6 December 2008	BIRMINGHAM CROSS COUNTRY LEAGUE - LEAMINGTON
	The muddy cross country course at Leamington proved to be a rich picking ground for Tom Gayle as he ran to a brilliant Division Two victory in the second major race of his comeback season. Tom was the first Stoke AC man to win a Birmingham League race since the legendary Rob Whalley in 2003, and showed that his winter training is going pretty well with a considerable improvement on his 9th place finish at Senneleys Park. Not far behind Tom, the club's newest signing Seb Duffy also performed creditably with a strong 3rd place despite having to stop and tie his shoe lace! Along with Tom, Seb also looks good for an individual medal if he can keep his form going until February. Ultra man Brian Cole returned from post 100k recovery mode to finish a good 10th, and he will be hoping for further improvement once his legs fully return in the new year. Close behind Brian, Steve Bazell also ran well for his 15th place, having started more conservatively than usual due to a slight leg injury incurred on Thursday. No further problems, reports Steve! Dave Lee was our next counter in an excellent 47th - 3 places higher than at Senneleys, and this was perhaps Dave's best run so far in a Stoke vest as he stayed well ahead of 6th counter Tim Smith. Tim was well down on his previous effort at Senneleys, but perhaps not surprisingly... Suffering a little from shin splints, Tim ran in trainers on this exceptionally slippery course and amazed me with his ability to slide along sideways without falling over. I think a top 25 placing would have been possible with some more suitable footwear...  Tim zipped past me in the last 400m after I had eased my way through the field. More than 5 weeks off with an injury certainly showed in my lack of momentum in the 2nd half of the race, but I was really grateful just to be running. U20 Rob Cook ran a strong race too, as he finished 80th and professed himself to be pleased with a well judged effort on this very tough course. Some confidence as well as experience was gained. Only 8 finishers again, but an excellent 3rd team placing, close to the leaders, has brought the club into contention for promotion in the new year at the first attempt. Well done lads - but lets see some of the other guys out as well in the new year to cement the great efforts so far. John Danahay Full results
	Stoke results:  Senior Men 1. Tom Gayle 3. Seb Duffy 10. Brian Cole 15. Steve Bazell 47. Dave Lee 57. Tim Smith 60. John Danahay (M45) 80. Rob Cook (U20)	3rd team - 133 points - 2nd overall 37.55 38.50 39.59 40.13 43.23 44.04 44.13 45.01