Final standings in each division
Written by Alex Seftel and Daniel Rees
Eight clubs will compete in a one-match showdown next month to earn the right to compete among the UK’s elite athletics clubs in 2027.
City of Sheffield and Dearne and City of York finished in the top two of the Championship North, while Blackheath and Bromley Harriers and Crawley took the leading spots in the Championship South.
Chelmsford and Shaftesbury Barnet topped the Championship East and Yeovil Olympiads and Cardiff AAC prevailed in the Championship West.
On 12th September, all eight clubs will compete in the Promotion Match in Oxford to see which two teams will be promoted to the NAL Premiership.
NAL Championship North Round 3 – Trafford – 22 August
City of Sheffield and Dearne finished the regular season with a 100% record of winning all three matches in the Championship North to top the regional group.
They had been in a commanding position heading into the final match, but City of York and Notts AC were level on league points behind them. A margin of 49 points was the difference as the former booked their spot in the Promotion Match.
One of the most eye-catching times on the clock came in the men’s 400m, with Sheffield’s Hakan Dalbal and York teenager Rowan Whittaker both running under 47 seconds with times of 46.85 and 46.90 respectively.
Also for Sheffield, Three-time UK champion Alicia Barrett was nearly a second ahead as she cut the proverbial tape in the 100m hurdles in 13.39s. That is a record for the NAL Championship since the competition re-formed for the 2021 season. Other Sheffield regulars included 100m winner Leonie Ashmeade (12.10) and Chuks Osammor, who won the discus (52.96m) and finished second behind team-mate Bill Steel in the shot put with distances of 16.26 and 15.58 respectively.
Just as impressive was Elena Inch, who did the 800m and 1500m double, leading a one-two finish ahead of Tamsin McGraw in the latter event. Joe Dunderdale’s 66.58 in the javelin was more than ten metres further than any opponent. World 4x100m medallist Hayley Mills cleared 3.48 to win the pole vault, before combining with Barrett, Ashmeade and Eniola Ajagbe to win the 4x100m and come second in the 4x400m. Ashmeade was replaced by Callie Coates in the longer relay, but otherwise three women did both team events.
As for York, Ben Foulger took 12 points in the long jump with 6.68, while 29.15 was enough for Matilda Wright to win the javelin. Notts AC had some moments to shine despite missing out on their main objective of the day. Amelia Briggs-Goode was on top in the 400m hurdles in 60.54, before joining Nia Myers, Emily Rawson and Fura Mabengi in winning the 4x400m relay. Harry Whyley’s 2.10m clearance took maximum points in the high jump.
Fourth-placed Trafford AC were grateful for the presence of former GB under-20 international Halle Ferguson in the high jump as she cleared a best of 1.78. Behind them, Sale Harriers’ Marcus McLean impressed by beating Sheffield’s European indoor bronze medallist Lee Thompson in the 200m in a time of 21.33, before helping his team win the 4x100m. Thompson later secured a relay triumph of his own in the 4x400m alongside Joshan Vencatasamy, Benjamin Schofield and Bayleigh Lawton. Another notable Sale performance was BUCS medallist Elliot Savage clocking 3:57.60 to cross the line first in the 1500m.
Sprints were the strongest suit for sixth-placed Liverpool Harriers & AC, who finished in that same position in the end-of-season standings. A time of 56.47 won the 400m for Emma Alderson, while Alec Williamson topped the charts with 10.53 in the 100m, and nobody could beat Neave McGhee’s 24.49 in the 200m.
NAL Championship South Round 3 – Kingston – 22 August
Crawley capitalised on the pressure being off group toppers Blackheath and Bromley to win the final match in the Championship South, importantly fielding a team with depth that help them get over the line for victory.
They won both of the 4x400m relay races and results show that they were the only team to field athletes in the women’s pole vault, with Tahlya Curtis and Jessica Lambert clearing 3.68 and 2.98 respectively.
Highlights for Blackheath and Bromley included Kelechi Aguocha’s 2.05 high jump and triple jump double (14.31), with Dillon Claydon achievin the same feat across the discus and shot put. There were just five thousandths of a second between their team-mate Abdul-rahaman Jolaoso and Scott Harris (City of Portsmouth) in the 100m, with both crossing the line in 10.98.
Finishing third overall was City of Portsmouth AC’s best result of the season. Middle-distance was their strongest suit. Emily Carman (2:11.00) and Amber Faull (2:15.27) were first and second in the women’s 800m, with Malek Roostaei (1;54.76) winning the men’s event and Thomas Beasley taking the men’s 1500m. 16-year-old Charlotte Pabari’s throw of 46.13 was enough for top spot in the javelin.
Another middle-distance race, the women’s 1500m, was a one-two for fourth-placed Herne Hill Harriers as Orla Wright (4:44.31) headed Soraya Lockwood and that achievement was repeated in the 3000m through Olivia Stillman (9:59:53) and Ella Newton, while the team also won the men’s 4x100m.
Team England decathlete Sammy Ball of Basingstoke and Mid Hants was one of four to clear a best of 4.18 in the pole vault, meaning they all received 10 points, while he also took the 110m hurdles (15.23) and was second behind Claydon (BBHAC) in the discus and shot.
Kingston AC & Poly were sixth but scored more than 300 points for the first time this season. They had good moments in the field with hammer wins for 57-year-old Gareth Cook (44.31) and Pippa Wingate (54.32), who also took maximum points in the discus (36.77) and shot put (10.69).
NAL Championship East Round 3 – Hendon – 22 August
Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers bounced back from their third-place finish in Stevenage last month to beat Chelmsford AC ahead of the crucial Promotion Match.
Seven-time UK bronze medallist Hayley McLean once again proved invaluable for the north London side, picking up wins in the 400m hurdles (59.48s) and the 100m hurdles (14.89s), as well as competing in the 200m as a non-scorer for good measure.
Greg Thompson, who won three bronze medals in three years at the UK Championships from 2021 to 2023, took full points in the discus (56.26m) and shot put (15.96m), while Kenan Stephens doubled up to win the long jump (6.83m) and come second in the triple jump (13.58m) to the precocious Harley Henry (14.63m).
Essex side Chelmsford, who finished second in this match but came out as overall winners of the Championship East section after three rounds, had their own former GB international to count on in the form of Onyekah Okoh, who won both the 400m hurdles in 51.99s and the 400m in 48.86s. He later anchored the 4x400m relay team to a second-place finish behind Shaftesbury, while the Essex club’s short sprinters took the win in the 4x100m. Chelmsford’s discus throwers enjoyed a stellar day, with Alastair Brown throwing a PB of 52.14m to come second in the A-string, while Michael Voko repeated the feat in the B-string with a PB of 41.87m.
Belgrave Harriers, who finished third at the StoneX Stadium, enjoyed strong wins in the women’s 2,000m steeplechase after Billie McClosky – who only took up athletics last year – won with a new personal best of 7:25.72s. Sian Harry took a strong win in the 400m with a performance of 54.68s, while Orla Walsh scored full points in the 3,000m with a time of 10:34.12s.
Talented junior athletes Donncha Blake and Shilo Omotosho stood out for fourth-placers Herts Phoenix, with the former dominating the pole vault thanks to a clearance of 4.58m, and the high jump with a PB clearance of 1.96m. World Athletics Under-20 Championships competitor Omotosho stepped down from her preferred 400m to run the 100m, winning in a PB of 11.88s. Her final leg in the women’s 4x400m helped the London club to a dominant victory over nearest challengers Belgrave Harriers.
Havering’s best performances came from Richard Akinyebo – who won both the 100m (10.76s) and 200m (21.10s) – and Madeline Barker, who won the women’s 1500m with 4:35.45s. Their short sprinters took second in the men’s 4x100m, 0.5sec behind Chelmsford, who won with 42.84s.
NAL Championship West Round 3 – Yeovil – 22 August
Yeovil Olympiads topped the Championship West section after winning the final round, beating nearest challengers Cardiff by more than 100 points.
Lewis Guest delivered three wins out of three in the 100m (11.02s), high jump (1.78m) and triple jump (14.34m) before helping the 4x100m quartet to a fourth-place finish. Teammate Cerys Lee went one better, competing in five events – she managed second in the 400m H (1:11.12s) and shot put (10.64m), and won the long jump with 5.15m. She then won the B-string javelin with 31.38m before helping the Olympiads win the 4x100m in a photo finish from Cardiff, who were pipped into second place.
Indeed, the sprints proved to be Cardiff’s strongest suit at the Bill Whistlecroft Stadium, with Charlotte Wingfield winning the 100m (12.15s) while Sadie Graham-Mulvaney won the B-string (12.64sec). In the pole vault, Welsh indoor champion Mark Mellor cleared 4.48m to beat Yeovil’s Isaac Slight – a bronze medallist from the England U18 championships earlier this month – on countback. In the javelin, Joe Parker threw 64.93m to take the win from Yeovil’s Benjamin Jones.
Third-place finishers Bournemouth called up former GB international heptathlete Catherine Holdsworth, who won the shot put with a distance of 11.12m. Jazmin Cooke scored a narrow win in the high jump, clearing 1.69m to beat Winchester’s Mia Judd on countback, while Cameron Hale took a similarly close victory in the shot put – his distance of 12.50m edged out Cardiff’s Toks Akambi-Mortimer by 5cm. William Launders’ leap to 6.95m helped the south coast club score another win.
Swindon Harriers‘ best performances came in the distance races, with Ben Cole running 4:10.96s to finish third in the A-string behind Yate’s Gregory Hayward (4:03.16) and Yeovil’s Tom Webb (4:01.70s), while Ben lines ran 4:26.75s to win the B-string. Junior athlete Arthur Widdows ran 55.14sec to win the 400m H in the first track event of the competition, and he bookended the day by helping the men’s 4x400m team to a winning time of 3:31.84. Teresa Iannetelli, a silver medallist in the 400m hurdles at the England Championships last month, won both the 400m (53.98s) and 200m (24.48s) before helping the Wiltshire club to second-place finish in the 4x400m and fourth-place finish in the 4x100m.
Winchester and District’s Charlie Elford Pond won the hammer with a throw of 54.86m, while their sprinters Rhys Wye, Alexandre Ezeomah, Deacon Maynard, and Michael Chiguvare combined to win the 4x100m relay. Maynard had previously taken second in the men’s 400m with 49.86sec behind Cardiff’s Adam Kopp, while Ezeomah had won the 200m in 22.98sec.
Highlights for Yate and District came courtesy of Jodie Dale’s throw of 40.72m to win the javelin and Joshua Adler’s 10:25.99s which won the women’s steeplechase. They also scored full points in the pole vault courtesy of Arisa Burgess (3.38m) and Sophie Hornung (3.13m).