Since their 3rd place finish at the Salisbury 10 back in March, the Bournemouth AC men had known that in order to gain promotion to the top division of the Hampshire Road Race League they had to get a result in each of the last four races. In fact, to all intents and purposes, they needed to win them. It seemed like a tall order and the pressure was on, but they calmly set about working towards that goal.

A win at the Alton 10 put them on track and then another victory at the Netley 10k gave them renewed belief. Coming out on top at the Alresford 10k had put promotion firmly in their grasp and had edged them to within touching distance of Farnham Runners. It transpired that a 5th place in the final fixture would be enough to see them take top sport in the Second Division. They didn’t want to do it that way though. They wanted to end the season on a high with their fourth consecutive win of the season, at the Lordshill 10k.

Their chances of doing that were bolstered by the inclusion of last year’s Lordshill 10k race winner Rob McTaggart. He was in good form as well, comfortably winning the Purbeck 10k three weeks prior. He then went on to run a 15:53.89 at the Finsbury Park 5000s the following weekend.

Tag had only competed in one of the Hampshire Road League events this season and that was the Stubbington 10k back in January. The season before he’d done several races which helped them get the best score in numerous fixtures. This year they’d had to do it without him though which had proved more difficult but they still had enough strength in the ranks to be the best of the Division Two sides.

The only one of the Bournemouth AC members who would manage to reach the magic number of seven which is required to figure high up in the individual standings was Rich Brawn. The Lordshill 10k was going to be his seventh race so it had worked out quite well for him. He’d finished 11th in the final listings last season so after Lordshill he’d be able to assess how his season had gone by comparison.

Proving his dedication to the cause, Rich had done the double header of the Purbeck 10k and Alresford 10k three weeks prior, along with Stu Nicholas, Adrian James and Katie Gunn. Stu was on duty at the Round the Rock 10k on the same day as the Lordshill 10k but Adrian and Katie were both also featuring at Lordshill.

Katie had finished 3rd female at the Purbeck 10k and 1st female at the Alresford 10k so she’d been having a successful time of late, receiving a couple of trophies, a big hamper and even a County Championship medal.

Finding some good recent form, Barry Dolman ran the Purbeck 10k in 37:18 and improving miraculously over recent months, Ricky Brennan had posted good times at both the Alton 10 and the Alresford 10k. Also running well at the Alton 10 and the Alresford 10k, James Hulbert was back in action at the Lordshill 10k.

Concentrating mostly on 3000 metre track races and parkruns of late, Hugo Richardson had clocked up 17.5 miles in a recent Maverick Dorset race, widening his repertoire to some longer distance exploits. Completing the Round the Lakes 10k in 35:08 last September, Hugo had already demonstrated he had the ability to run a very quick 10k.

Competing for the club in both the Southern and National Road Relays, Dan Trickett also turned out for for the Lordshill 10k, as did Jack Davis who was making his Bournemouth AC debut. Paddy McCalister was competing for the first time since Round the Lakes back in April and Jason Christian was another man making his club debut.

Chris O’Brien, David Crowther and Geoff Newton were also in action and there was even a rare race appearance from BAC Road Runners supremo Rich Nelson, who had rediscovered his running motivation. He’d also competed at the Alresford 10k three weeks earlier.

Starting off with a 5:05 and then a 5:04 split, Rob McTaggart wasn’t messing around. He was setting a pace very few athletes could live with. In fact, it was only James Copeland of Southern Counties Veterans who could match that.

A 5:15 for his third mile and a 5:19 for his fourth mile was enough to put Tag in 2nd place but it was James Copeland who emerged as the front runner. The Lordshill 10k course gets tougher near the end as some energy sapping inclines come into play.

Getting through those last two miles in 5:24 and 5:23, Tag arrived back at the Oasis Academy Lord’s Hill speeding to the finish in a time of 32:38. That was enough to give Tag a solid 2nd place finish, with James Copeland picking up the win in 31:59. Since he wasn’t running for a league club though, that meant maximum points for Tag, for the second year running.

He had quite a gap over David Healey of Lordshill Road Runners who finished 3rd in 33:11. That put him four seconds ahead of this season’s individual men’s table topper Richard Waldron, who came fourth in 33:15. In a system where the winner of the race gets a score of 100, his average score for his seven races was 99.39.

Joshua Price of Isle of Wight Road Runners was 2nd in the men’s individual table with an average score of 99.00. He finished 5th in the Lordshill 10k with a time of of 33:21.

Poole Runners man Rob Arkell, who finished 2nd to Tag at the Purbeck 10k, took 6th place in a time of 34:02. Alton Runners man James Perrett finished 3rd in the men’s individual table for the season and he claimed 7th place at Lordshill in 34:10.

Opening with a 5:19 for his first mile, Hugo Richardson then followed it up with a 5:24 for his second split. He then put in a 5:30 and a 5:32 before tacking the tougher last two miles. Clocking a 5:47 and a 5:45, he then raced back to the school and over the finish line in a time of 34:28.

That was a 40 second PB for Hugo and with an average pace of 5:33, he’d taken 8th place in the overall standings. It was a race that really demonstrated the huge potential Hugo has in a road race environment now he’s old enough to compete in all the different distances.

The next Bournemouth AC member to reach the line was debutant Jack Davis. He’d been impressing in training but it was yet to be seen how he would fare in a race environment. The answer was pretty well. He managed a time of 36:10, putting him in 25th place and giving him an average pace at 5:49. It was a really strong run from Jack and he could be a great asset to the club going forward if he enters more races.

Former Bournemouth AC man Trev Elkins ran well to complete the course in 36:30. He ran superbly for the first four miles but then started to suffer and slow down over the last two. He toughed it out though to record a faster time than he did last year by 30 seconds.

The fourth and final scorer for the Bournemouth AC A team was Dan Trickett. Getting through his first 5k in 17:52, he then recorded an 18:52 for his second 5k, which is of course a lot more hilly. That led to a finishing time of 36:43 which put his average at 5:55. That was good enough for a 32nd place finish.

That meant that Bournemouth AC had one topped the standings in the Second Division for the race itself. They had a far superior score to anyone else in the division, with Liss a distant 2nd.

They weren’t the lowest scoring team in the whole league though. That honour went to Lordshill Road Runners who achieved a great result on their home turf. They had David Healey who was 2nd scorer for the league, Kevin Willsher who came 11th in 34:52, Josh Chivers who was 12th in 34:59 and James Clarke who was 15th in 35:42.

Alton Runners notched up quite a good score as well to finish 2nd in the Men’s First Division with Denmead Striders taking 3rd. Winchester Running Club had the best score out of the Men’s Third Division teams by quite some margin, with Hamwic Harriers taking 2nd.

Struggling to match the form he was in last year, in the equivalent Hampshire League races, Rich Brawn was hoping to see some improvement at Lordshill. He started off okay with a 5:38 for his first split but it didn’t really feel comfortable, it felt forced. He dropped off a bit in the second mile to a 5:52 but it still wasn’t too bad at that stage.

He couldn’t keep the pace going on the third and fourth mile though and just wasn’t feeling strong enough. Then he really laboured over the last two miles and was overtaken by several other runners. Eventually getting to the line in 37:00, Rich finished in 42nd place.

That was 52 seconds slower than the time he managed last year which left him really disappointed and scratching his head over what could have gone wrong to cause this downturn.

The next Bournemouth AC man in was Barry Dolman and he put in an incredibly strong run with really consistent splits to get over the line in 37:06. Even the last two miles where he had to tackle the hills were the same pace as his other splits which takes quite some doing. He was 46th overall and 5th out of 101 in the Male V50 bracket.

Barry’s in training for the Sydney Marathon at the moment so is putting in some good mileage and recorded some quality long training runs which will only make him fitter.

Going through the first 5k in 18:10 which made him 40th fastest, Ricky Brennan then followed that up a 19:13 for his second 5k, which was 63rd best. That meant he’d bagged himself a brilliant new PB of 37:21 and had finished 52nd out of the 757 runners in the field. He was also 14th in the Male Vet 40 category.

Much like Rich, former Bournemouth AC man Sam Jackson had been struggling to get his speed back after the London Marathon. He finished just behind Rich in last year’s Lordshill 10k but this time could only manage 37:54 which put him in 63rd place.

His brother Luke, who also used to run for BAC, reached the line shortly after in 38:10 which put him in 71st place. That was a decent run from Luke and he came in three seconds ahead of Adrian James who was the next Bournemouth AC man over the line.

Going through the first 5k in 18:58, Adrian then managed a 19:19 for the second half which put his finished time at 38:13. With that 72nd place finish, the Bournemouth AC B team‘s scoring four was complete. They were the lowest scoring team in the Men’s B team Second Division, just ahead of the Winchester Running Club B team.

Finishing as 4th female out of 314, Katie Gunn ran well to cross the line in 38:23 which put her in 79th place overall. Her average pace for the run was 6:10 and that was another good result for Katie.

Southampton AC lady Ellie Monks was 1st female, clocking a time of 36:25 which put her 27th overall. Lesley Locks of Aldershot, Farnham & District found the key to a 2nd female finish with her time of 37:16, which put her 49th overall.

Erin Willmers of Winchester Running Club was 3rd female in a time of 38:04 which put her 65th overall and Emma Jolley of City of Portsmouth was the next lady over the line after Katie, coming in nine seconds later to take 82nd place in 38:32.

She finished just behind James Hulbert who was the next Bournemouth AC member in. Registering a time of 38:28, he came 81st place overall. The team had been to the pub to watch the football the night before and James had had a few beers then so he did well to get round in the time he did.

Finishing around two-and-a-half minutes quicker than he ran in the Lordshill 10k last year, Paddy McCalister claimed 86th place in a time of 38:41. His average pace was 6:15 and that was a strong effort from Paddy. Getting through the first 5k in 19:36, he then followed it up with a 19:13 for the second half, giving him a decent negative split.

Reaching the line shortly after Paddy, Jason Christian christened his debut with a 38:49 finish which netted him 88th place overall and 12th in the Male V50 category. His splits were really even and he also managed a negative split, with a 19:38 for his first 5k and a 19:14 for the second half.

Completing the course in 40 minutes and 44 seconds, Chris O’Brien finished 136th overall and was 19th in the Male V50 category. That put his average pace for the run at 6:33. It wasn’t quite as fast as he’d been hoping for and was slightly down on what he produced last year but it was another stepping stone for Chris on the journey toward rediscovering his top gear.

Katie Gunn’s partner Luke Bentley was running as well and he got round in 43:01 which put him in 202nd place overall. His run was very evenly paced, going through the first 5k in 21:36 and the second in 21:33 and his average pace was 6:57.

Recording a time of 44:07, David Crowther was the next Bournemouth AC man over the line. He finished 223rd overall, clocking a 21:28 for his first 5k and a 22:52 for the second half of the race. His average pace for the run was 7:08.

At 79 years of age, Geoff Newton is still going strong and loves to race every weekend. He got round in 52:22 which put him in 445th place overall and 4th out of 16 in the Male Vet 70 category. He went through 5k in 26:36, then upped the ante in the second half to register a 26:06.

Last but not least out of the Bournemouth AC contingent, it was team captain Rich Nelson bringing it home in a time of 52:54. That put him in 451st place and his first 5k was completed in 25:45 and he went on the run 27:10 for the second half. His average pace for the run was 8:31.

It was a season that got off to a great start for Bournemouth AC, with two wins out of two. The next race was the New Forest 10 and that got cancelled due to a flooded course. The club then failed to get a team out for the Hayling 10 and only three of the four men finished at the Gosport Half Marathon.

They won the Victory 5 and the Stubbington 10k before then failing to get a team together for the Ryde 10. That meant they’d already missed four out of the 13 races and they needed nine scoring ones to get the amount of points required for a promotion place. It was getting dicey but they just about managed to scrape a team together for the Salisbury 10 and finished 3rd in that one.

After that they knew they required a win in basically all the rest of their races. They then proceeded to win all four of their last fixtures, giving a total score of 11, in terms of league placings. That was easily enough to finish above Farnham Runners who had topped the table for much of the season.

Farnham Runners still gained promotion though as two teams go up so it will be them and Bournemouth AC in the top flight for the 2024 to 25 season. Itechen Spitfires and Hardley Runners were relegated from the Second Division.

It couldn’t have been much closer in the top division with three teams being tied on 25 league placings at the top of the table. They were Lordshill, Alton Runners and Denmead Striders. It was Lordshill who came out on top on points though in the end so they were confirmed as champions in a dramatic conclusion.

Southampton AC didn’t bother putting out a team for most of the races so they were relegated and in a remarkable fall from grace, last year’s champions Winchester and District AC went down as well. Their club seems to have fractured with many of the runners becoming part of Winchester Running Club instead. Stubbington Green Runners survived in the top division by the skin of their teeth in the end.

Despite missing the first five races, Winchester Running Club still managed to gain promotion from the Third Division, winning all the rest of the their races except the Ryde 10 where they came 2nd. They finished level with Isle of Wight Road Runners on league placings but had a better league points record. Both clubs were promoted though, with New Forest Runners missing out despite being top for much of the season.

Denmead Striders were champions of the Women’s league by one league placing from Lordshill who took 2nd. Hedge End came 3rd. Winchester and District got relegated again after winning it the previous season, like they did in the men’s top division. Stubbington Green Runners went down with them.

Alton Runners finished comfortably top of the Women’s Second Division with Ryde Harriers also gaining promotion by finished 2nd ahead of Portsmouth Joggers. City of Portsmouth and Hardley Runners got relegated to the Third Division.

New Forest Runners topped the standings in the Women’s Third Division, with Winchester Running Club taking 2nd and robbing Victory AC of their chance of promotion. That was after missing the first five fixtures as well.

Lordshill won the Men’s B team First Division, with Fareham taking 2nd and Denmead Striders 3rd. Winchester and District AC finished bottom of that division as well and were relegated with Stubbington Green.

Farnham Runners won the Men’s B team Second Division, with Winchester Running Club finished 2nd. Bournemouth AC only got a B team out for three of the 13 races which put them in 8th place out of 13 teams. Lordshill also won the Men’s C team league and D team league.

Totton were champions of the Women’s B team league, with Gosport and Winchester and District getting relegated from the top flight. Fareham won the Women’s B team Second Division, with Portsmouth Joggers also gaining promotion to Division One. Totton won the Women’s C team league with Lordshill topping the Women’s D team standings.

Rich Brawn finished 12th overall in the Men’s Individual table which wasn’t a bad result for him considering his performances had tailed off toward the end of the season. That was out of 1,160 runners who competed in at least one of the races. Only 136 of them did the required seven or more races though in accordance with the best seven rule.

After starting life in the Third Division, back-to-back promotions have seen the Bournemouth AC men reach the top flight as quickly as they possibly could. They will no doubt be vying for the league title next season. If they can continue in the same vein as they have the last two seasons, they will stand a very chance of claiming the crown they desire and bringing the glory days back to BAC.