SAL - Match 2 report - Hemel Hempstead, June 18th
Sunday 18th June brought the second Southern Athletics League match of the season.
Going into the match we knew that we'd be facing a tough challenge, going up strong teams from hosts Dacorum, London Heathside and Ryston Runners all posting strong results in the first week. Some last minute drop outs due to injuries. illness and family commitments from what was already a very small team meant that we had to improvise a bit, so first of all a huge thank you to everyone who came along and volunteered to cover extra events on the day. A special shout out to Alex who suddenly found himself on the start line of the 800m and 5000m with very little notice.
Given the circumstances, it was clear that we'd struggle to compete for a place high up the ranking on the day but it was still great to see everybody giving their best and trying new events. Some of the standout performances of the day came from Lili Fehertoi-Nagy whose 800m time of 2:26.4min puts her right near the top in the all-time Serpentine record books and based on her performance in the steeplechase looks like the long-lost answer to our shortage of female hurdlers. She may still be a bit reluctant but the technique and endurance are there in abundance.
Despite our best efforts, we came last on the day which means we need two strong showings in the remaining matches if we want to have a chance to stay up in division 2.
| 1 | Dacorum AC | 343 |
| 2 | Ryston Runners | 237 |
| 3 | London Heathside | 235 |
| 4 | Stevenage & North Herts/HAWCS | 212 |
| 5 | Highgate/Mornington Chasers | 157 |
| 6 | Serpentine RC | 91 |
The next match is on Sunday 9th July in St Albans, if you're interested in competing, keep an eye out for emails or join the Track & Field Facebook or WhatsApp groups. Or reach out to the team captains Frank or Holly
Frank Womelsdorf
Men's SAL captain
Submitted: 26 June 2023