Although hosts Jersey went three for one in the age-group team competitions, a dominant Paul Friedrich led Guernsey’s U13 boys to victory and Grace King came away with individual honours of her own in the U15 girls.
Capitalising on the new Islands Unlimited travel link, a cohort of 23 Guernsey juniors took on a challenging course at Les Mielles, St Ouen’s Bay, in the first inter-insular cross-country since a similar junior event at Delancey Park in spring 2023.
In the U13 boys, Friedrich showed his class as a Hampshire champion and Inter Counties silver medallist to gap the field.
He finished the 3.2km course a huge 1min. 23sec. clear of runner-up Daniel Rogers from Jersey.
With runners coming in thicker and faster after that, Guernsey’s Roberto Nettleton, Edwin Littlewood and Freddie Brent all made the top eight and so contributed to a narrow winning margin of two points in the team standings.
Erin Greenfield had an exciting near-miss with the U13 girls’ individual honours after battling all the way with Bobbi Billington, who ultimately edged her out by just 4sec.
Jersey also took third and fourth to complete a tight spread of finishers, while Holly Sebire (fifth) and Ruby King (seventh) rounded out the scoring team for Guernsey. Jersey won by six points overall.
The sister isle’s older boys impressed in shutting out the top five positions over the 4.8km race for U15s and U17s.
James Stafford-Bell was the top Sarnian placer in a competitive sixth.
But naturally, he, Joshua Pailing, Dan Jamieson and Max Stafford-Bell were outscored significantly by the Jersey opposition.
The U15 and U17 girls also ended up outscored, albeit by an incredibly fine margin of just one.
U15 Grace King finished 12sec. clear of Phoebe Assiter for top spot, but Jersey followed up with third and fifth, as opposed to Theodora Murray and Indi Warren taking fourth and sixth.
But simply to be contesting inter-insular cross country – a trend that died out for nearly a whole decade until 2022 – was a success in itself.
‘Great to renew the inter-insulars – tough course, great racing, and we look forward to 2027 at home,’ said Matt Mason from the Guernsey coaching team.
Fellow coach Alun Williams called it ‘a great learning experience’.
‘Now onto Easter Festival and track and field,’ he added.
