A LONG-AWAITED team victory for the Havering Mayesbrook senior men and Lauren Deadman s individual senior victory were the highlights of the third round of the Essex Cross Country League, which took place on Saturday. It was a case of quality rather than

A LONG-AWAITED team victory for the Havering Mayesbrook senior men and Lauren Deadman's individual senior victory were the highlights of the third round of the Essex Cross Country League, which took place on Saturday.

It was a case of quality rather than quantity at Hylands Park, Chelmsford, as continued injury and illness meant some of the poorest league turn outs for several years, with some young teams short- handed.

After 10 years of coming so close, the senior men's team victory puts them at the top of the league and with only two rounds to go, it will be a fight to hold on.

The consistency of Rob Warner, Grant Twist, Steve Rand, Matt Bland and Peter Coates, ably assisted by the rest of the squad, is starting to pay dividends.

Twist was the first under-20 home, to lead the Havering squad home win seventh place. Close-ly behind, Warner kept up his season's top 10 finishes with a ninth place.

Rand had another good run to finish 14th, with Bland improving all the time to take 22nd.

Coates did well in the harsh conditions for another top 30 place in 28th, and his brother Chris com-pleted the scoring team in 46th.

Neill Collins 50th and Graham Hogan 51st battled it out for top 50 places with Russ Middleton find-ing his cross-country form to take 67th.

Tony Collins found the cold and slippery conditions hard but still managed a top 100 finish in 92nd.

The team's 126 point tally gave them victory by four points.

Lauren Deadman, despite slipping on the muddy course, was again the comfortable winner of the senior women's race by 24 seconds, to lead the individual standings after three rounds.

She was supported by the consistent Jane Hallam (46th).

In the first race of the day, under-13 Avril Loynes pro-duced her best race of the year to achieve an excellent second, supported by a good run from Lindsay McLachlan in 11th, but without any other team mates the squad slipped to third in the league table.

The under-13 boys did field a team and again produced a fine second place finish behind unbeaten Southend.

Nick Shade and Freddie Keefe were fourth and fifth.