COMPETING in Division One of the North East Youth Development League (NEYDL) for a recently formed club such as Allerton Juniors Athletics Club is something that no one could have predicted a few years ago.
It is an impressive achievement and testament to the hard work of the athletes and coaches that this is now a reality. A combined team with Darlington Harriers put in a strong performance in the top division of North-East junior athletics.
The first NEYDL competition of the year took place on Sunday, May 16 at Middlesbrough Sports Village. Mhairi Corcoran proved her versatility in both sprint and middle distance with the second fastest time of 31.3s in the U13 Girls 200m and also delivered the sprint finish of the day to take second quickest time of 02:50 in the U13 Girls 800m. Sam Degazon was another team member to excel in multiple events. Sam ran a personal best time of 02:22 in the U15 Boys 800m to finish in second place and managed an incredible jump of 5.22m in the U15 Boys Long Jump, again finishing in overall second position.
Throughout the day the points kept increasing for the Darlington / Allerton team. This was all helped along by performances from Caleb Stanley who finished first in the U15 Boys 80m Hurdles in 16:3, Henry Kirkbride winning his heat in the U13 Boys 200m with a time of 29.7 and Joshua Kitching jumping 3.62m in the U13 Boys Long Jump to finish in third place. The weather turned for the worse by early afternoon and the rain poured down leaving less than desirable conditions for the rest of the events. Undeterred, the girls performed well in the 1500m. Lucy Boot won her race in the U13 Girls category with a time of 05:22. Personal best times were achieved for both Islay Wilson with 05:13 and Grace Derry with 05:19 in the U15 Girls race.
The previous week saw the first North Eastern Counties Athletics Association (NECAA) track meet of the season on Sunday, May 9. A performance worthy of note was a great debut from Aaron Kurian who showcased his sprinting talents. There are exciting things to come from this young athlete who managed the second fastest time of the day for the U13B 100m category with a time of 14:13 and first place in his 200m heat with a time of 29:20. In the Long Jump, Eliash Willis increased his personal best with a jump of 3.88m to finish in overall fourth position in the U13 Boys. Lucy Boot came third in the U13 Girls with a jump of 3.44m.
A huge turnout of 14 athletes from AJAC took part in the 1500m heats. For many of the young squad this was their first experience of a track competition. Personal best times were achieved for most and it was a good opportunity to set a marker down for the rest of the season. There was an outstanding performance from Holden Outhwaite who finished second in his heat with a personal best time of 04:22.
The Under 11 squad dominated in the 75m Sprint category with three first positions. James Throup won his heat with a time of 12:05, Connie Wilford won her heat with 12:02 and Isabelle Smith won hers coming in at 12:27. The girls also did well in the Standing Long Jump with Olivia Throup in third place jumping 1.76m.
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