On Sunday, nearly 1,500 runners descended on Market Drayton for the annual 10k road race, and 16 of those were from Newport & District Running Club. This year, the popular local race took place in very warm conditions, but that didn’t put off the local support, as it felt like the whole town had come out to cheer on the runners. A number of them had armed themselves with water pistols and hoses to help runners cool off, and that seemed to be appreciated by most of the field!

Selwyn Plant (left) and Ralph Humphries run through the town centre

Starting and finishing at The Grove school, with the start and finish on the school playing fields, the route takes runners on an an anti-clockwise lap of the town, including two passes through the town centre, where supporters line the course, and some quieter sections at the far ends of town, where locals pull up their deckchairs and sit in their gateways to offer support. Featuring around 66 metres of climbing, the route undulates in the second half, and features a sharp hill at the 9k point, where runners have to dig deep before the final push to the finish.

Liz Holbrook gives the thumbs up!

Alex Millington was the first Novaportan to finish, doing so in 18th position with a time of 37 minutes, 16 seconds. David Clarke was next, 24th overall in a time of 38:47, whilst Alex Cochrane placed 75th in 42:06. Phil Dolding took 118th with his time of 43:47, followed by Phil Link, who was 181st in 46:21. Neil Fairbrother clocked a time of 49:51 for 326th, just ahead of David Evans, who stopped the clock at 50:35 for 356th place. Oliver Stokes finished 511th in 54:33, whilst Selwyn Plant ran a time of 58:33 for 718th position.

Toni Ireland (centre) during the town centre section

Ralph Humphries was next, taking 723rd spot with his time of 58:38. Steve Cannon clocked 1:05:38 in 1,016th place, whilst Liz Holbrook finished 1,058th in 1:06:40. Louise Patterson ran a time of 1:09:53 in 1,178th place, whilst Toni Ireland finished 1,284th in 1:13:58. Matthew Humphries finished 1:16:24 in 1,337th, whilst Verity Dodd, who was injured during the race but bravely hobbled to the finish, stopped the clock at 1:22:25 for 1,426th place.

(Left to right): Standing: Verity Dodd, Toni Ireland, Steve Cannon, Oliver Stokes, Louise Patterson, David Evans, Alex Cochrane, David Clarke, Ralph Humphries, Alex Millington, Selwyn Plant, Liz Holbrook. Kneeling: Phil Dolding, Neil Fairbrother, Matthew Humphries