Woking AC continued their impressive Southern Athletics League campaign with another outstanding team performance, finishing second at the league’s second fixture despite a day of disruption, soaring temperatures and a last-minute venue change.

Originally due to take place at Mile End, the match was switched to Finsbury Park just days before competition after the original venue became unavailable. Traffic congestion and a delayed start created a chaotic beginning to the day, but once the action got underway, Woking simply got on with the job.

And what a job it was.

The team finished second behind league leaders Thames Valley Harriers, while once again beating Norwich and Wycombe Phoenix – the two clubs who finished ahead of Woking in last year’s standings. With two fixtures still to come, the club remains firmly in the hunt for another excellent Division One finish.

Despite the challenging conditions, Woking athletes produced an incredible 18 personal bests – nine from the women and nine from the men – while the team’s trademark willingness to step into unfamiliar events ensured valuable points were collected right across the programme.

Among the standout performances were:

• Jack stormed to victory in the A-string 800m before bravely stepping into the steeplechase later in the day.
• Theo won the B-string 800m before returning to race the A-string 1500m, collecting another valuable haul of points.
• Theo Mitchell continued his outstanding season by clearing a PB of 1.82m to win the A-string high jump before also finishing second in the long jump.
• Jacob Bowyer ran a superb PB of 9:14.02 to finish third in the 3000m, with Thomas crossing the line just 0.07 seconds later after earlier setting an 800m PB.
• Jamie Ludlow completed a remarkable double, following up his morning Surrey Road League 10km with a seven-second PB and second place in the steeplechase.
• Martha also backed up the morning’s road race by returning to run both the 3000m and 1500m for the team.
• Jake made a welcome return from the USA, while Rhys impressed in both the 400m and triple jump.
• Scarlett continued her remarkable season with another hurdles PB before winning the pole vault.
• Lucy Tribe celebrated PBs in both the 100m hurdles and triple jump, while Lissy produced PBs in both sprint events.
• Eleanor Buckle marked her return to the team with a PB in the 200m.
• Sam Webb unfortunately saw his day cut short by a hamstring injury during the non-scoring 100m. Everyone at Woking AC wishes him a speedy recovery ahead of the next fixture.

The field events once again proved to be a huge source of points.

Florence delivered another exceptional all-round display, recording PBs in both the shot and discus, winning the javelin with a season’s best, finishing second in the hammer and even stepping into the high jump to help the team.

Katie Hopkins claimed another victory in the pole vault before also tackling both the 3000m and steeplechase, while Dave contributed strongly across the pole vault, long jump and 400m hurdles.

The Kelly family were once again central to Woking’s success. Rory Kelly secured victory in the shot put alongside strong performances in the hammer, discus and hurdles, while Mike Kelly dominated the hammer with an 11-metre winning margin. Roy added further valuable points with second place in the javelin.

Elsewhere, Eleanor Gatrell, Kas, George Hopkins, Clare, Lauren, Oliver, George, Nerys, Sophie, Imi, Oscar, Caden, Big George and many others all stepped up across multiple disciplines, underlining the incredible team spirit that has become a hallmark of Woking AC’s Southern Athletics League campaign.

A huge thank you also goes to Woking’s dedicated team of officials, whose commitment and expertise helped ensure the competition ran as smoothly as possible under difficult circumstances.

With two fixtures remaining, Woking have firmly established themselves amongst the leading clubs in Division One. If this level of commitment, teamwork and performance continues, there’s every chance the team can finish the season on a real high.

The next Southern Athletics League fixture takes place on Sunday 19 July at Norman Park, where Woking will be looking to build on another excellent afternoon’s work.