Injuries and illness along with an element of fixture congestion saw us take a smaller than hoped contingent of just 10 runners to Epping Forest with Orion Harriers hosting the double mob match day between us, them and South London Harriers.

Conditions underfoot were as tough as anyone could remember with copious quantities of mud and standing water to get through, although the day itself was dry and bright.

With 30 runners Orion’s victories against both the visiting clubs was never in doubt. However, with 13 runners, SLH’s numerical advantage was modest and made for a tighter contest between us and them. After 12 successive defeats it was a case of ‘lucky 13’ as with six of our runners in the Top 20 overall compared to only one SLH competitor finishing by that stage we came out on top in a 9-to-score match.

Katy Sugden beat the handicapper with 1st place in the Bennett Cup on the day, as well as a credible 4th position of 17 ladies. In the overall season long Bennett Cup it is very tight between David Adams, Greg Firth and Jon Pairman, with just the Closing 5 to come next month.

Full results are in the tables below: