BENTLEY athlete Louise Small beat former National Cross Country champion Louise Damen as she retained her Hampshire senior title on Saturday.

The Aldershot, Farnham & District runner had trailed Damen (Winchester & District) since the start of the five-mile race around the grounds of Fairthorne Manor, near Botley.

But with about a furlong remaining, the former Eggar’s School student closed the gap, then went straight past to lead into the home straight. Small powered away to win the event by five seconds.

Harry Hyde was another AFD athlete to keep a title. He beat clubmate Ryan Martin, also by five seconds, in their under-13 event. They were joined by Harry Ware, who was ninth, and Bailey Roberts, 13th, for victory in the team competition.

Jack Boswell took the U20s crown for AFD by finishing 23 seconds ahead of Jersey Spartan’s Sam Maher, the man he beat for last year’s U17 title.

Daniel Shattock defeated James Lewis of Winchester, last year’s bronze medallist, to win the U11 boys’ competition by seven seconds.

AFD also won the U15 boys’ gold medals, with Elliot Pocock the individual bronze medallist, Theo Doran fifth, Luke Hillary 14th and Xavier Booth 16th.

Tad Dicker took a gold medal as the highest placed man over 50 in the senior race.

Five sets of team golds were won by AFD in the Surrey Championships at Croydon’s Lloyd Park the same day. The club’s U15 boys also provided the individual champion in Luke van Oudtshoorn who was accompanied by Charlie Kershaw in fourth, Joe Blacknell tenth and Eion Canning 15th.

Niamh Brown won the combined race for U17 and U20 women where she was joined by Gabi Eglen and Nancy Scott for the team honours.

Max Heyden lost out to Sutton & District’s Ricky Lutakome, the English Schools intermediate 800m bronze medallist last summer, in the battle for individual gold in the U17 men’s event, but his silver medal set up AFD for team victory, with Ollie Percival fourth, Marcus Shantry fifth and Guy Tucker tenth.

The club’s U13 boys were led to their victory by the individual bronze medallist, Ed Henderson, who was followed by Sam Bodoano in fifth, Alfie Spear sixth and Rudi Morrell tenth.

Nathan Gibson, sixth, Rian McCawley, eighth, and Harry Grace, ninth, comprised the only complete team in the U20 men’s contest.