IN the tightest and most exciting race of the day Hayden Bailey claimed his first Wiltshire Schools’ Cross Country Championships title by the thickness of his vest.

The 16-year-old Matravers School student, from the village of Bratton, near Westbury, was locked in a terrific battle with St Augustine’s Rory Howorth, who was racing for the first time on the country after making his England debut indoors just before Christmas.

The pair had edged clear of Corsham School’s Otto Copping in the inter boys’ age group race around Sheldon School, Chippenham.

“Rory and I have been training together recently so we both knew it was going to come down to who could sprint fastest at the end,” said Bailey.

“As we came to the last corner before the finishing straight a marshal shouted out: ‘Who’s going to have it then?’ “Rory said: ‘You can have it’ but that was just his mind games and I thought okay but it won’t be like that for sure and I sprinted hard and just managed to pull away. But there was only a few metres between us at the end.

“It was a long and hard grinding race and I was just glad to finish it.”

For Bailey, a former England champion over 1500m, victory was a sweet moment not just because it was his first county schools’ success but also because it came after injury wrecked the second half of 2016.

“I suffered a stress fracture of my left metatarsal and couldn’t run at all last summer,” added Bailey.

“It came on during April/May last year and I didn’t race seriously at all last summer. I did a lot of cross training with weights, circuits, cycling and even walking and that has really paid off.

“Since September I have been working hard to get back to where I was before the injury and this win is a great confidence boost for me. Now I am hoping to stay injury free for the rest of the year.”

After focusing on the indoors for the first half of the winter Howorth can’t be too unhappy with second and Copping finished a safe third.

Dauntsey’s Will Morris enjoyed a more clear-cut victory in the junior boys’ race as he finished 21 seconds ahead of Jack Latus from Wootton Bassett School.

Both the senior and minor boys’ titles went to Salisbury runners with the Bishop Wordsworth School pair of Jaymee Domoney and Lukas Bailey emerging victorious.

The senior boys age group was particularly strong this year with John of Gaunt’s Freddie Webb, who won the inter boys’ title last year, showing terrific form to finish runner-up with Dauntsey’s Elliot Lassiter third.

The Howorth twins John and Robert, Cameron Perkins of Hardenhuish and John of Gaunt’s Dan Shepherd completed the top eight which will make Wiltshire a strong contender for team glory at the South West Schools’ Championships.

In the girls’ race Susannah Hirst’s progress from fourth last year to victory in the junior girls’ age group showed good form for the St Mary’s Calne student.

Arguably the happiest winner from the girls’ races would have been Corsham School’s Jade Littlechild. In her fourth appearance in the event and having finished runner-up on each on those occasions Littlechild made it to top spot with a superb win in the inter girls’ age group.

St Mary’s Calne student Caroline Brenchley was runner-up for a second successive year. Marlborough College newcomer Molly Gibbins dominated the senior girls’ race to win by almost a minute from Chloe Crippen of Swindon New College with Natalie Pidgeon of hosts Sheldon School third.

n For full championship results, visit wiltshiretimes.co.uk/sport.