Week Ending - 2025/11/02

SIX OF THE BEST

It was very much a case of six of the best as they say for Badgers men’s team as they collected the trophy as Leicestershire County Champions for the sixth successive time, a feat made all the more impressive in that it stands over an eight-year period, with the Covid pandemic halting the league for two seasons in the middle. Outgoing skipper Ryan Preece was in attendance to collect what is now a very familiar trophy to the boys in black and white, who once again owed a debt of gratitude to their star man Matt Scarsbrook, who made history as he won the men’s overall individual prize with six race wins across the eleven-race series. In previous seasons, the individual title has been a two horse race with Scarsbrook dualling with the pacy Mo Hussein, but after having the better of the Roadhoggs athlete in the season opener at Kibworth back in the Spring, the duo had to contend with the emergence of Hinckley RC ace Harry Robinson as a serious threat as he sped to a brace of victories in June. However, with personal bests over different distances, Baddesley man Scarsbrook kept the rest at bay and fully deserved the title as the stand-out performer across the long campaign.

Scarsbrook would be the first to tell you that this record-breaking sixth win was far from a one-man show; however, Badgers legendary strength in depth really helped them to pull through when the going got tough. Losing multiple club record holder Dave Hill at the start of the year was far from ideal, and having Captain Preece and key man Neil Russell both endure serious injuries during the campaign did not help their cause. However, veteran Chris Horton had the season of his life, comprehensively winning the V50 award and being the seventh highest scorer irrespective of age in the entire league, and Danny Warren improved round by round to finish in the top five in the final race of the season at Rotherby. Adrian Payne and Mark Cox both turned forty in 2024, which gave a massive impetus to the men’s vets team who defended their title with relative ease, but the pair also enjoyed their best seasons to date, Cox even taking a magnificent 2nd place overall in the coveted V40 age category. In addition, many others were in the mix in and around the core group, a depth which ultimately proved pivotal to the side’s success as well as the B team’s win over 28 other member clubs.

The women’s team, led by the supremely consistent Meg Griffiths, enjoyed a magnificent, strong start to the season, which in turn saw them win their division at a canter and return to the top-flight of Leicestershire road running. Consequently, this meant that the club’s Mixed team, for once, came out on top, taking the league title for the first time since its inception and ending West End Runners' dominance in that particular field. The vet ladies squeezed into second spot in their division to earn promotion, and the up-and-coming Susie Stringer was on hand to receive the shields on her teammates’ behalf. For the men now, it is very much a case of “6,7?” as they say across school playgrounds everywhere in the UK right now.

There was some parkrun action on the morning after. Mark Reynolds ran a great new PB at Markeaton in 23:33, and Dan Yoxall ran his second consecutive PB over at Kingsbury, clocking an impressive 22:38. There were top ten places at the Water Park for Adrian Payne and Megan Griffiths, as well as the cross-country averse Dave Jackson, who cashed in after upping his daily hard-boiled egg intake to 4.5 average over October. However, at the top of the tree for both men and women at KWP were Badgers lovebirds Ryan Preece and Liberty Underhill, who ran sick times of 18:16 and 21:26 to take first place in either gender category. 

Rachael Browne managed 5th at Sutton Park, Yvonne Fualkner-Grant took 5th too at Thonock Lane Farm in Lincolnshire, while Jane Barrett came a fine sixth at Wyre Forest. In Malaysia, Judy Parkes made the top ten at the Presint 18 parkrun, hoping to become the fastest Badger of all time in that country, only to have her husband Adrian go ever-so slightly faster (a week after the Snowdon marathon) in 28:33. And in the National cross country relays in Mansfield, Mia Cox ran a super leg for her side in pretty awful conditions, clocking 7:58 for her 2K lap.