Harriers Have A Field Day As They Retain Welsh Title

By Owen Morgan

Swansea Harriers retained their Welsh Athletics League title as they won the final league fixture of the season at Newport.

The reigning champions were clear winners at a cold and soggy Spytty Stadium, claiming the win with 931 points on the day from Cardiff AAC who finished second with 721.

The victory meant Swansea clinched the title by an equally emphatic margin from their city neighbours with a season’s points total of 3745, ahead of Cardiff’s 2858 and Brecon AC who finished third with 2505.

The success will come as some consolation for the Harriers having seen both their men’s and women’s teams relegated from the premier divisions of the British Athletics League and UK Women’s Athletics League respectively.

Swansea put in a particularly strong showing in the field events where Ieuan Hosgood and Iwan Slade enjoyed a one-two in the pole vault with heights of 3:60m and 3:30m respectively.

They enjoyed another top two finish in the women’s long jump where Josie Sivak and India Collinson took the honours with 5:00m and 4:71 respectively.

Lara Spacey chalked up another field triumph for Swansea in the hammer, with a throw of 44.82m. Neath Harriers’ duo Karolinka Bacakova and Emma Hames, finished in second and third.

Neath also scored well in the men’s long jump where Ceiron Hopkins leapt out to 6.39m to take the win from Newport Harriers’ pair Kyle Arnold and Finlay Bertram.

And another black vest topped the board in the women’s javelin as Bethany Moule was a clear winner with a throw of 41.96m.

But it was Swansea who scooped up the majority of points in the field with another success in the men’s javelin for Nathan James, who produced a winning throw of 55.90m to beat Cardiff AAC’s Richard Dangerfield into second place.

However, it was Cardiff AAC who triumphed in the men’s shot put where Wales and Great Britain international Aled Sion Davies warmed up for next week’s Para Athletics European Championships in Berlin with a win.

The multiple F42 Paralympic and World Champion put together a consistent series of throws ranging from 14.75m to 14.99m to take the points for the capital city club.

Aled Sion Davies won the shot put.

There was another familiar face competing for Cardiff in the 1500m, where former Wales and Great Britain middle-distance international James Thie once again dusted down the spikes to gain valuable points for the club.

Thie finished first in a time of 4:01, ahead of Sebastian Lewis, of Neath Harriers in 4:07 and Craig Williams, of Cardiff AAC, in 4:10.

The full results from Saturday’s league match can be found on the Welsh Athletics website.