Club News

The young Athletes in the club had their Xmas Disco and Awards night on Friday 7th December in GHA.
This was a great event, well enjoyed by all the athletes and also by the coaches, helpers and parents who came along to see the fun.
The Awards presented at this event were 1) Certificates for all the U11s who have competed for the club on the Track at the SAIL [Scottish Athletics Indoor League ] last winter , the CSSL in the summer, 2) the Star Track event we held in the Emirates and, of course 3) for those who like the mud ,who turned out to compete for the Club at XC at the Renfrewshire Cross Country Relays and XC Championships as well as some other schools XC events.
We also recognised all the medalists Gold,Silver & Bronze in all 4 events contested at the Club Championships in September.
4) Finally, Awards were also presented to the U11 Athletes of the Year Male and Female.

We were honoured to have Nikki Manson, our superb High Jumper, present the Awards to the athletes on the night. Dudley Walker our great MC , explained in his introduction of Nikki her early start in the club, the range of events she competed in as an athlete from Middle Distance to Thows to Sprints to Jumps before finally settling on the High Jump as her preferred event. He suggested the young athletes should check out the huge array of Club Records which Nikki holds, at all Age Groups, in all these events, before outlining her National and International career as a High Jumper reaching the position of becoming the Scottish HJ Record Holder with her 1.90 Metre Jump. Nikki came along in her GB kit which she earned representing GB at the European indoor Championships when she and David Smith the club’s other prestigious High Jumper were both in the British Team. Both have also represented Scotland at the Commonwealth Games.
Dudley had brought along a measuring tape and with the help of one of the youngsters displayed what an achievement Nikki’s soaring 1.90 was. It was great to have Nikki there. She spoke to the athletes, shook all the hands , handed out the medals and certificates and patiently dealt with the queue of requests for signatures and selfies. Thankyou Nikki from all at the Young Athletes Disco & Awards Night and also from all at the Club for the experience of seeing your continuing development in your GB Scottish & Giffnock Vest.

Dudley had a very busy weekend : MC for this event, taking his squads to the West District XC Championships on Saturday, followed by another gig at the Main Awards Night on Saturday evening. Grateful thanks to him for generously giving his time.

Well done to all our athletes , those who have moved on to U13s, those still with the U11s and those who have recently joined us .
All the coaches and helpers think we have a great bunch of keen and enthusiastic Athletes to celebrate and the dance floor antics certainly underlined that. We had several athletes who were late due to being at their dance exams but who gave an impromptu display and then had everyone join in including coaches and helpers. Craig Armstrong led the Arm Wrestling competition in between dances . We don’t think he let anyone beat him.

Medal winnners below

ATHLETES OF THE YEAR 2018
Joint Winners
Emily Williams & Freya Campbell
Oliver Bryers & Lewis Davidson

CLUB T&F CHAMPIONS
GIRLS
1)Madeleine Mackenzie
2)Emily Williams
3)Leilani Spelman Ikedashi
BOYS
1)Lewis Davidson
2)Alfie Bradley
3) Logan Johnston

A great event for the youngest of the future Club athletes.
We have to thank properly the following members of the Junior Committee who organised the night and did a great job especially ensuring the DJ and the always welcome Pizza delivery.
Lynda Scott, Tracey Davie & Alison Watson
Additional thanks to Emily and Eilidh for the service at the Juice Bar
A special thanks to James Turnbull , dad to Hannah who came and took all the photos on the night.
In conclusion the U11 Coach Team on the night of Craig Armstrong, John O’Donnell, Steve Taylor, Clare Stevenson and Andy Munro would like to thank our band of parent helpers ( soon to be coaches we hope) for their input on the night and at sessions.
Patricia Gallagher, Gillian Pollock, Gillian Gallagher &a Jennifer Jackson

Lachie Stewart , Erin Wallace and Luke Traynor

Giffnock North AC Annual Awards Night , Saturday 8th Dec
Report from Gerry Duggan.

It was the athletic version of A Christmas Carol at our Annual Awards Dinner on Saturday night, but instead of ghosts, we had heroes past, present and future in attendance.
Our Hero of the Past, and joint guest of honour, was Lachie Stewart, Scotland’s 10,000m gold medallist from the 1970 Edinburgh Commonwealth Games. We were treated to video footage of Lachie charging down the back-straight to win his medal as he was being introduced to the attendees. A recent inductee into Scottish Athletics Hall of Fame, Lachie complemented the club for all its recent achievements and for developing such a strong young athlete section.
The other guest of honour and Hero of the Present, was our very own Luke Traynor. Luke has been tearing up the road racing circuit across Europe, winning the Ceske Budejovice Half Marathon, finishing second in the Manchester Half Marathon & third in the Great Scottish Run.
And why have one Hero of the Present when you can have two? We were delighted that Erin Wallace, World Junior Triathlon silver medallist and 1500m CYG Winner  was able to join us too.
Luke and Lachie  raced through the presentation of 30 plus Club awards, ranging from Under 11 to V55 Masters, [including all the National Title winners certificates which required a production line effort from Graham Dunn ] before finishing the awards section of the evening by presenting Erin with her Scottish Athletics Under 20 Athlete of the Year Award which she had missed out on receiving earlier due to training commitments.
While we congratulate all our award winners, listed below, we also salute everyone at the club who has trained and competed over the past year.
Medals and certificates awarded, the starter’s gun was fired for the fun part of the evening. Pausing only briefly to fuel up from the buffet and bar we swapped our spikes for dance shoes and took to the floor for some serious ceilidh dancing. The band was fantastic and the dance floor was full all night long.
Now you may be wondering about the Heroes of the Future? We were delighted that so many of our Junior Section were able to join us at the Awards Night. They burned off more energy on the Dance Floor than they do at a training session and a few may even have set a personal best or two in the process! This group of young men and women will be our Heroes of the Future, whether winning National or International medals, competing and coaching for Giffnock North or simply maintaining an enthusiasm for the sport we all love.

We hope everyone enjoyed the evening and hope the coming year brings more success for Giffnock North that we can celebrate next year. A huge vote of thanks to all those who organised and helped make the night such a great success.

Thanks Gerry.

Special thanks also to Dawn Armitt for her role in organising, and Dudley Walker, our ace MC and Coach to the XC Squads as ever, here sharing memories of athletics with Lachie, his former clubmate at Shettleston Harriers. David Chong for taking all the photos and to all the others who helped to ensure we had a great night recognising the efforts and achievements of all the athletes. But special thanks reserved for Lachie Stewart who at 75 looks as fit as a fiddle and who regaled Dudley and Billy with his amazing tales of competing abroad and finding the prizes were such items as a fridge! From Spain to Glasgow not really possible !!

VIEW ALL THE PHOTOGRAPHS HERE

Download (DOC, 23KB)

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ol4qqwzkzesa5l1/AAC2OnnCWew3Qyb2JPNEaAl9a?dl=0

Report from Allie Chong

After most of the juniors had finished, just as the weather was closing in, the seniors took to the muddy course in Kilmarnock yesterday.
Churned to a quagmire in places, it was a challenging run, and slightly longer than advertised!
Mary McCutcheon had a strong run from the gun and was the first Giffnock female across the line, with Allie Chong one place behind her. Mary’s run made her the clear winner in the FV50 category – another medal for her trophy collection.
Frances Lowrie and Kathleen McLachlan made up the ladies team, finishing in 5th spot, with Mary, Allie and Kathleen claiming silver in the Masters team category.
Chris Greenhalgh led the Giffnock men round the hilly 8.5k in the men’s race, finishing in 46th place. Jordan Orr had a strong run as Giffnock’s second counter and Luke Chamberlain, Ted Gourley, John O’Donnell and Jason Steele made up the rest of the team, who finished in 7th spot. The men’s Masters Team were just punched out of the medals by one point, finishing just behind rivals Garscube.
All in all 20 seniors competed boding well for the Nationals in February, where even greater numbers are hoped for.

Thanks to Allie Chong for reporting for the Club Seniors and Masters .We can only echo her sentiments for an enhanced turn out for the Nationals .
Well done all the club athletes but especially Mary and the masters silver team medallists Allie & Kathleen adding to the weekend haul of medals.
Provisional results :

https://www.scottishathletics.org.uk/lindsays-district-xc-centre-stage-three-venues/

Harris Paterson to the fore!

Helen Chong & Clare Wallace for the U17 Women’s Team.

Report from Croy Thomson.

SIX TEAM GOLDS and a team bronze were on the scoreboard for Giffnock North AC’s juniors and Under 20s, and that was before the Seniors and Masters results were in at the West District Cross Country Champs

A most unfortunate stewarding error saw the U13 Girls run a (very) short race but Amber Wade, Katy Donnelly and Kirsty Wylie still claimed the team crown amid a crowded finish that needed video reviews to settle the result. Giffnock ultimately edged Ayr Seaforth by one point. The U13 Boys ran the full distance of 3.2k to deliver the same title-winning result, with Craig Shennan, Matthew Murphy and Alex Robin doing the damage.

U15 titles over four testing, muddy kilometers went to Valencia Wright, Zoe Flower and Julia Cash (first, third and fourth) and to Harris Paterson, Jacob Luc and Ross O’Brien. Under 17 Girls Heather Barnes, Helen Chong and Clare Wallace brought home the fourth crown of the day after 5.5k, before, and with the weather worsening amid gathering gloom, the U20 Girls lit up the day yet again, this time over 6.5k. Erin Wallace, Charlotte McKenna and Rhona Mowat earning the applause.

Under 17 Gents Ethan Carolan, Jack Bell and Blayne Wright – closely pursued by Andrew Robertson – produced a hard-earned bronze medal performance over 5.5k.

Great to see successful returns to action from Zoe Flower, Heather Barnes, Erin Wallace and Lynn McKenna among others. Commiserations and Get Well Soon to Hamish Armitt, Calum Young and Kate Richardson. Splendid to see Emily Crusher turning out for Glasgow Yooni – and making it onto the podium with her team. We applaud bigly the efforts of the coaches, officials, timekeepers, starters, families, fans, startled onlookers, dogs, tent wranglers et al.

Senior and Masters results weren’t available at time of scribbling, sorry. If I have any names wrong, I’m sorry about that too.

Well done to all our hard-working athletes who have gained automatic selection for West District squads. To those on the cusp, keep the faith, keep believing and above all .. keep training. Onwards!

Photos courtesy of Bobby Gavin & Scottish Athletics

Full results including Senior club athletes and more photos soon.Well done to all. We know you will have got the mud off before enjoying the Ceilidh and the Awards Night!

Just a reminder that the Junior Christmas Disco and the Club Awards Night are both this coming weekend, dates below.  So dont delay in getting your tickets if you are planning to come.

Junior Christmas Disco – Friday 7th Decmeber

Club Awards Night – Saturday 8th Decmeber

The first match of the Scottish Athletics Indoor League took place on Saturday 11st December. Results are being finalised and will be published soon.

Many thanks to Gary Leek of Athletics Digital for  the photographs from the event.

Report from Croy Thomson

GIFFNOCK NORTH AC’s Hamish Armitt stormed to a convincing victory at the prestigious UK Cross Country Challenge event in Liverpool last weekend. Over a twisting, tricky and fast 5.5k parkland course, the southsider bided his time in the leading pack until after half way, before steadily turning the screw on most of Britain and Ireland’s best Under 17s, to come home comfortably clear after 17 minutes and 20 seconds.

The increasingly popular race series, a form of Cross Country Grand Prix incorporating GB selection races, has two races to go, in Belfast and Loughborough early next year. Hamish currently is well placed in the standings for an overall podium place at season’s end.

Other Giffnock athletes catching the eye included Valencia Wright, fifth U15 girl, and Craig Shennan, seventh U13 boy. Harris Paterson, Jacob Luc and Ross O’Brien packed well in the top twenty in an Under 15 boys’ race renowned for its ferociously quick start followed by three kilometres of tortuous switchback turns.

We had athletes in almost every race and we contributed well to what is a highly successful event in the UK racing calendar.Our international on the day, senior gent Luke Traynor, started well, but a recurrence of a foot injury forced him to put discretion before valour, and he wisely dropped out.

Many thanks to the coaches, mums, dads and support crew who traveled on the day – what a journey, the somewhat chilly bus departing at 4:45 am from GHA – and on the day before, to help make this a successful experience for the athletes, who will always benefit from competing in races that are demanding from gun to tape, with every last gap filled by quality athletes from all over the UK.

HAVING READ THE RENFREWSHIRE Cross Country Championships report on this site, and from a personal point of view, I’d like to say how great it is to see Frances Lowrie in action and among the medals (third counter for the Senior Ladies behind the irrepressible duo of Jill Smyllie and Allie Chong). As a junior with Giffnock, Frances was always an ace in the club pack, with achievements including a Scottish National XC team gold. No pressure, Frances! Well done.

ALL IN ALL an enjoyable and rewarding weekend, so big applause to every last racer (EVERY athlete is important). Keep up the good work, and here’s to another fun, fast, fruitful and generally fantabulistical winter’s racing.

A great day in the sunshine at Shanks Park in Johnstone today across the age groups at the Renfrewshire XC Championships.
The haul includes 6 Gold sets of Team medals and 2 Team Silvers.
Some of the athletes had even made the trip to Liverpool the previous day for the British Cross Challenge.
U11 Boys were up first with a gun to tape individual Gold for Oliver Bryers , 4th place for Mathew Snowden and a 5th place for Tristan Robin to win Team Gold.
Not to be outdone, Freya Campbell in another impressive and nearly gun to tape victory led her Team to the Gold prize too with Lauren McPherson coming through to take the Bronze and 4th place for Edie Simmers Clark. The successes continued throughout the Age groups with Gold for U13 Boys and Girls, Gold for U15 Boys and Silver for U15 Girls.
As reported by Denny Whiteford “We were Delighted to say all age groups stepped up to the challenge” In U13s Amber Wade took individual Gold , Katy Donnelly took the Silver and Ruby White was 3rd counter for team gold. Individual Silver for Alex Robin, Bronze for Calan Chong and Adam Chamberlain completing that result for Team Gold.
In U15 Girls Julia Cash took a commanding individual Gold with Eva Chong for individual Bronze and with Kirsten O’Donoghue won the Team Silver.U15 Boys delivered Gold Team with Hugh Shiels taking the individual gold, Aaron McGillivray with the Silver and Michael Nolan coming through to clinch that one.
In the U17 Women’s Race we had Helen Chong in 1st place and Jill Carswell with Silver and Donald McLean took the Bronze in the U17 Men’s Race.
Great efforts from all our athletes today as Denny also commented ‘whether you went home with a medal or not. Super support for your teammates right through the day’
In the Senior Races Giffnock’s Women’s team took a fantastic 2nd Team Place with Jill Smylie, Allie Chong and Frances Lowrie while the Senior Men were 5th placed.

All in all a great outing for the club.The coaches were delighted with all the performances and especially pleased to see those competing for the first time for the club over the mud .
Well done all.

Results now online on Kilbarchan website at the following link

https://kilbarchanaac.org.uk/2018/11/25/renfrewshire-xc-champs-provsional-results/
Photos courtesy of David Chong, Allan Barr & several parents ! Thanks to Kilbarchan for hosting , much appreciated and to all the organisers for a good day at the races .

Are you interested in becoming an Official ?  If so, book yourself on a Level 1 course in the New Year.

Level 1 Timekeeping
Level 1 Field
Level 1 Track
Level 1 Photo Finish

Full details can be found on the Scottish Athletics website here

Giffnock North AC’s Jacob Luc, Chris Perkins & Harris Paterson.

Giffnock North AC’s senior ladies squad at the Scottish Short Course Champs 2018.

Report by Croy Thomson

THREE National team titles, two individual crowns and a breathtaking clean sweep made it a day to remember for Giffnock North AC’s stable of junior athletes at the former horse racing course in Lanark last weekend, in the Scottish Short Course Cross Country Championships.

Taking pride of place was the Under 15 Boys quartet of Chris Perkins, Harris Paterson, Jacob Luc and Ross O’Brien who stormed to the first four places in their 2k event. Just seven seconds separated all four at the sharp end of a blisteringly fast race over the ultra-flat, super-fast circuit, with Paterson and Perkins swapping the lead more than once before the latter claimed victory with a five minutes 57 seconds effort.

Also over 2k, Under 15 Girls Valencia Wright and Zoe Flower conjured up a powerhouse one-two, just four seconds apart, ably backed by Julia Cash in seventh to clinch the team gold. Over 3k, U17s Helen Chong, Clare Wallace and Jill Carswell ran home eighth, ninth and eleventh to deliver Giffnock’s third team crown of the day, ahead of their Renfrewshire rivals Kilbarchan Harriers.

Giffnock’s U17 Men Jack Bell, Andrew Robertson and Blayne Wright took eighth in a 3k race won by Edinburgh AC. In the Senior Ladies’ 4k, Erin Wallace, Charlotte McKenna, Rhona Mowat and Jill Smylie also finished eighth, the individual title going to Kilbarchan’s GB international Jemma Reekie. Senior Men Andrew Love, Keiran Killin, Sandy Nimmo and Chris Greenhalgh finished 14th of 42 teams over 4k in an event that year on year attracts more and more of the country’s top racing talent.

Photos courtesy of Bobby Gavin.

Meanwhile on Sunday 11th November several U11 Athletes made the journey to compete in the Springburn Harriers Schools XC series and performed really well.
We had 2nd & 3rd place in the P5 Girls =race with Aneesha King Oubacha and Beatrice Nairne and Mathew Snowden in 3rd Place in the P6 boys Race while Oliver Bryers took 2nd Place in the P7 Boys race. It was great to have all these athletes getting another XC run before the Renfrewshire Champs on the 25th November and some are planning to do the Livingston Open or Garscube Harriers School races on the 18th.

Giffnock had two athletes gaining Scottish Schools vests at the SIAB International Pentathlon Championships at the Emirates arena this weekend – namely 15 Year olds Max McHarg and Murray Fotheringham.
Max led the Under 16 Boys team in grand fashion with 4 PB’s in Hurdles, Long Jump, Shot Put and 200 Metres to leave him in 5th place after 4 events. As a sprinter by trade, the 800 Metres is a foreign language to Max , but he attacked the final event with gusto , chasing a place on the podium. He was looking good after 400 Metres but as the bell approached he was visibly struggling as the lactic kicked in. The last lap must have felt like a marathon to poor Max but somehow he dragged himself round the track for one last time – every step hurting just a little more . Rather unbelievably, he was only just outside his PB but the toll on his body required a lengthy stay with The First Aiders after the race. Max finished as the best Scot in a very creditable 6th Place but his team were just outside the medals.
Murray was stepping up a level this year to compete for the Under 18 Team. Scottish Gold medals at this event are as rare as hens teeth but the Scottish Boys were focussed and started the fireworks early !! Murray commenced with a PB in hurdles but was slightly below par in Shot Put to lie down in 13th place after two events. A PB in the 200 Metres clawed back a little leaving the Scottish team just behind England. The Long Jump was the critical event with the other Scottish boys putting in PB’s to close in on England but Murray fouled his first two jumps. With the pressure on, a huge 6.93 Meters leap catapulted the Scots into the lead by a meagre 3 points. The result was never in doubt thereafter as the Scots outclassed their English rivals in the 800 Metres to score a massive 10,546 points – the best ever score by a Scottish Team and win by over 260 points. Murray finished in 5th place overall with his teammates Scott Brindley winning the individual Gold and Calum Newby in joint 3rd.
Link to full results:

http://www.ssaa.co.uk/results/2018results/Schools%20International%20Pent_results_%202018.pdf

Also of note that Murray’s score was 3rd best of all time U17 and his LJ was also
3rd best of all time U17.

“>https://www.scotstats.net/results-1/”>

Report and Photos from on the spot, Craig Fotheringham.Thanks Craig

Erin in NASSAU, BAHAMAS at the Commonwealth Youth Games after crossing the finish line to win the Girls 1500m Final

Sadly, Erin not able to be present at the Awards Night and so it was delighted parents Allison and Gordon who stepped up to do the Honours.

GIFFNOCK NORTH AC’s Erin Wallace lifted the Scottish Athletics Under 20 Athlete of the Year Award at the sport’s glittering annual ceremony in Glasgow’s Hilton Hotel. We were delighted to see that and it is important to note that Erin also took the U17 Athlete of the Year Award last year.

Southsider Erin earned her accolade with a stellar year that included topping the UK rankings for 1500 metres and a fine seventh place having made the 1500 final in the World Youth Championships in Finland. She was also second in the England Athletics U20 Championships. All consolidating a 2017 that saw her win the Commonwealth Youth Games 1500 metre crown and emerge as an international triathlete.

Giffnock North AC were nominees for the 2018 Off Track Club of the Year prize, which on the night went to up-and-coming Garscube Harriers.

Track star Laura Muir claimed overall Athlete of the Year Award. Dame Kelly Holmes presented the prizes.

Several of the Club Coaches and Board members were also delighted to attend the night and Symon Lipp added a few more to his collection of Celebrity Athlete Photos.

Gordon, Erin’s dad was rewarded with a photo with one of his athletics heroes from the past High Jumper Geoff Parsons who was being inducted with other very notable athletes, including Lee McConnell, into the Scottish Athletics Hall of Fame
Photos from Bobby Gavin , Scottish Athletics and Club members Reporting from Croy Thomson and others

Notice of the AGM on Wednesday 28th November at 7.30pm in the library of Williamwood High School.

If you have any items for the Agenda please email them to the Club Secretary, Yvonne McNairn

LAST CHANCE TO RECLAIM LOST PROPERTY
Alison Watson is kindly holding some of the items of lost property
This is your opportunity to claim these items before they go to Charity shop
Can Parents please label training kit as otherwise its an impossible task for us to re -unite lost kit with owners. Biro pen mark on label is fine .
Contact Alison to make arrangements to collect by email on :aliwatson999@gmail.com
by 7th November or say Bye Bye to your items

Report from Croy Thomson

” BLAZING sunshine plus perfect underfoot conditions and a powerhouse team effort added up to a Scottish title and medal-winning result for Giffnock North AC’s juniors at the National Cross Country Relays in Cumbernauld House Park today.

Craig Shennan (U13) ran a strong first leg over the infamously hilly 2.5k course to set up Giffnock’s A squad in fourth. Harris Paterson on the U15 leg blitzed the team into second behind Shettleston Harriers, before U17 Hamish Armitt delivered the coup de grace in defence of the crown won last year. Hamish commented, “The team did a great job putting me in a solid position for the title, I’m delighted to help them bring it back to Giffnock for the second year in a row..” Strength in depth helped Giffnock’s lads put five teams in the top 25, boding well for the winter season.

For the girls, Amber Wade (U13) handed over in seventh to Valencia Wright, who scythed through the field to return in first, in a fine nine minutes three seconds. Helen Chong (U17) fought hard on the final leg but couldn’t quite resist the charge from Fife AC’s Anna Hedley. Said Helen, sporting her well-earned silver medal, “We are more than satisfied with the result, the whole squad put up a great performance. It is always nice to make the podium against high calibre rivals from all over Scotland. We look forward to seeing them again soon at the Short Course Championships.

Senior Ladies Charlotte McKenna, Jill Smyllie, Allie Chong and Rhona Mowatt placed 12th. “It was lovely having the younger athletes competing, spurring us on,” said Allie. Men’s Team placed 20th.

Thanks to Croy Thomson for the report and to all the athletes in both the Junior and Senior ranks who raced up and over the hills at Cumbernauld and contributed to the overall success today for the club.
Link to provisional results and video coverage by Vinco

Full Results

The club had a great day at the Renfrewshire XC Relays at Nether Pollok on Sunday 21st October. We were hosting the event this year and that seemed to go well for all concerned. Unlike the District and National XC Relays, where Junior athletes compete U13 to U15 to U17, the athletes compete within their age groups as with Seniors and U20s.  We had a great turnout in nearly all age groups and great success overall.

U11 Girls took Gold and Silver as did U11 Boys
U13 Girls were 1st, 2nd, 5th & 6th
U13s Boys were 1st, 3rd, 6th & 9th
U15 Girls 2nd, 3rd & 5th
U15 Boys had a clean sweep with all 3 Podium places
U17 Girls were 3rd
U17 Boys 1st & 4th
Then the Senior women took the Silver medals with a 5th Place for Senior Men.

Dudley Walker comments that “We used the opportunity to assist in the selection for the forthcoming National XC Relays on Saturday at Cumbernauld and entered mixed Teams to enhance the competition for places. This worked pretty well. It was a good day for many of our athletes- a day to get folk on the medal train and not just passengers as before. We were without some of our other star athletes so it gave a chance for others to shine which they did , rising very well to the occasion. ” Overall, Dudley delighted with the response and the performances

For some of the U11s it was their first foray into XC running and they excelled. We had the fastest laps of the day and more importantly, they all enjoyed the experience as the smiling faces demonstrated!
Many many thanks to all of the athletes,officials, parents, supporters, coaches and the organisers whose early start to the day laying out the course( including changes to the course route ocasioned by last minute arrangements at the WW1 Trenches Event) and ensuring good (if not excellent) catering provision courtesy of very generous donations including Humera’s samosas was enjoyed by all. The early morning rain gave way to brilliant autumn sunshine and this was also very welcome.

More photos of the day here

FULL RESULTS

Download (XLSX, 34KB)

The Awards Disco & Xmas night for Junior Athletes
(U11 & 1st year u13) will be held at:

The Braidholm Suite, GHA Rugby Ground
Braidholm, Braidholm Rd,
Giffnock, Glasgow, G46 6EB

Friday 7th December 2018

 7.00pm – 9.45pm

Disco, Pizza & Nibbles

Tickets £7.00   (+ admin. fee)

Our annual Junior (2nd year u13 upwards) and Senior awards night to be held at –

Carmichael Hall, Eastwood Park
Saturday 8^th  December,
7.30pm – 11.00pm.

A fun filled night is planned with live music from ceilidh band Clamjafrie, a hot buffet and bar service will also be provided.Tickets are available via Entry Central  priced just £15.00  (+ admin. Fee).

Don’t delay as ticket numbers are limited.

Several club juniors featuring in medal winning teams at the Scottish Secondary School Road Races held in Grangemouth on Wednesday 3rd October.
Well done to Alex Robin and Jack Wallace who were part if the Hutchie Team taking the Gold Medal and to Mathew Murphy and Craig Shennan who took the Bronze medals for Williamwood HS.
Ben Shaw was 4th for Eastwood HS and many other of our athletes turned in good performances representing their schools.

Link to the full results

Congratulations to the following medalists at the Club Track and Field Chanpionships.  Full results avalable on the links below.

FEMALE EVENT RESULTS  

Download (PDF, Unknown)

FEMALE POINTS TOTALS 

Download (PDF, Unknown)

MALE EVENT RESULTS 

Download (PDF, Unknown)

MALE POINTS TOTALS 

Download (PDF, Unknown)

The club Track & Field Championships took place at the Ayrshire Arena in KIlmarnock at the weekend.  The sun shone and a good time was had by all. Many thanks to the organising committee, the athletes, the officials and the army of helpers who all contributed in making the day a success.

Full results will be posted soon, once they have been scutinised.  In the meantime here are some great photos taken by Alan Stewart on the day.

On Sunday 21st October 2018 the club will be hosting the Renfrewshire AAA XC Relay Championships at Nether Pollok, 49 Haggs Road, Glasgow G41 4AR.

We urgently now need to identify and confirm volunteers from the club, athletes, parents and family etc to make the event a success.

So we need people

1) to make sure the catering is up to our normal high standard

2) to assist with laying out the course and of course clearing up afterwards

3) to steward the parking and the course during the races

4) to provide a professional results service

Please spread the word and seek people committed to helping?  It doesn’t need to be for the full day although that would be helpful. As many hours as people can give would be appreciated.

If you are able to assist, please email Ronnie Stevenson

Hello,

Thurs night sessions Oct to Dec 2018 now on website.

Oct-Dec2018 (1)

Cheers,

Billy

Club Championships Arrangements
207 Athletes from Age U11 to Masters have entered the Club Championships and we are all looking forward to a great day of competition. It is always aided by good weather but the location at the Ayrshire Athletics Arena at Kilmarnock offers Indoor Cover if needed as well as a covered stand .We hope many parents, relatives and friends will come to support this event, enjoy the relaxed competition and get a chance to talk to coaches and other parents. You can bring your own folding chairs, small tents and/or umbrellas. We just need to ask that Athletes have clothing for any weather.

AYRSHIRE ATHLETICS ARENA
Address: Queen’s Dr, Kilmarnock KA1 3XF
Phone: 01563 555227

Can parents and athletes please note
Registration from 9.00am to collect your Numbers [Front& back] The Timetable will be adhered to as far as possible but as with many meets,it may run early or late so listen to the announcements from Dudley Walker.
Only pyramid spikes allowed at Kilmarnock so no Needle Pin spikes or Xmas tree ones
Athletes are welcome to wear Club vests but, as its our Club event, it’s not essential
Entry to the Arena will be by Programme
.The Entry fees to this event are minimal so bring your cash to buy your lucky [We hope] Programme Tracey Davie and Claire McInnes will be in charge. Lucky Numbers from the Programmes will be drawn during the day as well as a Tombola.
Kit sales organised by Lynda Scott and Alison Watson
Catering is again in the hands of Lisa Saxby with help from Ali Currie & Diana Davidson [we need a few more volunteers for this to allow a rota so that parents can see their Athletes events] We still require donations of Home Baking or Wrapped Labelled Sandwiches for the Catering Stall. Indications to Lisa Saxby
Results Team with performance scores organised by Graham Dunn will be Mike Napthine and Elaine Paul. AAA Standards [ Grade 1/2/3 ] achieved at Club Champs will be recognised with a Certificate
The Club Champions 1st /2nd/ 3rd will receive their Awards at the Annual Awards Night on Saturday the 8th of December in the Carmichael Hall. A separate Xmas Disco & Awards Night has been arranged for Friday 7th oF December for all U11 & 1st Year U13s

ARRANGEMENTS FOR U11 ATHLETES
Jennifer Jackson and Gillian Gallagher will meet all U11 Girls escort them to events, do warm ups etc, liaise re location & timings to meet up over the day and Shona Donnelly & Caroline Bradley will support the U11 Boys. The Timetabling has been arranged by Anne Stewart and along with Doleen Galbraith they have thankfully, managed to assemble the necessary officials to run the event

Entry Lists here

Download (XLS, 19KB)

Erin winning the London Junior Triathlon

Erin Wallace has had another trip Down Under to compete on the Gold Coast. Erin our Tri-Athlete goes from strength to strength.
We asked Gordon Wallace Erins dad for an update.
“Erin recently came 5th in the European Junior Triathlon championships in Estonia, and followed this up by winning the London Junior Female Triathlon. This gained her automatic selection for the GB Junior Female team who will compete at the World Finals in the Gold Coast. This sees the top 60 Female Junior triathletes in the world compete in the biggest championship race of the season. This takes place in the early hours of Saturday 15th September. She is currently in the middle of 2 weeks preparation with the GB team out there with all that involves”

The club wishes Erin the very best of luck in Australia. Also great news to hear that Erin is entered for the club Track & Field Championships as she has done every year since she joined the club and is looking forward to competing there. What a star!

A selection below of photos of a few of her athletics exploits.

Award winner at Scottish Athletics event 2017 with Coach Dudley Walker
On track, Indoor, Outdoor , that photo from the Bahamas when winning the 1500m and over XC representing GB Juniors.

Erin Wallace

Erin Wallace

Erin Wallace

Great Edinburgh XC Event
Jan 7th 2016
(C)Bobby Gavin Byline must be used

Report from Gerry Duggan
Thirty-one of our young athletes hurdled, sprinted, ran, jumped, threw, vaulted and putted their way into the Highland Capital on Saturday the 1st of September. They were in pursuit of PB’s and even a few qualifying standards for next June’s Gothenburg event, before the end of the current Track and Field season.

Inverness Harriers welcomed us to their open graded meeting where our athletes competed in hurdles, 100m, 200m, 800m, Discus, Shot Putt, Javelin, Long Jump and Pole Vault.

Our athletes set off at lunchtime on Friday (everyone was devastated at having to miss an afternoon’s schooling) for the long journey north, where we set-up overnight camp in Elgin. We arrived in plenty of time for tea, before inventing the new Olympic sports of “Rugby in the Dark” and “Luminous Yellow Frisby”. It let us all burn off a bit of energy before lights out.

After a good nights rest, all the athletes were up bright and early, eager to compete, but not before consuming the Breakfast of Champions. Full fry-ups all round.

Our hosts, Inverness Harriers, were brilliant. Realising we were keen to land some Gothenburg qualifying times, they set up the 100m and 200m to “go with the wind”. So our athletes ran the wrong way down the home straight for the 100m and used the 800m stagger mark to set off for the 200m. Thanks guys!

Giffnock’s athletes put their usual heart and soul into the events and we hope that everyone was pleased with their performances. There were too many PBs and SB’s to list out individually, you can see the full results on-line or on Power of 10 (speedy work again on the part of Inverness Harriers).

Full results

One performance does merit special mention. Darcy McNeil (pictures below) set a PB and U13 Club Record in the discus with a whopping 18.70m. Well done Darcy.

Symon Lipp was busy with his iPhone round the track and captured as many of the athletes in action as possible. You can see the pictures in the Highland Capital online photo album.

Click here for photos

All the coaches (Jackie Alexander, Sara Lang, Billy Glasgow, Gerry Duggan and Symon Lipp) would like to thank our athletes on their outstanding performances and exemplary behaviour throughout the trip.
Report with thanks to Gerry Duggan

2^nd Sept Pitreavie AAC Young Athletes’ Trophy Meeting

GAA Sky High Pole Vault 2018 (The Final)

Now in its’ 27^th year and still attracting 200 plus competitors the Young Athletes’ Trophy Meeting occurs at the end of the outdoor season and always produces  great spectacle in the track and field competitions .  With it scheduled so soon after the National Age Group championships  it often offers a final chance to collect a medal , improve a PB,  or a chance to re-challenge  many recent National gold medallists.  It also provides U11 athletes a competition to earn a first trophy at something almost akin to National level with the many competitors it attracts in this age group from far and wide.

Ryan Davie

With fair temperatures and the occasional sunny spell it turned into a memorable day for two of Giffnock’s  U13 Boys.  Ryan Davie collected his first individual Gold in the High Jump with a 1.40m clearance and only narrowly missed a 1.44m PB. Ryan, being a first year U13 performed at an admirable level for his age bettering several boys a year older.  He also competed in the Long Jump finishing 5^th with 4.14m and outdid himself again with a PB finishing 3^rd in the third heat of the 100m with 14.80secs. This earned him a spot in a very competitive final.  He was actually late for his original heat as he was on his last attempt at high Jump at the time and luckily got a move into heat3 when he eventually made it to the start line.  Fortuitously for him though, this was the fastest heat of the day and brought the best out of him, and the time he produced was better than the winner of the heat he should have ran in. Ryan was a bit slower in the final due to a strong headwind and after all the exertion and finished 6^th , but was very pleased overall with his day. More to come next year.

Daniel Martin

Daniel Martin also had bumper day with the medals, earning 3 Golds.  His first of the day being at Long Jump. Having just returned from running his 75m hurdles heat, he and two others had 3 rounds to complete as all the other competitors had finished.  Daniel had some nervy moments with 2 fouls but calmed himself to ensure a safe effort in his final jump to produce  4.38m which won the competition by 5cm. This was much to his surprise afterwards as he wasn’t best pleased with that particular jump. The distance being a good bit down on his performances of late. He followed this up with a safe run in the final of the 75m hurdles winning comfortably in 12.88 secs.  This was his third gold in the event this year after the West Districts and an excellent PB in the National champs a fortnight ago. Finally in the 100m Daniel executed another safe run along with Ryan in Heat 3 making the final.  After managing his effort well throughout the day he stormed through to win the 100m final by 4metres in 13.75s. A very decent time contending with a strong 3.2m/s headwind.

Sky High Pole Vault 2018

Reuben Nairne

Finally after a whirlwind week, Reuben Nairne  pulled off his second Pole Vault Grand Prix victory of the year winning the GAA Sky High Pole Vault competition. This was the fourth meeting of the series and just like he did during the winter season he became summer season champion.  It’s been a successful season for him in Pole Vault with him achieving a recent U17 club record of 4.35m which puts him top 5 in the UK and 5^th best on the Scottish all-time list. Added to his superb Silver at the UK School Games on Saturday in Loughborough in 100m hurdles,  and a 4th place in PV competing at the England Athletics Champs in Bedford the previous weekend,  it’s been a demanding but rewarding week for him.  A massive well done Reuben.

Report by Brian Martin

Calling all club members …

There is now less than a week to get you entry in for the Club Track & Field Championships.   Entries are due to close on the 9th September.

Please make an effort to support this event, a lot of time and effort is put in by the organising team to make this event happen.

Full details and the link to online entry can be found at : https://www.giffnocknorth.co.uk/club-track-field-championships-entries-open/

Many thanks to the following athletes who have competed for Giffnock North in the 2018-19 Men’s League  – 

Calum McWilliam, Alexander Young, John Hamilton, Scott MacIver, Kyle McLean, Finlay Waugh, Eoghan  O’Donnell, Lewis Mitchell, Andrew Robertson, Andrew Clark, Luke Nelson, Kieran Killen, Sam Young, Calum Rogers, David Lees, Neil Hutchison, Murray Fotheringham, Chris MacKay, Greg Turner, Donald MacLean, Blayne Wright, Ben Shaw, Nicolai Gajic

Men’s League Match 4 and Season Round-up

In the  last Division Two Men’s League in 2018-19, Giffnock North’s team put in the best performance of the season, coming third on the day with 249 points. Edinburgh were 2^nd on 269 points and Corstorphine 1^st on 286.  With over thirty events, I think we can declare that a bit of a blanket finish!

In the four match series Giffnock finished fourth overall, a tantalising 1 point behind Lasswade. Edinburgh in 2^nd and Corstorphine in 1^st are promoted to Division 1. The Match 4 and Overall Series points tables are at the bottom of this email.

On our return to the Mens Leagues, (we didn’t compete last season), I am pleased that we put in a credible performance. Match 4 shows the potential of what Giffnock can do when we field athletes in (almost!) all the events. I thank every single athlete who has competed for Giffnock’s Mens League Team this year. Without fail you put your heart and soul into every performance.

I look forward to you all competing again next year when, if we put in a “Match 4 performance” every time, we will push for promotion.

Gerry Duggan, Team Manager

Match 4 Summary (Full results are attached to this email)

We had a very soggy start to the event, making the field events a bit tricky. Our jumpers (Sam Young, Calum Rogers, Scott MacIver, and Lewis Mitchell) landing on puddled crash mats or swampy sand and our throwers (David Lees and Neil Hutchison) handling what must felt like heavy bars of soap. But the guys persevered and landed vital points.

In the middle distances Nicolai Gajic and Donald MacLean (800m) and Andrew Clarke and Ben Shaw (1500m) all scored well for the team. In the guest 1500m Blayne Wright tore strips off his PBB. In the longer event, Kieran Killen ran his first track 10,000m.

Lewis Mitchell and Eoghan O’Donnel performed well in the 400m, despite having to stand at the cold, wet start line for 20 minutes prior to the gun.

The short sprint team also racked up the points. Special mention to new boys Scott MacIver and Finlay Waugh. Scott made a huge round trip from Stornaway and was rewarded with a PB in the 100m and Finlay flew round the 200m for his first sub 23s 200m. Remarkable times in horrible conditions. Kyle McLean continued his series of sub-23 200m runs and John Hamilton had a seasons best in the guest 100m. Alexander Young was frustrated with on an ongoing injury hampering his 100m.

Finally the relays were a mix of highs and lows. The 4×100 landed third place, but in the 2^nd leg of the 4×400, Lewis Mitchell pulled up dramatically with a hamstring injury. We wish him a speedy recovery.

Full Results

Report by Craig Fotheringham with photos from some earlier triumphs.

” The main factor in the second day of the AAA’s or English Championships was the weather. The warmth and occasional sunshine of yesterday had gone. The temperature had dropped considerably and just as events started , so did the rain and it never relented.

First up today was Reuben Nairne in the Pole Vault. PB’s were going to be rare today and in the inclement conditions everyone was well below par. Reuben managed clearances at 3:71 and 3:86 before failing at 4:01 but achieving a very creditable equal 4th place.

Murray Fotheringham had the unenviable task of competing against the class athlete of the meet – Dominic Ogbechie for the second time. Murray was very briefly in 2nd place with 6:59 Metres but in the cold and wet could not improve and slipped to his second 4th place of the weekend.

Both these boys are first year Under 17’s and will be back next year stronger and more experienced.

Meanwhile Alyson Bell was attempting to win her second medal of the weekend in the Under 15 Girls 200 Metres cruising through her heat in 26.34 seconds and going straight through to the final as many girls did not start due to the weather.

The final was run when the rain was at its worst.
Alyson looked a little jaded from her exertions yesterday but with her usual strong finish clawed her way back into contention. She was making ground and gaining places but the line came too soon and she had to settle for another Giffnock 4th place !!

Thanks Craig for keeping us up to date from a soggy Bedford.”

Great efforts from all 3 of our talented athletes just missing the Podium today at this prestigious competition.And well done Alyson returning home with yesterday’s 100m

Bronze.

A reminder that the Club Track & Field Championships will take place on:

Sunday 23rd September at the Ayrshire Arena ,Kilmarnock

The events timetable can be downloaded here

All details and link for online entries can be found here

Please make every effort to support this Club event.

Closing date for entries is 9th September

All photos courtesy of Bobby Gavin and Scottish Athletics

Report from Craig Fotherigham

The Age group Championships were held in Aberdeen this weekend and those who ventured North on day one were welcomed with a warm day , sunny spells and a moderate breeze.

Our first Girls on the track were Katie Foss and Sophie Haldane who cruised through to the final of the Under 20 Women’s 400 Metres.
They returned for the final later in the day and strong running by Sophie looked to have won her the Gold but Katie had not yet lost belief. She found some extra strength down the home straight and clawed her way back to Sophie. The line eventually came for both girls and it was too close too call. Rather remarkably they were inseparable on the photo finish and both were awarded Gold medals.

Meanwhile Daniel Martin had lived up to his top seeding in the Under 13 Boys Shot Putt taking Gold with 9.54 Metres.

He returned to the track and grabbed his second Gold with a dominant run in the Boys 75 Metre Hurdles setting a new PB of 12.15 seconds.

Over at the high Jump , Murray Fotheringham was stepping up an age group to compete at Under 20 ‘s after his triumph at the Under 17 championships last week. Another confident performance gave the 15 year old a remarkable Gold with a new Giffnock Record of 2:03 Metres.

Erin Campbell grabbed another Gold for Giffnock in the Women’s Sprint Hurdles.

It’s not all about winning medals and lots of our athletes have their all in search of PB performances.

In the Under 13 Boys , first year Ryan Davie just failed at a new PB and came 4th – losing a bronze by the narrowest of margins on countback. He also gave Javelin a go but needs at bit more training in that event.

David Lees was 4th in the Under 20 Men’s Shot Putt but was a bit below par in the discus.

Emily Watson reached the final of the Under 13 Girls Sprint Hurdles finishing in a very creditable 5th place. She also competed in the Javelin placing 7th.

Kyle McLean in his first year as an Under 20 put in a great performance to reach the final.

Tuscany Wright battled through her pre-race nerves to produce a huge PB in the Under 13 Girls 800 Metres, breaking 2:50 for the first time. She was just ahead of Abigail Flower who came home in 2:53 and also gave High Jump a go.

Thansk Craig for reporting from Aberdeen

On Day 2 Giffnock Medallists included
Sophie Haldane took her 2nd Gold medal of the weekend in the U20 W 200m. Another race where the same time was given for 1st & 2nd place but the Gold going to Sophie this time.
Kyle Mclean took Silver in the U20 M 200m
David Lees with Bronze in U20 Javelin
Isla Fotheringham with Gold in the U15G Pole Vault
Ross O’Brien with Silver in the U15, 1500m
Jennifer Dallas with Bronze in the U15 G Shot Putt

Congratulations to all our athletes who travelled to Aberdeen , those above medalled, all those who made Finals , narrowly missed the podium or bettered their PBs. Hope we haven’t missed anyone out over the 2 days.

LIVINGSTON CE & MILE CHAMPIONSHIPS

Sunday 5 August 2018

Daniel Martin

A decent day was had for four of Giffnock North’s  Multi-eventers yesterday at Craigswood for Livingston AC’s Combined Events and Mile Championships. This event has been running since 2015 and has seen increased popularity each year both with numbers of entrants and with some excellent athletic  competition.  Despite a cancellation last year it was well subscribed on its’ return to the calendar.  Another valuable feature of this event is its’ U11 Quadrathlon competitons for boys and girls which had over 25 competitors on the day giving many of them a first competition experience and a fun taste of the Multi event discipline.

Giffnock had one representative here – U11 Girl  Aneesah King Oubacha who did herself proud with some PBs and a meritable 406 points finishing in 12^th position.  A big well done Aneesah!

In the U13 Girls event Emily Watson having just returned from a holiday managed a PB in her outdoor Pentathlon total of 1725 points finishing in 7^th position with event  PBs  also in Shot and 800m. This consolidates her Pentathlon Scottish ranking at 11^th place for 2018. There were 21 competitors in this competition on the day.

In the U17 Girls event Rachel Callan earned a Bronze with 2482 points and a big Shot Putt PB by 28cm. Rachel had other praiseworthy personal performances on the day in High Jump and 800m which were close to PBs.

Finally in the U13 Boys Daniel Martin made up for recent bad luck in the two Scottish National Combined events championships this year by claiming Gold in this one over 14 other athletes with the 2^nd Best score in the UK (1719 points) for 2018.  No PBs unfortunately, which was of some irritation to him but bodes well for the North East Counties CE championships in Gateshead in late September, which he hopes to compete well in before he moves up to the U15 age group.  This was Daniel’s second Pentathlon win this year after also winning the Lee Valley Indoor CE Championships in London back in March.

Results from all these competitions yesterday are available here.

https://www.livingstonac.com/live/

Report by Brian Martin

Congratulations to the following Giffnock North athletes on their selection for the upcoming Celtic Games at Grangemouth on the 4th August.

Scottish Athletics report and full team

Murray Fotheringham

Reuben Nairne

Alyson Bell

Ross O’Brien

Two Giffnock North athletes put in stella performances for Scotland at the recent Welsh u20 International in Swansea.

Chis Mackay, jumping against high ranked opposition, pulled out a new pb of 2.03m to take the win.

Alessandro Schenini, competing as a guest, matched fellow Scot Calum Henderson, both athletes jumping 7.29m beating the recently crowned English Schools Champion, Shandell Taylor.

Scottish Athletics report

At the weekend Giffnock athletes were competing on both World and National stages.

In Tampere, Finland, Erin Wallace was flying the flag in the World u20 Championships. Erin put in a magnificent two race shift in the 1500m. In Fridays heat she easily qualified for the final in third place in a time of 4.21.60. In a very tough final Erin ran a very good tactical race clocking 4.17.61 for 7th place. She was first Brit and third European. The race was won by Alemaz Samuel of Ethiopia in 4.09.67. 7th in the world a fantastic performance.

Interview with Erin after the race.

In London Neil Gourley accepted his first senior GB&NI vest at the inaugural Athletics World Cup. Neil, also competing in the 1500m, stormed the last 200m to take the bronze medal and 6 points for the team. The race initially slow and tactical, worked in favour of Poland’s Marcin Lewandowski as he took the win.

‘I came into this knowing that this was my first senior international event and I wanted a lot more,’ said Neil, who recorded 3.53.24, with the race won at 3.52.88.

‘Some people thought that it was unrealistic to win but I really was going in there to win it. That’s got to be your attitude every time. But I can’t really complain. It was one hell of an experience and I am just excited about having the opportunity to do it.

‘I thrive in this environment and if someone else is depending on me then I want it so much more. I hope I did my bit knowing the team was depending on me.’

Neil’s race (Polish commentary)

Back in Scotland it was the Masters and Combined Events Championships at Grangemouth.

Angela Kelly did the 100m & 200m double in the W55 category taking gold in both, in times of 15.16 & 33.07 respectively.

Colin Wylie was also in good form taking the bronze medal in the M45 400m, his time of 60.89, a new club record.

In the u17 Men’s Decathlon, Murray Fotheringham was in the wars. Despite injuring himself in the warm up and limping through the hurdles, he threw a pb in the Discus and still managed to complete the event. Murray accumulated 5886 points, a new club record , and took the Silver medal. The winner was Scott Brindly of North Ayrshire AC.

As reported by Billy Glasgow “a great day was had by all, 8 medals and 2 new club records to boot. Well done to all those who competed.”
Medallists highlighted but good performances from all our athletes

U13 Girls 4 X 100m Final
1 Giffnock North AC ‘A’ 58.09
1) #257 Josie Reilly 2) #258 Angelica Mayer
3) #259 Kate Seenan 4) #260 Emily Watson
7 Giffnock North AC ‘B’ 1:01.65
1) #261 Erin mcKay 2) #262 Natasha Tallen
3) #263 Eliza Turner 4) #264 Emma Gilmour

U13 Boys 4 X 100m Final
1 Giffnock North AC ‘A’ 53.89
1) #225 Ryan Davie 2) #226 Daniel Martin
3) #227 Craig Shennan 4) #228 Josh Thielan-Mann
U17 Women’s 4 X 100m Final
2 Giffnock North AC ‘A’ 50.94
1) #385 Carly Miller 2) #386 Rachel Callan
3) #387 Rosie McKay 4) #388 Katie Foss
U17 Men’s 4 X 100m Final
4 Giffnock North AC ‘A’ 47.47
1) #357 Jake Vulcan 100 2) #358 Finlay Waugh
3) #359 Murray Fotheringham 100 4) #360 Nathan McNee 100
Sen Women’s 4 X 100m Final
2 Giffnock North AC ‘A’ 50.46 New Club Record
1) #505 Erin Campbell 2) #506 Niamh Grahame
3) #507 Holly Shearer 4) #508 Rhea Campbell
Sen Men’s 4 X 100m Final
1 Giffnock North AC ‘A’ 43.46 New Club Record
1) #441 Andy Moses 2) #442 Calum McWilliams
3) #443 Russel Lawson 4) #444 Kyle Mclean
U15 Girls 4 X 300m Final
2 Giffnock North AC ‘A’ 3:06.60 F
1) #345 Isla Scott 2) #346 Brooke Moran
3) #347 Lauren Agnew 4) #348 348 MacConnell
U17 Women’s 4 X 300m Final
2 Giffnock North AC ‘A’ 2:49.35
1) #417 Rachel Callan 300 2) #418 Eva Blues
3) #419 Orla Lang 4) #420 Katie Foss
U17 Men’s 4 X 400m Final
2 Giffnock North AC ‘A’ 4:00.71 M
1) #369 Murray Fotheringham 2) #370 Donald MacLean
3) #371 Nathan McNee 4) #372 Jake Vulcan

Following the initial announcement of the trip to the Gothenburg Youth Games in Sweden in 2019.  The Standards required for each event are now available.

Please note, javelin, discus and hammer standards are set by the organisers and detailed on the pdf link.

We expect all athletes to compete in at least two events in Gothenburg and should achieve, or be close to standard in any two events on this list.

The standards should be achieved from 1 January 2018 and the last event to be taken into consideration will be the club championships on 23 September – so make sure you get your entry in on time!!

We will be expecting athletes to achieve (or be very close) to the published time/distance/height in two of the events listed. These may not necessarily be the events they would compete in at the games due to differences in specifications in Sweden.

U13 athletes – if you are unsure if you are eligible to attend (you must be in your second competitive year as an U13 this season), please check with your coach.

Again we would remind all athletes that achieving two standards is not a guarantee of selection and even if you don’t quite get both, we will be looking at commitment, attendance at training and turning out to compete for the club.

If you have any questions at all, please email Jackie Alexander.

The initial letter and the standards can now be found on the Gothenburg 2019 page which can also be access from the main website menu.

Gothenburg 2019 – Standards

Thurs Night Sessions-July/Aug/Sept now on website.

JulyAugSept2018

Cheers,

Billy C

Well done all those that took part.

Apologies to Steve and athletes for the delay in posting this
It’s been busy at the club with news but it is also important to record the achievements of our U12s in Perth.

Thanks to Gerry Duggan for this report

Another round of brilliant personal performances at the Men’s League today. Despite the limited number athletes and events in which we are able to compete, we were lying 5th with only the discus and relay to be scored. The finalised result will be forwarded as soon as they are available

We had a great day in the jumps. Not only did Sam Young PB in both the HJ (1.88) and TJ (11.88), he offered tremendous support to his team mate Calum Rogers (first outdoor competition this season) who added a remarkable 10cm to his PB at 1.70. Not to be outdone, Neil Hutchison jumped a Seasons Best with 5.69. Unfortunately Calum twisted his knee in the TJ. We all wish you a speedy recovery.

In the throws, Neil Hutchison was in great form throwing Seasons Best in both the SP and Javelin with 8.83 and 36.42 respectively. We are sure he would have been able to do the same in the discuss, but he had miss his final throw to take part in the relay.

Our runners also put on a good show. Andrew Robertson shaved his 800m PB down to 2.08:07 and Luke Nelson lopped over 10 secs of his PB, down to 2.21:39. In the 1500 Greg Turner ran a Seasons Best at 4:15.42 and Ethan Carolan put in a never say die performance to snatch 2nd place on the line in the B race in 4:21.86. Greg went on to run the 5000 to secure vital points for the team.

A change of clothing brought on another PB in the one lap race. Ditching his side split middle distance shorts for sprinters Lycra, Eoghan O’Donnell took his 400m PB down to 54.88. Lewis Mitchell was a true team performer, getting round his 400m despite feeling unwell.

And then the relays.

Our 4×100 team of Neil (who had just come off the discuss pit), Greg (who had just finished a 5000), Lewis (who was still feeling terrible) and Luke ( a self-confessed 10,000m runner) did a remarkable job in getting the baton round final time and position to be confirmed

Our 4×400 team (Eoghan, Ethan, Andrew and Sam) put in a remarkable performance to finish 4th.

While everyone did a great job , the backbone of the today’s team was U17 – Andrew Robertson, Luke Nelson, Ethan Carolan, Eogahn O’Donnell, Lewis Mitchell, Calum Rogers and Sam Young. I can’t praise their enthusiasm, team spririt and sheer gutsy performances highly enough. (Greg Turner and Neil Hutchison wish they were still U17!)

A word of thanks to our officials – Graham Dunn, Garry Paterson and Danny O’Donnell. Without your help and support it would not be possible to run these events. Graham Dunn, a proud Englishman, sacrificed watching the Panama World Cup match live today to be with us at Grangemouth today.

The attached picture shows todays squad and officials, minus Greg Turner (curled up in a corner somewhere after a 1500, 5000 and 4×100 in quick succession), Graham Dunn (racing away to watch the England game on Catch-up TV before anyone told him the result), Calum Rogers (already back home with his knee on ice) and Team Manager Gerry Duggan (behind the camera).

Well done all

Also, in a guest 800m race Neil Gourley was just edged into second place by Chris O’Hare, only 200th of second separating them.

News item from Jackie Alexander

Following a very successful team visit to Gothenburg in 2017, the coaches and adults have recovered sufficiently to start mentioning the ‘G’ word again!! (For those of you unfamiliar with the event, please see the links at the bottom of the page).

We have secured funding from the club to assist with costs and have decided to undertake a second visit to the games in 2019.

The 2019 games will be held 28,29 & 30 June and we would be proposing to use similar travelling arrangements to those from 2017. This means we would be away from Thursday 27 June to Monday 1 July.

The cost will be £600 per athlete and this includes all flights and transfers from Glasgow to Gothenburg, hotel accommodation (shared twin rooms) for 4 nights and meals from Thursday evening meal to Monday breakfast, event kit and event entry fees. Last time, parents set up a fundraising committee and managed to reduce the cost for each athlete by £150 so I would suggest this would be something to consider this time once the team is announced.

We will be circulating a set of standards for the various events which we would be expecting athletes to achieve (or be very close to) if they wish to be selected. The deadline for standards is the end of September 2018. There are plenty open graded meetings, national championships and of course, the club champs, to enter to achieve the necessary times and distances. We will be looking for athletes to achieve at least two event standards as they will have to compete in a minimum of two events when on the trip. Throws standards are the only ones set by the organisers.

Selection will not be guaranteed even if the standards have been reached, we will take into account attendance and commitment at training and we would also be looking for athletes who have competed for the club over the season.

I would be grateful if you could advise at this stage if your athlete would be interested in being considered for the trip. This is not a firm commitment nor is it a guarantee of a place but gives me an indication of the numbers we are looking at, to allow me to ensure we will have enough coaches and adult helpers willing to accompany the team. Please email me by Friday 13 July to express interest.

Please note we have a lower age restriction on athletes being considered – all athletes will have to be U15 or above next competitive season. This means that only U13 athletes who are second year U13s can be considered. If your athlete moved up from U11 at the start of the indoor competition season 17-18, they are too young to attend.

I’ve attached the website report from the last trip to give an idea of what we got up to and also the link to this year’s event. If you have any questions, please contact either Sara Lang or me and we’ll try to help.

Jackie Alexander

email addresses for Jackie and Sara:

jackie.alexander1@btinternet.com & sararusselllang@btinternet.com

Event info at –

http://www.vuspel.se/pdf/VUinbj18eng.pdf

Report from the 2017 trip

https://www.giffnocknorth.co.uk/gothenburg-trip-gets-the-thumbs-up/

Report by Croy Thomson

GIFFNOCK NORTH AC athletes enjoyed success last weekend, in three different countries.

In England, at the always deeply competitive Athletics England U20 and U23 Championships in Bedford, Erin Wallace claimed not only a fine 1500 metre silver in four minutes, 29.82 seconds, but puts her in a strong position for selection for the GB Team for the World Junior Championships in Finland next month. Also winning silver was U23 sprinter Jenna Wrisberg with a hard-fought 11.78 seconds effort in the 100 metres.

Coming home with well-won bronzes were long jumpers Alessandro Schenini (U20 7.25 metres) and Rachel Alexander (U23 5.89 metres).

In the mountains of Italy, hill runners Lynn McKenna and Rhona Mowat represented Scotland at the International Youth Cup, McKenna in particular hitting the heights with an excellent ninth place finish.

Much more locally, at the Brian Goodwin Memorial 10k hosted by Bellahouston Harriers, Luke Traynor continued recent excellent form by winning in a new course record 28 minutes 31 seconds. The performance makes Luke the third-fastest Scot all-time over the distance on the roads.

Ike Okongwu, Rory Taylor Young, Alfie Bradley

Erin Mckay, Emily Williams, Lucy Cree & Cara Weir

Hannah Sluman

Kirsty Adam, Hannah Turnbull

U12 Medal Winners

U11s Training group

Angus Weir & Rose Costello

The U12 athletes’ success at the Greenock Invitational Competition on Sunday 3rd June was rewarded with a visit from Luke Traynor to the U11 Session at Eastwood on Tuesday night.  The Girls  Teams took 1st  as pictured

2nd Team members were Katy Donnelly, Eve Greene,  Madeleine MacKenzie & Hannah Sluman, 3rd Team was  Leilani Spelman Ikedashi & Emilia Hickey Fugaccia  along with Hannah Turnbull & Kirsty Adam as pictured .The boys were Joint 1st with Kilbarchan as pictured but without  Logan Johnstone.

Our 8 year old Team also triumphed. [ Beatrice Nairne and Mara Phillips were the other Team members]

Luke  kindly interrupted his 2nd training session of the day to present the medals and talk to the young athletes and answer some of their questions.  Thanks again Luke . The athletes and parents really appreciated you taking the time to do this. A great reward for their efforts . We would like to underline our appreciation and thanks to Janice Hendrie and Gerry Gaffney and all at Inverclyde AC for organising and hosting this event for U12s.

Rhona Mowat

Lynn McKenna

Alessandro Schenini

Rachel Alexander

Erin Wallace

Adam Clayton

Jenna Wrisberg

Best wishes go to many of our athletes for this weekend’s endeavours . It’s getting hard to keep up with them all. We have Lynn McKenna and Rhona  Mowat heading for Italy for the Mountain Running Championships. And our YDL Team heading to Scotstoun for Match 3 .

We have Erin Wallace , Adam Clayton, Alessandro Schenini  Jenna Wrisberg and Rachel Alexander heading for Bedford for the AAA  U23 &U20 Championships with important European Trial selections as part of these.

And we have 4 teams heading to Perth for the Super Teams

Report from Gerry Duggan
RESULTS for Mens League Match2, Aberdeen- **WE ARE ON THE WAY UP**

Fantastic result from Sunday despite one or two calls due to a very busy weekend, we finished a very creditable 4th overall and were only 1 point off finishing third(results still subject to scrutiny)

”Thanks to all for some brilliant performances and another magnificent team spirit on the day. In Match 1 we were 6th, Match 2 we were fourth. The momentum is with us, with a full squad to cover all the disciplines we will surely be contenders for Match 3 at Grangemouth on 24^th of June. Look out for “call-up” papers coming out this week”

Once again well done to all who competed.

Gerry as Team Manager  is rightly delighted with the efforts of our athletes in the Men’s league and looking forward to the next match.

We will  need some team and some action photos . Well done to all the Athletes !

Alexander Young, Andrew Robertson, Calum McWilliam, David Lees, Donald MacLean, Eoghan O’Donnell, Ethan Carolan, Greg Turner, Kieran Killen, Lewis Mitchell, Neil Hutchison, Calum Rogers,   

A further reminder that this year’s Club Track & Field Championship will be held at the Ayrshire Athletics Arena, Kilmarnock on Sunday 23rd September.  Please put this date in your diaries and make every effort to support it.  Further details will be posted nearer the event.

A reminder that our Summer Athletics Camps are still open for bookings and details can be found here

East Ren Sports Facility Consultation

To all our ERC Athletes, Parents,Coaches, Officials, Supporters
You may be aware that East Renfrewshire Council recently published proposals regarding future options for developing leisure and recreational facilities in the area. As one of the largest sports clubs in the area, we are keen to draw this consultation to the attention of our members and would encourage you to review and provide any feedback to the Council through the survey on their web page. We have provided a link below:

https://getinvolved.eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk/erc/eastwoodleisure/

Whilst none of the options set out in the current proposals make any specific reference to provision of athletics facilities, there is the option for you to provide additional feedback in the ‘Comments’ section.
The consultation period closes on 19 June.

We would encourage members of the club who are ERC Residents to discuss and participate in this important consultation. Track facilities are available to us in the area at both Eastwood and Williamwood [and outwith East Ren we also use Hutchesons’ School Track , Emirates Arena , Scotstoun , Tollcross and JWC in East Kilbride] but the lack of a competition standard track has often been highlighted by the club and at times difficult or insufficient Indoor Training access in the winter months to the Emirates Arena due to other demands . Our facilities sub group will be interested in any input to our Club submission to the consultation . Contact via coaches or Helen Nairne

The 26th Giffnock North Festival of Running took place on Thursday 7th June which was a gloriously sunny day, well almost. This year’s event included 1k fun runs for primary school age children and the introduction of a new 2.5k event ,”To the Pond & Beyond” (I can hear Buzz Lightyear shouting it now !) This event is for Secondary School age children representing their school, the School with the most finishers being award £500 to go to the charity of their choice. Lastly, the big event, the Rouken Glen 10k, run in and around the glorious Rouken Glen Park.

In attendance at this year’s Festival were two of Giffnock’s Great Britain Internationals, Erin Wallace and Luke Traynor, many thanks to them for presenting prizes and giving encouragement to all the youngsters.

Primary School 1k Fun Runs
The winners in the 1k Fun Run were Katy Donnelly for Shawlands Primary in the girls, run and Calan Chong for Mearns Primary in the boys run.

To the Pond and & Beyond
In the 2.5k “To the Pond & Beyond” the Girls race was won by Hannah Ryding (St Ninians) in a time of 09.06 minutes. In second place, also from St Ninians, was Kate Paul in 10.03. Third place went to Miriam Gilbride (Mearns Castle) in 10.35.

Ian McMoneagle, Giffnock North AC Club Treasurer presents the £500 charity cheque to St Ninians HS

Kate Paul, Hannah Ryding, Miriam Gilbride

Aaron McGillivray, Matthew Donegan

The boy’s race was a much closer affair with Aaron McGillivray (St Ninians) finishing first in a time of 09.28, second was Matthew Donegan, (Lourdes Secondary) in 09.38. Third was Adam Chamberlain of Williamwood High School in 09.41.

Both boys and Girls team prizes went to St Ninians HS .
St NInians also won the £500 charity prize for the most finishers.

Girls Full Results
Boys Full Results

Giffnock North AC Rouken Glen 10k
To cool the runners off, the Rouken Glen 10k started in light rain, but fortunately didn’t last long.
First across the line was Iain Reid (V35) of Cambuslang Harriers, who is no stranger to this race, having won it three times now, his time 32.54. In second place was Jack Arnold (Sen) of Bellahouston Harriers in 33.18. Third was Andy Bonner (Sen) of Giffnock North AC in 34.58.

First lady to cross the line, for the second year in a row, was Ruth Fraser-Moodie of Springburn Harriers.  Ruth finished in 25th place in a time of 39.10.  Second was Skye Dick  in 27th place, time 39.20.  Third place went to Giffnock North athlete Jill Smylie in 39.29 in 30th place.
First over 50 man to finish was Ted Gourley (Giffnock North) in 13th place in a time of 37.52. First over 50 lady was Angel Carson (Bellahouston Harriers) who clocked a time of 46.44 .
In the under 20 category, Rhona Mowat was first lady to finish in 37th place in a time of 40.03. For the men Alastair McKenzie was first under 20 home in 45.29.

Congratulations to all finishers.

Many thanks to the Organising Committee, and all who officiated, marshalled, photographed and helped in any capacity. You all contributed to a very successful evening of racing for all ages and abilities. See you all next year.

Rouken Glen 10k Full Results

More Photographs courtesy of Alan Stewart