HARWICH Runners braved a bitterly cold morning to compete in the fourth round of the 53-12 cross-country series at Wherstead.

Their squad comprised 28 men and eight ladies and the event was hosted by eventual winners Ipswich Jaffa.

However, Harwich also had a good day, with both their men’s and ladies' teams finishing third.

In the ladies' race there were 93 runners, with Kate Hodgkiss finishing seventh for Harwich.

This was despite a fall in which she cut her knee.

Sophie Scott is marathon training and that strength is now showing as she took 16th.

New recruit Charlotte Hodgson showed much promise, finishing 25th on her debut, with Madeline Lewis completing the scoring team of four in 28th.

There was another strong run from Elspeth Knott and Hannah Jarvis made her first appearance of the series.

In the men’s race, Rob Reason worked his way wonderfully through the field to finish second over the approximate five-mile distance.

Mark Lloyd, in 18th, and Simon Day, in 24th, set Harwich up for a good result.

Stephen Peck matched his previous best placing of 50th while Robin Brookes and Stuart Weaver were again well placed. Mark Rutter and John Francis completed the scoring team, with all eight finishing within the first 64 places.

There were debut runs for Joe Francis and Anthony Hare, although one of the performances of the day came from Francis Mills, who finished in his highest-ever position.

There were also excellent showings from Ian Cannons and Will Roxby-Clarke.

The overall third-place finish keeps Harwich in with a chance of finishing in the top half of the table.

In the accompanying junior run, Archie Barrington finished 18th overall and seventh in the MU17 group.

Michael Knowles ran well to take sixth in the MU15 category, where Alexander McCreadie, William Turner, James Cooper and Tony Greenwood all competed.

Samuel Bastow was the youngest and highest-placed runner in the MU11 group for Harwich, finishing ahead of club-mates Corey Hare, Eddie Cannons and Eddison Barker.

Annabel Brookes and Isabella McCreadie both did well in the FU13 group.

Daisy Ward had a successful day, finishing 12th in the FU11 category, with young Bella Ward performing superbly against older children.

The fifth race in the series takes place at Springfield this Sunday.

Elsewhere, Jez Downs travelled to Farnborough for a half-marathon and recorded a six-minute personal best, clocking two hours, one minute and 26 seconds.