Cross Country Report

Saturday 14 June 2025

Saturday 14 June, saw the continuation of the Cross Country season, with Newington hosting the meet at Sir Joseph Banks Park. A flat course was a welcome relief for the runners and, especially, those who competed on the previous Thursday at the CIS Cross Country Championships. Cool conditions and even a few passing showers meant that the runners didn’t have perfect conditions, but the Shore runners persevered as they always do.

Our Junior team set a nice tone of consistent hard running from the gun, with many of the boys producing personal best performances. George Harvey continued his recent good form with a strong run from start to finish, while he was pushed all the way by Henry Grieve, who finished only a few places behind George. Patrick Old and Leon Field both ran consistently throughout the 4km race with pleasing results.

Our Intermediate team was content with working solidly throughout the race. James Warren had a slightly easier run after his very strong CIS performances, while Jonty Jagger was as consistent as ever. Carl Vladica had a very pleasing run, showing great improvement in his places after very good consistency in training. In many ways, this is one of the strengths of the Cross Country season, where the runners can see their improvement through consistent effort and training.

The Seniors finished off the carnival with solid runs from Daniel Becker and Tom Gray. However, Captain James Bestic really led by example, with one of his best runs of the season, finishing in 5th place overall. James is getting back to his best form over the 8km distance and certainly shows everyone what strong running and dedication look like.

Overall, it was another very good display from the Shore team across all three divisions, and we look forward to the Relay event this Saturday.

Rev Anthony Benn
Assisting MIC Cross Country