall and the boys sixth , against strong competition . It was great to see a few younger runners represent the senior boys ’ team on such a gruelling course . The Kent Schools championships the following week was one of the most competitive events of the season which saw 12 Sevenoaks School runners qualifying for the regional round . The next week we competed in the prestigious King Henry VIII relays in Coventry . This is always an enjoyable event as schools from across the country participate . The South London Harriers Schools Races marked our penultimate event with stunning views across to London . The U14 girls and both senior teams won their respective races , whilst the U16 boys secured second . Another brilliant result which can be attributed to all the hard work throughout training ! Teddies Relays was the final race and provided a competitive and fun end to the season with both the junior and inter girls ’ teams coming second , and the junior and inter boys finishing fourth .
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