Former international Grace Baker ends a long wait for a major league win in Sussex, while Herne Hill and Thames Hare & Hounds claim the team titles on Parliament Hill.

For our coverage of the Cardiff Cross Challenge, see here.

LONDON CHAMPIONSHIPS, Parliament Hill, November 7

Sam Macaulay, who was second in the first round of this winter’s Met League, won from Highgate’s Peter Chambers, who had finished well behind him there.

Edward Chuck was some way back in third, but it was sixth-placed Ollie Mills who led Herne Hill to a narrow team win over Macaulay’s London Heathside.

For the women, Sophie Tooley won overall for Herne Hill Harriers but had no answer in the team race as her club was fourth behind winners Thames Hare & Hounds.

It was second-placed Elizabeth Apsley who led Thames to team victory over Belgrave and Thames Valley.

Tooley, who was 12th in the Inter-Counties earlier this year, moved up from fifth last year to win by about 30 metres from Apsley, who was in her first cross-country race of the year and finished third here in 2024.

Men: 1 S Macaulay (Lon H) 35:05; 2 P Chambers (High) 35:14; 3 E Chuck (Dulw R) 35:32; 4 H Hayman (S Lon) 35:39; 5 H Tibbs (Camb H) 35:44; 6 O Mills (Herne H) 35:47

TEAM: 1 Herne Hill 60; 2 London Heathside 65; 3 Highgate 65; 4 S London 107; 5 Cambridge G 142; 6 Dulwich R 200

37 teams closed in

Women: 1 S Tooley (Herne H) 21:13; 2 E Apsley (THH) 21:21; 3 M Bryan (VP&TH) 21:24; 4 N Harris (Belg) 21:49; 5 C Baker (TVH) 22:01; 6 B Murray (THH) 22:21

TEAM: 1 THH 51; 2 Belgrave 68; 3 TVH 79; 4 Herne H 85; 5 London Heathside 92; 6 Hercules Wimbledon 98

29 teams closed in

LONDON YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS, Parliament Hill, November 7

In the under-18 men’s race, Khalid Hussein, who was 12th in the English Schools’ Championships at Sefton Park in February, posted a 30-metre victory over Caspian Holmes, the 2025 Inter-Counties bronze medallist.

In the under-18 women’s race, Jorjia March, twice a Met League winner in 2026, had a similar margin of victory over February’s London Schools champion Otela Garcia-Davis.

U18 men: 1 K Hussein (T Hamlets) 15:17; 2 C Holmes (S’wark) 15:23; 3 A Pflug (Camden) 15:25; 4 E Keifer (Richmond) 15:37; 5 R Greenwood (Enf) 15:38; 6 P Carmena (Barn) 15:53

U16: 1 T Hennigan (Merton) 9:45; 2 P Prastalo (Camden) 9:53; 3 J Cohen (Camden) 9:54

U14: 1 J Lotter (Wands) 6:39; 2 J McCearney (Sutt) 6:42; 3 J Combes (Merton) 6:44

U18 women: 1 J March (Enf) 10:43; 2 O Garcia-Davis (Merton) 11:04; 3 M DavidKova (Kingston) 11:08; 4 E De Bruyn (Bromley) 11:12; 5 D Larkin (Lambeth) 11:5; 6 R Schofield (Hackney) 11:17

U16: 1 L Graham (Richmond) 6:56; 2 S O’Brian (S’wark) 7:02; 3 E Hunt (Richmond) 7:02

U14: 1 A Frye (Kingston) 7:17; 2 A Clements (Barn) 7:22; 3 V Dearn (Richmond) 7:23

REIGATE PRIORY RELAYS, Surrey, November 6

Despite not clashing with the National event, this former high-quality relay failed to attract a bigger entry than before. Walton’s Alex Kirby posted the fastest lap on the first stage, though, and the team never looked back.

Men (4x2.5M approx): 1 Walton 59:50; 2 Epsom & Ewell 61:27; 3 Kings Run 63:57

Fastest: A Kirby (Walt) 13:11; H Mullard (Rei P) 14:26; D Wolff (E&E) 14:37

Women (3x2.5M approx): 1 Dorking & Mole Valley 74:39; 2 Reigate Priory 75:08; 3 Walton 77:27

Fastest: L Hoseason (Strag) 17:20; S Biggs (Strag) 17:24; E Coates (DMV) 17:37

Mixed (3x2.5M approx): 1 S London 72:45

SUSSEX LEAGUE, Match 1, Goodwood, West Sussex, November 7

After the postponement of the event because of the October storms, the league got under way in the shadow of the famous Goodwood racecourse.

Josh Burgess, who moved up from second in the final match of last winter, took the senior men’s race from David Ervine by more than 100 metres.

Third-placed James Dicks led Brighton & Hove to a team win over Burgess’ Lewes, reversing the positions from the end of last season.

The women’s event again included the under-18s but it was one of Sussex Athletics’ long-time servants, Grace Baker, who put the young pretenders in their place.

Despite a whole series of individual victories in the much lower-standard East Sussex Sunday League, this was the 30-year-old’s first major league win since 2016, the year she placed fourth in the South of England Championships.

Before that, Baker was a regular on the international circuit with outings in the European and World Cross Country Championships and fourth places in the English National and Inter-Counties in 2015.

After a period in America in 2018, Baker returned to the UK and competed only in low-key events but has been building back to fitness in the past year or so, including road PBs over 5km and the half-marathon this year.

Behind in second place was Hy AC’s Isabella Buchanan, this year’s under-15 girls’ Inter-Counties silver medallist, who, although classified as under-18, is still just 15 years old.

Men: 1 J Burgess (Lewes) 27:22; 2 D Ervine (Hy) 27:28; 3 J Dicks (B&H) 28:08

M45: 1 J Baker (Chich R) 29:02

M50: 1 J Skinner (Hay H) 30:35

M55: 1 L Sida (Lewes) 32:53

M60: 1 M Melluish (R Ac Worth) 32:29

M65: 1 P O’Connell (Horsh J) 37:22

U20: 1 D Airey (Craw) 28:47

TEAM Div 1 (6 to score): 1 B&H 77; 2 Lewes 87; 3 Phoenix 132

Div 2 TEAM (4 to score): 1 Crawley 51

M35 TEAM (3 to score): 1 Lewes 18; 2 Arena 45; 3 Haywards Heath 48

M50 TEAM: 1 B&H 32

U18: 1 Z Okajie (E’brne) 17:20; 2 W Crawford (Lees) 17:30; 3 H Jeffries (Hy) 17:33

TEAM: 1 Lewes 15; 2 Chichester R 18; 3 Phoenix 52

U16: 1 H Chapman (B&H) 13:43; 2 G Urben (B&H) 14:25; 3 S Gill (B&H) 14:27

TEAM: 1 B&H 9; 2 Chich R 29; 3 Hy AC 31

U14: 1 R Ayre (Worth) 10:26; 2 B Pocock (Hy) 10:52; 3 B Chapman (Lewes) 11:12

TEAM: 1 B&H 17; 2 B&H B 33; 3 Phoenix 36

Women: 1 G Baker (Hast) 18:09; 2 I Buchanan (Hy, U18) 18:51; 3 E Hill (Chich R, U18) 19:06

W40: 1 A Robinson (Worth) 20:39

W45: 1 A Brown (Worth) 21:58

W50: 1 K Mack (Chich R) 21:56

W60: 1 C Wood (Arena) 24:08

W65: 1 K Divali (Lewes) 27:12

W70: 1 S Baker (Chich R) 33:05

U18: 3 E Hutchinson (Hast) 20:20

TEAM Div 1 (4 to score): 1 B&H 47; 2 Chich R 68; 3 Hy AC 68

Div 2 TEAM (3 to score): 1 Hastings 22

W35 TEAM (3 to score): 1 Lewes 24; 2 Arena 30; 3 B&H 53

W50 TEAM: 1 Chich R 13

U18 TEAM: 1 Hy AC 16; 2 Crawley 23; 3 B&H 32

U16: 1 S Gambie (Phoe) 16:28; 2 E Barthlomew (Lewes) 16:40; 3 C Airey (Horsh BS) 16:44

TEAM: 1 Hy 24; 2 B&H 27; 3 Lewes 30

U14: 1 E Ortiz (B&H) 11:42; 2 A Adams (Chich R) 11:50; 3 V Ridley (B&H) 11:58

TEAM: 1 B&H 11; 2 Chich R 23; 3 B&H B 31

WEST MIDLANDS YOUNG ATHLETES LEAGUE, Match 2, Warley Woods, November 8

The second match saw Noah Homer head his Royal Sutton Coldfield clubmate George Harradence, the Midland Counties under-17 bronze medallist, who had won the first round last month.

Homer was down in fourth in that October fixture but here headed the first two from that Walsall Common race.

Zak Rush, the English Schools’ bronze medallist and Midland and SIB international champion, continued his recent run of success in this league with another win, this time over Solihull & Small Heath team-mate Thomas Heather-Green.

There was a sense of déjà vu in the under-18 women’s race as Zara Bratt, the Midland under-17 fourth-placer, again headed Martham Blower and Layla Williams.

There was also a repeat winner in the under-16 girls’ race as Midland bronze medallist Taylor Riches continued her 2026 run of league success.

U18 men: 1 N Homer (RSC) 13:34; 2 G Harradence (RSC) 13:37; 3 H Justice (S&SH) 13:55

U16: 1 Z Rush (S&SH) 11:49; 2 T Heather-Green (S&SH) 11:58; 3 J Larkin (S&SH) 12:04

U14: 1 O Taylor (RSC) 9:21; 2 F Holden (Tip) 9:27; 3 S Lees (RSC) 9:29

U18 women: 1 Z Bratt (Stoke) 15:08; 2 M Blower (B&R) 15:36; 3 L Williams (Tip) 16:32

U16: 1 T Riches (Bir) 13:38; 2 L Pearce (C&S) 13:58; 3 H Cooke (Worc) 14:02

U14: 1 I Vickery (RSC) 10:06; 2 L Holmes (R&N) 10:17; 3 M Hamilton (R&N) 10:23

KENT FITNESS LEAGUE, Swanley, November 8

Overall: 1 S Coombes (Dart, M45) 29:40; 2 A Wilkinson (Petts W) 29:49; 3 A Cameron (Dart) 29:58

M50: 1 S Thornhill (Petts W) 31:52

M60: 1 A Rodgers (M&M) 33:04

Women: 1 T Day (Dart) 33:10; 2 K Pingo (Dart) 33:35; 3 C Johnstone (M’stone) 34:25

HEREFORD & DISTRICT LEAGUE, Croft Castle, November 8

Men: 1 S Juson (Croft A) 31:59; 2 E Taylor (W Tempo) 34:15; 3 R Phillips (Here) 35:08

TEAM: 1 W Tempo

U18: 1 X Brandon-Higgs (Mald) 23:56

Women: 1 K Bowen (Croft A, W40) 44:59

TEAM: 1 Croft A

For our coverage of the Cardiff Cross Challenge, see here.