St Albans Athletic Club put in some fine performances at the South of England Cross Country Championships at Hampstead Heath.

The U15 boys kicked off the days racing on a course that, although relatively mud-free, is considered one of the most challenging of the calendar.

And it was one of the club’s newest athletes, William Gallo, who was first home in this age group.

The highest-placed individual for the club was in the U15 girls’ event.

Keira Stern from STAGs continued her excellent cross country season by finishing 26th on the 4km course.

Aisha Saifullah and Cecile Guegan both enjoyed the experience of this regional event and were not intimidated by lining up with 300 of the best from the south.

Lily Tse, who has also been selected to represent the East of England in the Virgin London Mini Marathon, finished 39th and Mia Pullan was 70th.

St Albans had a good solid team in the U13 boys with Oscar Loveday taking part, despite only being 11-years-old.

Hannah Rayden was first home in the U17 race, closely followed by Sophie Olney and Emily Anders. The U20s finished fourth in the team event, just missing out on a medal.

The club are back in action this Saturday when they go to the Hertfordshire Schools Cross Country Championships.