With the school holidays having already started, we headed to the final fixture with a depleted team, approximately 40% down on previous matches, reports Bridie Lebdiri. It was probably much the same for the other clubs, with noticeably fewer non-scoring numbers turning out.
Our athletes did themselves proud and we finished third on the day behind Highgate and Shaftesbury. Better still, this was enough to move up from fourth to a very satisfactory third in the final League standing for 2018.
Phoenix, Dylan & Jarnail
U11 boys
We certainly missed many of our enthusiastic U11s, but in Dylan, Jarnail and Phoenix we had a great trio of determined young athletes. Between them they competed in eight events, contributing well to the points tally. Eight-year-old Phoenix and 10-year-old Jarnail even stepped up to help out in the U13 boys’ relay! Remarkably these three young athletes scored enough points to put ESM third in this age category.
U11 girls
For the girls, Mirabelle Steel, Elizabeth Boissiere and Hana Proudmore found themselves stepping up to the A string in their events. They coped well and all three have improved their technique since the beginning of the season.
Eden Lyons & Ellis Kahan-Noel
U13 boys
We only had four athletes in this age group but managed to cover the events very well, thanks to the combined efforts of sprinters Tyler Offiah and Theo Jarrett, and throwers Eden Lyons and Ellis Kahan-Noel.
Theo, recovering from a fractured wrist, stormed around the bend in the 200 m A string to a comfortable win. Tyler was equally impressive and ran a controlled race, holding his form in the closing stages to finish second in the B string. He also competed in the long jump.
Ellis and Eden did very well in the throws, with second places in both the A and B string shot putt. Ellis was also third in the javelin A string, with Eden finishing second in the B String.
Tyler Offiah
Tyler ran a very strong second leg in the relay, giving our U11 Jarnail the best possible chance. Tactics on my part played a part too! Jarnail stood well into the (now) 30m changeover zone, meaning he effectively had the shortest leg. He handed over to Theo in fourth place, and Theo ran like lightening down the home straight to grab third spot on the line. A huge cheer followed from team ESM!
U13 girls
We had six athletes in this age group and between them they covered 10 events, finishing third in their age category. With the absence of Tia and Rakaya, it was left to Anika McDowell to fly the flag in the A string 200m. Anika has continued to improve all season and ran a superb race to win the A string – no-one more surprised than herself!
Mia de Vivenot competed in the A string 800m, javelin and long jump, finishing second in the latter. Katherine Boissiere (the veteran of the group) won the B string long jump, finished second in the A string 70m hurdles and also competed in the shot putt. Baljit Kaur tried javelin for the first time and won the B string. She also competed in the shot putt.
Sonia Ouzhene
Olivia Grigg and Sonia Ouzhene have only recently joined the middle distance squad and continue to improve with each race. Olivia ran a determined race and did very well to finish third in the B string 800m. Sonia ran in the non-scoring event and finished stronger this time round.
In the 4x100m Anika, Mia, Katherine and Baljit finished second.
U15 boys
We had a good turnout of 10 athletes in this age group, a mix of the very strong 14 year olds and younger boys, many just turned 13. It is a difficult transition for the younger athletes, coming up from the U13 age group.
Tristan Collins-Marsh has been prominent in the sprints all season and on Sunday he finished third in both the A string100m and 200m.
Seweryn Czapka has certainly had a great season, reducing his 800m time by 13 seconds. On Sunday he showed his natural speed and strength by finishing second in the B string 100m and winning the A string shot putt. His main event of the day was the 1500m. Seweryn paid the price of going off slightly too fast, and finished second. When not competing, he was very helpful in helping our young U11s warm up for the 800m.
Marcus West has always been a very promising young athlete and will admit that training can be hit and miss. He showed very good pace judgement in the 1500m, finishing not far behind Seweryn and so winning the B string in a respectable 4:36.47. Inspired by Seweryn, he now hopes to up his training this winter.
Vitaly Bender has been reliable all season and continues to improve over the middle distances. He won the non-scoring 1500m and teamed up with Seweryn to win the B string shot putt.
Hussein Zaaiter & Maxi Steel tackle the discus
Maxi Steel and Hussein Zaaiter are among our younger U15s. Maxi won the A string discus, while Hussein was third in the B string. Hussein finished with a PB in the non-scoring 1500m.
Finn Combe was second in the non-scoring 1500m. Marco Lamagna also competed in the non-scoring 1500m. Thomas Musie – still only 12 – finished with a PB in the non-scoring 1500m.
Tristan, Seweryn, Marcus and Finn got the baton around safely to finish second in the 4x100m relay.
U15 girls
We also had six girls in this category, and again they held that third position. This particular age group has had a busy few weeks, with school trips, other sports commitments and Lucy even being called up for the QPR U14s! Most of them are still not in specialist training for athletics, but doing the multi sports gives them a broad fitness/agility base. It also takes the pressure off and at an age when some drop out, I think this helps to maintain the naivety and so the enjoyment.
Josie Booker
Josie Booker finished second in the A string 75m hurdles and also competed in the long jump and 200m. Lucy Henson covered the 800m and teamed up with Josie for the long jump.
The third of this reliable trio, Athena Fremantle, competed well in the high jump.
Kiara Jayalath competed in the 100m and 200m. Nynka Rumley competed in the 100m and finished third in the B string shot putt and A string discus. Newcomer Danielle Mitchell showed promise by finishing third in the B string shot putt and second in the B string discus.
U17 Women
Miriam & Olamide
We are always grateful when the U17s turn out, as they have so many other competitions. The four athletes scored enough points to hold the third position.
Maya Faulkner was in fine form, winning both the A string 100m and 200m and finishing second in the A string long jump. Olamide Belewu wasn’t far behind winning the B strings of both sprints. Charlotte Clooney-Quinn competed well over the 800m. Miriam Abdelgader competed in the non-scoring 100m.
U17 Men
Amar Bhogal showed much improvement, according to coach Tim Hannah and gained valuable points in the sprints. Matteo Lamagna tackled the 1500m, and did well to finish, showing signs of dehydration. Fortunately, he recovered quickly after having something to eat and drink.
Click here to find more photos on the ESM Facebook page.
Well done to all our athletes this season and a big thank you to all the coaches, officials and parents.
A big thank you to John, who does so much behind the scene to ensure the smooth running of the MYAL and to Tim, always on hand to drive the minibus.
Match scores
1 Highgate 1136; 2 Shaftesbury Barnet 1047; 3 Ealing Southall & Middlesex 791; 4 London Heathside 602; 5 Cookham 555; 6 Barnet & District 542; 7 Trent Park 438; 8 Queens Park 272; 9 Serpentine 182; 10 Enfield & Haringey 177
ESM results summary
U11G
150m: A: 5 Mirabelle Steel 26.97; B: 7 Elizabeth Boissiere 26.77; 800m: A: 8 Hana Proudmore 3:09.95; B: 6 Mirabelle Steel 3:15.81; LJ: A: 8 Mirabelle Steel 2.78; B: 5 Elizabeth Boissiere 2.51; VT: 4 Elizabeth Boissiere 17.70
U11B
150m: A: 2 Phoenix Offiah 22.69; B: 5 Dylan Khurana 28.31; NS: 5 Jarnail Singh 25.99; 800m: 8 Dylan Khurana 3:18.90; LJ: A: 4 Phoenix Offiah 3.36; B: 6 Dylan Khurana 2.41; VT: 6 Jarnail Singh 21.28
U13G
200m: 1 Anika McDowell 32.03; 800m: A: 6 Mia de Vivenot 2:47.20; B: 3 Olivia Grigg 2:53.91; NS: 5 Sonia Ouzhene 3:00.45; 70Mh: 2 Katharine Boissiere 13.73; LJ: A: 2 Mia de Vivenot 3.61; B: 1 Katharine Boissiere 3.46; SP: A: 6 Katharine Boissiere 4.34; B: 4 Baljit Kaur 3.25; JT: A: 3 Mia de Vivenot 12.67; B: 1 Baljit Kaur 7.70; 2 63.34
U13B
200m: A: 1 Theo Jarrett 27.84; B: 2 Tyler Offiah 28.96; SP: A: 2 Ellis Kahan-Noel 7.54; B: 2 Eden Lyons 4.79; JT: A: 3 Ellis Kahan-Noel 27.90; B: 2 Eden Lyons 15.27; 4x100m: 3 60.47
U15G
100m: A: 4 Nynke Rumley 14.77; B: 3 Kiara Jayalath 15.21; 200m: A: 4 Kiara Jayalath 30.32; B: 6 Josie Booker 31.18; 800m: 6 Lucy Henson 2:38.38; 75mH: 2 Josie Booker 14.81; LJ: A: 5 Josie Booker 3.60; B: 3 Lucy Henson 3.55; HJ: 5 Athena Fremantle 1.20; SP: A: 3 Danielle Mitchell 6.59; B: 3 Nynke Rumley 6.57; DT; A: 3 Nynke Rumley 14.66; B: 2 Danielle Mitchell 14.64
U15B
100m: A: 3 Tristan Collins-Marsh 12.16; B: 2 Seweryn Czapka 12.83; 200m: 3 Tristan Collins-Marsh 24.55; 1500m: A: 2 Seweryn Czapka 4:32.11; B: 1 Marcus West 4:36.47; NS: 1 Vitaly Bender 4:49.14; 2 Finn Combe 4:58.29; 7 Matteo Lamagna 5:50.94; 8 Hussein Zaaiter 5:54.18; 9 Thomas Musie 5:59.96 SP: A: 1 Seweryn Czapka 9.03; B: 1 Vitaly Bender 5.09; DT: A: 3 Hussein Zaaiter 11.71; B: 1 Maxi Steel 10.86; 4x100m: 2 51.09
U17W
100m: A: 1 Maya Faulkner 13.35; B: 2 Olamide Belewu 13.58; NS: 1 Miriam Abdelgader 14.71; 200m: A: 1 Maya Faulkner 27.79; B: 2 Olamide Belewu 28.38; 800m: 5 Charlotte Cooney-Quinn 2:43.60; LJ: 2 Maya Faulkner 4.20; 4x100m: 1 56.31
U17M
100m: 4 Amar Bhogal 12.63; 200m: 5 Amar Bhogal 26.30; 1500m: 6 Matteo Lamagna 5:41.90; JT: 4 Amar Bhogal 18.09
Full results on powerof10.