9th February 2008	BIRMINGHAM CROSS COUNTRY LEAGUE- GLOUCESTER
	After 16 years in Division One Stoke AC senior men were finally relegated to Division Two. However everyone as usual put in their maximum effort.  On a glorious sunny day perfect for running, Cross Country master Andy Allen yet again led the team home in 46th. Andy has been ever present in Stoke teams over the last 16 years and is probably the most consistent cross country runner in Staffordshire.  I was next, wanting to be a bit higher up, but finding that a lack of any training faster than 8 min miles is hardly conducive to a great performance on a flat course like Gloucester. At the age of 45, and three years on from my last retirement, I have some serious thinking to do about further participation. On a much brighter note Tim Smith only joined the club at Christmas from Staffs University, but counts as the winter's most improved runner, as he narrowly out-sprinted Ian Milner for 112th. Both of these guys had excellent runs, finishing 10 places higher up than the corresponding fixture at Coventry 3 weeks ago. Ian had been sick all week and I had not expected him to run at all, but he delivered his best performance of the season! In 144th Andy Mawdsley unexpectedly came out of exile to help the cause and get a sun tan! Being approximately 110 places down on his typical finishing position 5 years ago did not reflect the effort that Andy put in. Thanks Andy. 6th counter for the 3rd time this winter was Adrian Thiemicke, and I am sure that he will be the first to admit that he did not enjoy being a counter again, but no other team has a guy this committed! Likewise Richard Barrington made sure that we would not be automatically be relegated by not completing a team. In our defence this year we have had our worst ever set of injuries and illness impacting on what was already a very small squad. Bearing in mind that earlier in the week that we did not have 6 runners this result has to count as a minor victory against the tide! Even team manager Steve Shubotham was sick, but he came anyway, and his support certainly helped all of us to do our best. Having been with the club more than 20 years, I have been in this position before, and as these things tend to be cyclical, eventually we will rise again, but that does not mean that it hurts any less... But to end on a much more positive note, Division Two brings a fresh set of cross country courses and competitors, and the opportunity for youngsters to blood themselves a bit higher up the field... roll on next November! Also, our congratulations to former Stoke junior Alex Derricott on his 2nd place in the overall junior standings, and to his club Staffordshire Moorlands for surviving in Division One. John Danahay Full results at www.birminghamccleague.co.uk
	Stoke results: 46. Andy Allen (M40) 87. John Danahay (M45) 112. Tim Smith 115. Ian Milner 144. Andy Mawdsley 171. Adrian Thiemicke (M40) 177. Richard Barrington (M60)	16th Team - 678 points - 16th overall 37.24 39.22 41.04 41.13 43.11 48.14 51.12