Just call them Chichester Runners-up as West Sussex League ends

Leaders Portslade Hedgehoppers were secure in top spot with the next five teams separated by just a handful of points.

In the event, Chichester matched or bettered all their rivals with 115 points, only 10 short of the maximum possible at a single race and emerged with smiles all round.

Perhaps the biggest smile belonged to team manager Peter Anderson who has galvanised support for this popular league to lift Chichester from a mid-table ninth place in 2021.

Leading the club home in Horsham was club talisman James Baker who added another race win to the 1,000 plus previous victories under his belt.

Nearly a minute ahead of his closest rival and over two minutes ahead of the third placed runner, the 46-year-old was very much at home over the undulating parkland terrain.

Not far short of joining the over-60 ranks, club chairman Jim Garland in 17th joined Baker in achieving the 10 maximum bonus points on offer for the top 20 in the men’s race.

Robin Charnock was next home in 32nd followed by Stuart Loxton in 34th, Mikeey Kwoka in 59th and Dave Reading in 70th.

Next home for Chichester was Tim Brown in 72nd, getting the crucial six bonus points he needed to claim the club’s overall men’s trophy.

Chichester’s next four finishers at Horsham were the club’s top four women on the day.

Elizabeth Robinson edged out Nadia Anderson, finishing 12th and 16th in the women’s field respectively, with Anderson maintaining her substantial lead to clinch the club women’s shield with room to spare.

There were good runs from Hilary Pollard in 19th and Ellie Monk in 20th, both scoring nine bonus points in the process.

With its appeal as a league where every place counts towards club points, there was a strong showing from the rest of the Chichester squad with Peter Sullivan 133rd overall, Catherine Betts 146th (F 30th) , Sam Houston 148th (F 31st), Wim Amir 153rd, Luke Leleu 157th, Peter Dunne 164th, Tom Blaylock 170th, Elaine Cruttenden 172nd (F 40th), Tony Cooley 174th, Tracy Lockyear 186th (F46th), Sue Baker 192nd (F49th), Amanda Trafford 220th (F 66th), Wendy Whelan 227th (F 74th), Ian Stevens 230th and Peter Anderson 236th.

Final top 5 clubs

1 Portslade HH 1717 pts

2 Chi Runners 1603

3 Hove Hornets 1586

4 Worthing Harr 1566

5 Steyning AC 1559

Gosport Half Marathon

In a field of more than 1,200 finishers, there was local interest for Chichester at the front of the race with three Chichester-based athletes well inside the top 20.

In a fine sixth place was triathlete Will Grace with a time of 70min 39sec.

Grace had already shown his prowess over the distance in the Chichester Half Marathon by pipping James Baker in 2021 in a race where the two leaders ran stride for stride until the last couple of miles where Grace made his break for the line.

At Gosport, it was Baker again who was close on Grace’s heels at Gosport with an excellent 11th place in 71.45 and the first over-45 to finish.

Baker is sixth in the UK over the distance with a clocking of 70.12 at Lee-on-the-Solent.

The third of the local trio was another over-40, Inspire’s Mike Houston who set a new PB in 73.27 in 16th place. The trio have dominated the local half marathon scene of late.