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The older I get the better I was... but after many years of idle burrowing the candle of desire is still burning and I have come to realise that running is as much a part of me as my heart and lungs... In Christmas 2008 I was 82kg and was not running a step..This is my journey , the journey of the wombat...Dogged...determined...persistent...and maybe a little grumpy.. but like the wombat my journey is territorial, its about running and I am going to work to protect it...Come along for the ride and see if I can become the wombat warrior. 2009 was a mixed bag for the wombat's journey.A top ten placing in both the Bridges and the City Surf brought a small sense of achievement but also a degree of frustration.... I think I can do better and better I will in 2010. A better run in the Busso Half iron man in support of TV in his swim and bike ride and that was about the extent of my racing. Lets see what happens in 2010 as "My journey Continues". Now in 2011 the wombat will continue his journey, but not alone the wombat has a youngling who knows how to dig. 2015 and its a new beginning , time goes on and the journey to the 2016 World Masters is under way.

Saturday, July 4, 2015

All Schools 3 man X 3km 2km 1km relay Guildford Grammar

The final all schools event prior to the close of term was, for me, the highlight of the PSA Cross Country competition to date and the teams, in particular our first relay team, are to be congratulated on one of the most impressive runs, as a team that I have seen in a very long time.



This relays format, introduced for the first time by Guildford this year and laid out over the expanse of playfields is the closest thing to we currently have, in a running sense, that even comes close to winning the Head of the River. The boys, in teams of three, each completed a 3km leg. At the end of their leg they waited for their team mates to complete their 3km leg and then they started the 2km legs. At the conclusion of the 2km legs they then completed the 1km legs thus each boys ran 6 km staggered into sections of 3k, 2k and 1k.
Individually I have seen some fantastic runs over the years by Guildford boys, the assistant coach Jackson Passeri ran a few of these however, Thursday’s was an absolute standout for me as a coach in the time that  I have been involved with the Guilford squad.
So why was this relay above and beyond?
The boys were up against some very strong teams and on paper, our first team was not the fastest team out there. I use the work fastest deliberately, because today they showed, along with our other teams that contested this event that they were the STRONGEST and there is a difference. 
In the first 3km leg Bailey Gillam put our guys into a great position, Ben Armstrong capitalised on this and Declan White ( captain) used this to bring on his A game.
During the 2km legs these three boys lifted again, and got within shouting distance of the Wesley with Hale and Trinity chasing hard. Each of them gave 110% not just for themselves but for their team mates. The effect that their race had on the rest of the team was like throwing a rock into a pond and watching the impact the ripples has on the rest of the pond.
The 1km leg was inspirational and I'll explain why, not one of the boys wanted to the one who lost the race. ( I Know this feeling, As a runner I’ve  been there and it takes you to a place that you never knew existed within your physical endurance ) not one of the boys wanted to be the one who had to touch in second and because of that they dug deeper than we’ve seen them dig before.

Gillam headed out in the lead with Wesley chasing hard, again on paper this lad was faster than Gillam and he did close him down BUT Gillam did not let him go, he dug and he hung on, in the final 200m he dug deeper and powered over the top of the Wesley runner and gapped him, not because he was the fastest but because he was the STRONGEST. 
Armstrong was spent with still 641m of running to go, he was buoyed by his teammates who were still out on the course and as they lifted him he lifted them. I could see that Armstrong was running on empty everything about his form told me that but he stayed tall AND he hung on and he dug and he gave up absolutely no ground to Wesley, Hale or Trinity. He demonstrated to the boys that he was committed to the team. When he crossed that line he have nothing left, Mr Armstrong ran on pure guts for the final 641m and that takes courage and having completed his role is setting the stage for the final 1km leg he ‘feed the crows’ in between trying to breath.

White, what can I say about this run and what could his team ask for from their captain. He played a big role in his team's win today and he went out pumped. He gapped the Wesley runner, the Hale runner and the Trinity runner on the final leg and did not let down either Armstrong or Gillam. He anchored an absolutely inspirational line honour win in the toughest relay on the program
While we did not win the competition , we won the race. The victory was earned by them but shared by the 40 other boys who ran for the G today and every Guildford spectator who was on the course.
Mr Webber, was even excited when he saw the team hit the lead and it was fantastic to have the schools head witness the teams finest moment to date.

Our second team, 19th over the line was just as impressive, Marcel Niutta (Vice), Nick Rollo and Cameron Adams all opened their accounts for the day with impressive 3km legs of 10:52, 10:37 and 10:43 respectively and Niutta’s final 3min 48sec 1km over testing and undulating was fantastic however to see Adams open up his stride and accelerate with 400m to go prior to taking as he surged past runners was awe inspiring, while Nick Rollo’s methodical decimation of anyone who got within sniffing distance in the closing stages of his leg also helped left our younger runners.
The consistency of our 5 teams was to be applauded and once again new comers to the team Sam Simba, Aiden McLaughlin, Jake Manolini, Health Collins and Jack Grant raised the bar once again in terms of intestinal fortitude.

Over the first 3km leg the boys splits, including those not named in teams were ranked as:

Name
3km Leg
Declan White
0:10:10
Benjamin Armstrong
0:10:19
Bailey Gillam
0:10:25
Nicholas Rollo
0:10:37
Cameron Adams
0:10:43
Marcel Niutta
0:10:52
Dylan Foppa
0:11:29
Rory Adams
0:11:46
Samuel Sibma
0:11:47
Heath Collins
0:11:48
Aiden McLaughlin
0:11:55
Jake Manolini
0:11:59
Jack Grant
0:12:06
Blake Hillier
0:12:12
Sebastian Boyd
0:12:15
Cameron Miles
0:13:10
Wei Ngo
0:13:10
Jack McLean
0:13:34
Henry van den Wall Bake
0:13:40
Gabriel Boyd
0:14:07
Thomas Gregory
0:14:23
Thomas Schoenauer
0:17:52
Daniel Brecich
0:18:23
Liam Cowie
0:20:02
James Holmes
0:22:44

The 2km splits for the boys ,those in teams were:

 Name
2km
Declan White
0:07:10
Bailey Gillam
0:07:13
Benjamin Armstrong
0:07:14
Cameron Adams
0:07:40
Marcel Niutta
0:07:42
Heath Collins
0:08:04
Nicholas Rollo
0:08:06
Dylan Foppa
0:08:07
Rory Adams
0:08:21
Aiden McLaughlin
0:08:24
Samuel Sibma
0:08:27
Jack Grant
0:08:33
Jake Manolini
0:08:45
Sebastian Boyd
0:08:52
Blake Hillier
0:08:54

At this point in time we do not have the 1km splits available
Our first relay’s team celebrate in the knowledge that we have not seen the Guildford cross country team take line honours in a relay (and the toughest one ever contested) in my time as a coach. Their victory today lifted the other lads   and resulted in the squad picking up 2 bonus points and finishing within 6 points of Scotch and narrowly missing 5th place. Today's result has moved the squad into the realm of being the most successful I have been involved in.
I hope our boys  enjoy the feeling of victory because I know how hard they have  worked for it. Enjoy your holiday break and thank you for the opportunity to watch a fantastic group of lads, run an incredible race and take a wonderful victory, not because they were the fastest but because they were the STRONGEST, STRONGEST of mind, STRONGEST of character and STRONGEST of fortitude. Today they demonstrated what it means to run in a team.
Congratulations to all the boys who ran today and contributed to a wonder team result.
The teams for the day comprised:
Team A
Line Honours 1st Place
Declan White
Bailey Gillam
Ben Armstrong

   
Team B
19th Place
Cameron Adams
Nick Rollo
Marcel Niutta
Team C
29th Place
Heath Collins
Dylan Foppa
Rory Adams
Team D
34th Place
Sebastian Boyd
Blake Hillier
Aiden McLaughlin
Team E
33rd Place
Sam Simba
Jake Manolini
Jack Grant

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