Southern Athletics League match 3
Woodford Green with Essex Ladies finished fourth in their third Southern Athletics League match of the season at Colchester on Saturday 20 June. Hosts Colchester and Tendring just edged out London Heathside in a close match leaving both teams looking set for promotion. Gaps in events where the team is usually strong, such as the men’s throws, due to injuries and the clash with the U20/U23 champs, offset A string wins in a third of the events. The standout team performance came from Hollie Redman (pictured).
Not only was her strong win in the discus (44.15) awarded athlete of the division performance, but she also saw every throw in the hammer over her previous PB (ending with 45.65). She also won the shot (11.57) and B string javelin before leading off the 4x100m. Eike Vardja ensured a clean sweep of the women’s throws by winning the javelin (30.91) alongside the B string shot. U17s Scott Webster and Adam Mountford impressed, with Scott winning the high jump (1.83) and pole vault. Adam won the 400m (51.78) and the B string 200 (23.58 PB) before leading off a winning 4x400 along with Alan James and Stefan Redmond who combined to enable BUCS 200m champion Omololu Abiodun to have a straightforward training outing over the longer distance (3:33.68). Elsewhere, though, the lack of depth following late withdrawals was highlighted by no further B string success.
Several athletes recorded their first A string victories in this league, including M45 Fergus Harford in the hammer (35.07), and Jay Boddington (pictured below) in the javelin (52.41), albeit both have previously won in the Southern Mens league. 
U17 Phoebe Fuhr won the pole vault in a PB of 2.45, and Christman Ihuoma the triple jump in 13.21. Angus Holford successfully stepped down to 800m (2:00.64), taking 10 seconds out of the field in the middle 400m, having led home a Woodford clean sweep in the Orion Harriers Fell race the previous evening. This was the sole victory for our distance squad which faced tougher competition than in other events, as witnessed by Tom Beedell finishing second in the 2k steeplechase despite his best track performance this season (6:23.17). Other highlights included a 5k PB for Tony Russell (16.05.37) ahead of Dan Steel who was making his track debut for the club on the back of two marathons in the past two months plus a half marathon PB last week. Stefan Redmond finished second in the 100m and 200m before his 4x400m debut.
Team manager Alan James hopes that the team will prosper (and get less wet) at Watford on Saturday 4 July, before the season concludes at home on Saturday 15 August.