September

North West Road Relays Blackpool 17 September
The gap between the track and field season and the winter cross country programme is briefly filled with a road running interlude. Liverpool Pembroke Sefton were therefore at Blackpool`s Stanley Park for the North West Counties road relays. The Under 17 men`s team of Andrew Bowen, Rob McLoughlin and Sam Hutchinson enjoyed early success by finishing seventh in the race but third in the Lancashire Championships. Their Under 15 counterparts of Jake Helm, Mike McCarten and Matthew Lloyd were 8th overall but only managed fourth in the Lancashire race. The Seniors fielded only a token team in the Merseyside senior event but led with Jimmy Boardman. Jimmy is enjoying an outstanding year and it was no surprise when he stormed away from the rest of the field on stage one to hand over to a somewhat nervous looking Mark Leicester. Mark ran bravely but there was a lot of class athletes around and he was gradually overwhelmed. Vets Kevin Carroll and Mark Bleasdale lost further ground but both looked satisfied with their times. The next big event is the Northern Counties relays at the same venue when the LPS squad will be supplemented with a number of stronger runners. Results

Report Charles Gains

Division 1 off Match Cleckheaton 10 September
All sports clubs have memories of outstanding performances that are talked about for many years. Liverpool Pembroke Sefton Athletic Club had one such at Cleckheaton. The occasion was the promotion match for entry into the elite senior men and women's Northern Premier League. The club was not only up against the powerful Trafford squad but tough opponents from Blackburn, Boston, York, Lincoln, Middlesborough and Barrow. It was a match that required top performances from the club`s star athletes but also gritty and determined efforts from less prominent members. On the women's side the only winners were Maria Barrett in the 800m B race and Rachel Green(long jump) but athletes such as Helen Quirk(100m, 200m, long jump, sprint relay) and Amy Potter(3000m, 400m hurdles, javelin, long relay) were everywhere garnering points. As usual the throws group of Natalie Walsh, Debbie Jansen, Kerrie Massey scored massively. But perhaps the biggest cheer was given to Ashleigh McComb who became the club`s first female pole vaulter.

The men provided three clean sweeps of A & B events with Mark Grimshaw and Kieran McGing(400m), Alan Ross and Adam Morris(long jump) and Dave Street and Liam Wignall(triple jump).Dave Readle combined a sprint win(100m) with a clear Shot victory. Michael Zaim was also among the winners with a sharp 200m and Jimmy Boardman produced an astonishing final sprint to take the 5000m. Opponents particularly fear the relay successes of the club and once again Michael Zaim, Phil Taylor, Alex Stokes and Dave Readle stormed clear in the 4 x 100m. The relative margin was even bigger at 4 x 400m as Mark Grimshaw, Kieran McGing, Phil Taylor and Michael Rimmer turned the event into a procession. But this was a day for numerous unsung heroes as LPS hoisted themselves 25 points clear of Trafford, 41 from Blackburn and into the Premier League.

To cap a glorious weekend for the club there was news of a unique Ormskirk double. Local star Phil Taylor was voted captain of the Loughborough University team for the coming year and international Courtney Birch was similarly honoured as captain of the Oxford University women's cross country team. Results

Report Charles Gains