Two of the closest finishes imaginable lead to gold medals and English Schools titles for Beth Barlow and Jamall Walters at last weekends English Schools Championships.
Beth had coasted through her Senior Girls 1500m heat on Friday; in the final, she was 15m behind the leader coming in to the home straight for the final time; she gained ground with every stride and took the title on the line by a 6 one hundredths margin, which for a middle distance race is as close as it gets and a new PB for Beth.
Jamall in the Junior Boys 200m set a new PB in the Friday heat and safely navigated his semi-final on Saturday morning. Unfortunately Jack failed to qualify from his heat. In the final Jamall lead from the gun and didn't get caught, although it was mighty close, he won on the dip by one single hundredth of a second, a new PB for Jamall. Seven of the eight finalist set new PB's in the race.
Having qualified well in the heats, it just didn't happen for Ashton in the final of the Senior Girls 400m. Chloe PB'ed in her heat of the 400m hurdles on Friday, and ran well to finish a credible third in the final.
In the Junior Girls 1500m Sammy PB'ed in her heat to qualify for the final; Evie ran well but didn't make the cut. In the Junior Boys Joe PB'ed but also didn't qualify for the final and Xavi was run out of his heat too in the Inter Boys 1500m. Rivi ran a seasons best in the Senior Boys sprint hurdles, despite carrying an injury.
​Well done to all who qualified for the Finals and a special well done to Beth, Duncan, Jamall and Iheanyi.

The 87th ESAA Track & Field Championships will be held at the Alexander Stadium, Birmingham, on Friday 7th and Saturday 8th July 2017.
The ESAA National Championships are the 4th largest athletics event in the World, with only Olympics, World Championships and Commonwealth Games having more athletes. Organised entirely by volunteer teachers, who bring together the best athletes in each County in England to compete for the honour of being the best athlete in the Country at their event.
Entry to the event is by virtue of athletes acquiring the entry standard and being selected by County Team Managers to represent their County. Prime consideration is given to performances at County Championships, but other outstanding performances at other events may be taken into consideration. 
Nearly all the UK Olympic Athletics team members have featured in the ESAA Championships. 
The Greater Manchester English Schools team contains several Trafford athletes. In the Senior Boys we have Rivaldo Brown and Will Aldred (both Derek Fraser) sprint hurdling in their 5th and final English Schools competition. The Senior Girls sees Beth Barlow (Duncan Mason) in the 800m and Ashton Greenwood (Steve Ball) 400m; in the Cheshire team we have Chloe Esagbona (Steve Ball) in the 400m Hurdles.
In the Inter Boys Xavi O'Hare (Neil Canham) goes in the 1500m. The Junior age group is well represented with Evie Collier and Samantha Mason (both Duncan Mason) in the JG 1500m; Job Bental (Neil Canham) in the JB 1500m and Jack Morrissey and Jamall Walters (Both Iheanyi Ihedwa) in the JB 200m.
Also look out for two athletes from other clubs who have been joining in with Traffords Jumps squad recently, Jerel Livingston for Greater Manchester in the JB Long Jump and Ethan Milligan for Cheshire in the Senior Boys High Jump. 

A busy weekend for Trafford AC Junior athletes saw competitors taking place in England Athletics u20 Championships at Bedford, English Schools Mason Trophy at Birmingham as well as YDL Lower at Stockport.
Four of Trafford's u20's took part at Bedford in the England Athletics Championships. Rivaldo ran a seasons best in the 100m heats; Will ran a seasons best in the heat of the sprint hurdles and finished 7th in the final. Chloe ran PB in the sprint hurdles to go with her seasons best and 4th place finish in the long hurdles. Top billing goes to Naomi who won the u20 Triple Jump for a 3rd time in a distance of 13.36 (wind +3.8). A less windy jump of 13.07 took her over the qualifying standard for the up coming European u20 Championship. Naomi's selection for Grosseto was confirmed on Monday.

At Birmingham several athletes were competing in the Mason Trophy, their last chance to attain the all important English Schools standard. In 800m we had Joe running a PB, other 800m runners were Patrick and Emily; Evie ran in the 1500m and Xavier in the 3000m. George H ran in the long hurdles and George F added another metre to his Discus PB in finishing 2nd. 
Back on the track, recent addition to Iheanyi's sprint squad, Luke, ran a PB in the 300m and Jack ran a PB in the 200m under that all important English Schools standard. Athletes selected for the Greater Manchester English School s team will be finding out this week - good luck to all.

At Stockport the remaining u15's and the u13's where competing in the third match in this seasons YDL Lower.
Final results are not yet published, but we are in linbe to have finished 3rd, a great effort with so many key athletes unavailable or at the Mason Trophy. A full round-up will be available shortly

Trafford AC athletes dominated the Junior Great Manchester Run held in the City Centre just before the Manchester 10k on Sunday. Xav O'Hare had a great race to retain the title which he won last year. He was closely followed by Jack Wilkinson who finished only 2 seconds behind on the 2.5k course. There was superb packing by the rest of the Trafford athletes with Cynog Williams 5th, Joe Bentall 6th, Joe Mangan 7th, Louie McCormack 8th and Seb Patrick 9th. Not far behind was Jonny Stock in 14th place in his first ever road race.

Even though they were exhausted from a tough race, several of the athletes took part in the Trafford Medal Meeting the following day. Louie McCormack continued his excellent season with a Trafford AC Under 13 800m record of 2.16.69. This means that he is currently within one second of the fastest UK Under 13 times this season at both 800m & 1500m.

Match 2 in this years Youth Development League took place at Longford Park on Saturday 20th May. After so much fine weather for earlier fixtures, it was inevitable that rain would feature, and it did. despite the poor weather there were some outstanding performances, few who witnessed it will ever forget Jamall's 300m as he took himself to the top of the UK rankings in his first ever outing in this event.
We finished 3rd overall in yet again what is proving to be a very competitive league with close fought matches. 
Our thanks goes to those who made the competition happen Diana, Peter, Chris, Rob, Dave, Matthew and Phil for the team officials and Maryon, Neil, Elaine and Dave as the host officials. Not forgetting Julliette on first aid and Alan on results. If any other parents are willing to help out, then please let myself or Chis know - the more the merrier.

As ever, picking out the highlights isn't easy, top 3 placings are mentioned below, but remember that all contribute to the match result and each individual performance is vital to the success of the team.

u15b - The lads continued their track dominance. In the sprints Demarco (A) was second and Jack (B) 1st in the 100m. Jamall (A) and Jack (B) both won their 200m heats and Jamall won his outstanding 300m heat. In the middle distance it was wins all round, for Joe M (A) and Alex (B) in the 800m and Joe b(A) and Samuel(B) in the 1500m. Louis (A) was 2nd and Ayoola (B) 3rd in the sprint hurdles.
In the field there was a series of second place finishes for all in the jumps; Demarco (A) and Louis (B) for Long Jump and Theo (A) and Louis (B) in the High Jump. In the throws we saw Charlie (B) with a 3rd in Discus, Joe M (B) a 3rd in Hammer and Seb (B) a second in Javelin.
The 4x100m relay team of Ayoola, Jamall, Jack and Demarco kept up their unbeaten record and the 4x300m team of Theo, Joe B, Charlie and Joe M finished a credible second.

u13b - the lads continue to give it their all in great spirit.Louie was available to compete, but not run in this match and Max was also available, from the previous match, Matthew was missing. Elliot continued his good work with a win in 100m (A); a close second in the 200m (A) and a win in LJ (A). In the middle distance we had a second place for Max (A) and a win for Charlie (B) in the 800 - and probably the worse of the weather. Charlie, Max, Ethan and Elliot battled to a 3rd place finish in the 4x100m Relay

u15g - With Ellina and Nadia unavailable, it was all change in this team. Molly finished 2nd in the Hurdles (A) and in the middle distance we had a 3rd place finish for Charlotte in the 800m (B) to go with (A) & (B) wins for Sammy and Amelia in the 1500m. In the field we had a 3rd for Grace in Long Jump (A); 1st for Emily in Shot (B) to go with her 3rd in Discus (A) and 2nd in Javelin (A)

u13g - On the track the girls continue to dominate every race. Trezeguet had wins in both the 75m (A) and 150m (A); backed up by a 2nd place for Zara in the 75m (B) and a win for Halle in the 150m (B). In the 800m we had 3rd for Lucy (A) and 1st for Isabelle (B). With Nicola injured the 1200m gave us a 3rd place finish for Millie (B). Neve was 3rd in the hurdles (A). In the filed the was wins for Halle in Long Jump (A) and High Jump (A), with Neve 1st in the High Jump (B). The relay team of Zara, Halle, Isabelle and Trezeguet kept up their winning run too.

Once again we produced 32 graded performances and again had 4 of those all important grade 1's

Results are on both the YDL Website and Power of 10
Next fixture is Saturday 17th June at Stockport

​Thanks to Mike Martin for getting as many photo's as he did in the short time he was there​

The opening fixture in this seasons Youth Development League Lower was held in glorious conditions at Leigh Sports Village.on Saturday 22nd April. Great weather for the time of year, and an excellent second place finish in the match. The first match of the season is always interesting, athletes have moved on to the upper league, or from u13 to u15 and of course new faces to the club.

As ever we must first recognise the contribution of those who helped officiate and so ensure that the match can take place - Diana, Nicole, Gavin, Chris, Dave, Rob and Louise.
​
A second place finish on the day is a great start to the league, well done to all who competed. Picking out highlights is hard given so many fine performances, top 3 places are mentioned below; but again I'll remind you that each and every individual's performance is important to the success of the team. This is your team and you all play your part.

u15b - A balanced mix of the old and the new for the lads. The lads were dominant in all areas on the track. In the sprints Jamall won both 100m (A) and 200m (A); Jack, on debut, 200m (B) 1st; Demarco 100m (B) 1st; Charlie 300m (A) 3rd and Joe M (on Debut) 300m (B) 1st, Ayoola 3rd in hurdles. In the middle distance Joe M 800m (A) 1st, Lewis (B) 2nd; Joe B (A) and Samuel (B) both won their 1500m races. In the Jumps Demarco (A) and Louis (B) both finished 2nd in the Long Jump; in the High Jump Louis was 3rd (B) and Theo an unexpected 2nd (A). In the throws Jamall (A) and Demarco (B) teamed up again in the shot to both finish 2nd; the middle distance lads also pitched in with Theo (A) piping Joe M (B) both 3rd in the Hammer, in the Javelin Seb (B) was 3rd. The 4x300m relay team of Seb, Lewis, Joe M and Charlie were 3rd and the 4x100m relay team of Ayoola, Jamall, Demarco and Jack were a very impressive first - just need to work on those change-overs lads(!)

u13b - a very small team, all on debut and all doing their upmost for the team. In the sprints Elliot started his YDL career with wins in both 100m (A) and 200m (A). In the middle distance 800m Charlie (A) 2nd and Finlay (B) 3rd, Matthew (A) and Ethan (B) were both 3rd in their 1500m races. In the jumps Elliot (A) 1st in Long Jump. Finlay and Charlie both pitched in to earn valuable points in the throws. Well done lads, great effort.

u15g - Over half of this team were u13 last season and four additional on debut. In the sprints, Brooke was 3rd in the 100m B, Maya (A) and Erin (B) were both 3rd in the 300m. In the Middle distance, Emily 2nd (A) and Charlotte 3rd (B) and Sammy (A) and Amelia (B) both won their 1500m races. In the Jumps, Grace 2nd (B) in the Long Jump and Molly (who made a fine all round debut performance) 1st in the Pole Vault. In the throws Paige, another on debut, Shot (B) 1st and Javelin (B) 3rd; Emily Javelin (A) 2nd and Discus (A) 1st to continue her great early season form.The 4x100m relay team of Nadia, Brooke, Ellina and Grace battled hard for a 3rd place finish.

u13g - This team was the jewel in the crown last season, so had a lot to live up to, especially on the track were last season they dominated by often finishing 1st or 2nd in all the sprints and middle distance races. Well despite so many girls moving up to u15, they didn't disappoint. In the sprints Trezeguet was in fine form to win both 75m (A) and 150m (A), backed up by Halle winning the 150m (B) and Zara (on debut) wining the 75m (B). In the Middle Distance Lucy (A) 2nd in 800m and Isabelle 1st (B), Nicola smashed her PB to finish 2nd in 1200m (A) with Isabel doing similar to finish 2nd (B). In the jumps Trezeguet was 2nd (A) and Halle 1st (B) for the Long Jump and Halle 2nd (A) and Neve 1ss (B) in the High Jump. In the Throws Amelia (on debut) was 2nd in Shot (B). The 4x100m relay team of Zara, Halle, Isabelle and Trezeguet crused to a fine win.

Loads of fine performances, and this is reflected in the number of graded performances achieved - 32 in total, with 4 grade 1's

Results will be on the YDL website once they have been scrutinised, they are also on Power of 10

​Next fixture is Saturday 20th May at Longford Park, lets keep up the good work(!)

The inaugural Northern U17/U15 5k Road Championships were held at a sunny Stanley Park in Blackpool. Having spent a winter on the cross country circuit, most of our athletes found pushchairs and random dogs to be the major obstacles on this occasion!
The Under 17 Mens team all performed magnificently to finish in 3rd place and earn their bronze medals. They were led home by Mikey Kingston in 18th place in a personal best 16.57, showing improved stamina this winter. Next home was Jack Wilkinson running 17.01(pb) in 20th place, closely followed by a good performance from Colin Daly in 23rd position in 17.17, running his first major race after recovering from a long term injury. Connor Fazakerley also competed the course in 46th place in 19.14.
Next up were our Under 15 Boys who finished as 5th team. Cynog Williams, running his final race in this age group, led them home in 15th place in a personal best 17.54. Not far behind was the ever-improving Seb Patrick who improved his pb by nearly a minute in recording 17.52. Joe Bentall completed the team scorers in 33rd place in his fastest ever time of 18.40. The two non-counters also ran faster than ever before, Alex Bailey finishing in 18.53 and Theo Symons Treacher not far behind in 19.33

Sunday 22nd January saw the annual Greater Manchester Sportshall County Championships take place at Sportcity

As ever the event was well supported and Trafford AC athletes fully played their part in an enjoyable and exciting competition.

Well done to all competed and a special thanks to Gavin for helping officiate and for taking the photographs below.

Lots of encouraging performances on the day, highlights below

u11g - The five girls all did there full compliment of events. Zara picked up a bronze in the Vertical Jump (VJ) and Jenny finished in that frustrating 4th position in the Standing Triple Jump (STJ)

​u11b - Only James Walton competing and making his competitive debut for the club

u13g - with Trezeguet unavailable, it was up to the others to step up to the mark; and so it proved with this team providing over half of the medals won by the club on the day. Roselle won bronze in the 2 lap; Emily bronze in the shot (with a massive PB!) Ellina, consistent as ever, won silver in Speed Bounce, Vertical Jump and 4 Lap. Halle was the most successful individual on the day, with bronze in the 4 Lap, Silver in the Standing Triple Jump and Gold in the Standing Long Jump. The relay team of Ellina, Grace, Halle and Roselle combined in a hard fought race to come away with a narrow victory.

u13b - Only Louis available, and having played a tough football match only competed in the Standing Long Jump in which he came 3rd.

u15g - Roselyne bronze in 2 lap; Tasmin bronze in both 4 lap and Standing Long Jump; Issi bronze in Vertical Jump and silver in Standing Triple Jump; Charlie silver in Standing Long Jump and gold in 2 Lap. Relay team of Charlie, Tasmin, Tiffany and Roselyne with Gold

A summary of the results from all the Trafford athletes can be found here​, along with the full official girls and boys results.

Greater Manchester teams for the North West Regional final, to be held at Sportscity on 18th March, will be announced shortly and hopefully a few of the Trafford AC athletes will be lucky enough to be selected to represent their county.

After heavy overnight rain, over 2000 competitors descended on Knowsley Safari Park for the Northern Cross Country Championships which was animal-free but not mud-free!
Trafford AC had several boys taking part but, unfortunately, no girls.
The Under 20 team finished just outside the medals in 5th place. Led home by an inspired performance from Mac O'Malley in 17th , they also had Nathan Townsend 38th, Seamus Bradbury 46th, and an injured Matt Sutton 60th.
Our Under 17s also ran well to finish 7th team in very difficult conditions. As usual, Xav O'Hare was first Trafford athlete home in 17th place, followed by a good run from Connor Fazakerley (52nd) then Jack Wilkinson (57th) and Mikey Kingston (62nd).
Nearly 200 athletes started in the Under 15 race in which we finished 11th team. Led by the consistent Joe Bentall in 36th, the rest of the team consisted of a return to fitness of Seb Patrick (58th), Cynog Williams (running on his birthday) in 70th, Theo Symons Treacher 102nd and Alex Bailey 130th.
Even though we failed to finish a team in the Under 13 race, it produced our best performance of the day, when Louie McCormack charged through the field of 213 to finish in an excellent 13th place. Louie still has another year in this age group. Tom Bentall ran well to finish 41st and Joe Read, in his first high level race, managed a good 169th place.
Most of the athletes will now move on to the Greater Manchester Schools Cross Country Championships at Heaton Park on Saturday when many will be hoping to gain County selection for the English Schools Championships.