ELEANOR Markendale of Pendle Athletic Club became a North of England champion - after only making up her mind to compete the night before her event.

The under 15 youngster arrived home from a half-term break in Italy at 10pm on Saturday, then the following day competed at the new indoor stadium at Sheffield in the Northern Counties Combined Events Championships.

The pentathlon event comprised of the 60 metres hurdles, long jump, high jump, shot and 800 metres.

Eleanor's best event is the long jump, where she ranked sixth in the country last year with an outdoor best of 5.44 metres. This time she was slightly down with 4.86 metres but with consistent results in the first four events she was lying second with just the 800m remaining.

She needed to beat Boston's Emily Moss by around 10 seconds to overhaul her, and clocked 2:34.4 against her rival's 2:44.2 - a margin of 9.8 seconds.

When the result was announced, she had won by just eight points, 2476 to Moss' 2468.

It was her first title in her second year of competition and was a splendid consolation after a near farcical competition last year.

The event had been held in Manchester and the high jump apparatus was the same one used in the Commonwealth Games. The bar wouldn't adjust low enough for the juniors and Eleanor was one of several to register no height.

Danielle saves best for nationals

WATCHING England fell coach Norman Matthews described Danielle Walker's performance in the English National Cross Country Championships as 'her best ever run'.

The 14-year old Burnley ace finished sixth in the under 15 race at Temple Newsam in Leeds to show that she is in tip-top condition for the challenges ahead.

For some time, Walker has been suffering from a virus and after she was surprisingly beaten into second in the Lancashire Championships at the turn of the year, she has been kept under wraps by step-father and coach Dave Goodwin.

She has slowly regained her strength and won her comeback race, the Mid Lancs Cross Country at Chorley, before stepping up a class on Saturday.

After missing the Northern Championships, she made her point by defeating the gold and silver medallists.

Next will be the Inter-Counties which incorporates the finale of the Reebok Series, and then English Schools.

Katie Ingram, another of Matthews' charges, was also on song. The former Chorley Harrier, now studying at Loughborough College, was 15th in the under 20 race ahead of Pendle's Laura Finucane in 52nd.

To add to the success of our local girls, the Blackburn Harriers quartet of Emma Graham, Katie Morris, Kelly Clegg and Sophie Croxson were ninth team in the under 17s making them the top North West outfit.

Emma, in 36th, was Blackburn's first counter and was one of three Harriers to gain top 50 placings on the day.

Newcastle University student Tom Cornthwaite was 30th Junior Man while Richard Stones was 50th in the under 17s.

Meanwhile Michael Hammer was our top local in the senior men's race with 140th in a massive field of 1,395.

In spite of the growing importance of the Inter-Counties, the National is still the big day out for the regular club athletes.

The day was cold and the course hilly although it remained firm underfoot.

Clayton Harriers made their usual strong showing in the senior races while for the first time in many years Chorley Harriers fielded a full men's team.

Veterans Mark Aspinall and John Roche were 206th and 290th respectively for Clayton while Chorley's Keith Johnson was 405th after coming off the night shift. Both teams finished in the top half of the field with Clayton 55th and Chorley 57th out of 116 teams. Chorley's Sarah Scarrott was the leading local in the women's race with 105th.

Harrier gets Lancs call

ROSSENDALE Harrier Carl Andrew has been called into the Lancashire Schools Cross Country team to contest the English Schools Championships at Maidstone on March 13. He takes his place in the Junior Boys team after a late withdrawal from the party.

Meanwhile, the Senior teams have been announced. East Lancashire athletes included are Laura Finucane of Hyndburn, Vicky Snape of South Ribble, and the Blackburn pair Rachael Thompson and Laura Livesey. The local boys chosen are Matt Wood from Blackburn, Danny Eckersley of Burnley and Marc Hartley, who is from Hyndburn.

Fell race selection

THE Pendle Fell Race on Saturday April 3 will incorporate the Lancashire Fell Championship and will be used to select Lancashire athletes for the Inter-Counties Championship Race. This information is not in the FRA calendar.

The race is 4.5 miles long with 1500 feet of ascent and starts at Barley Village. As previously announced by the FRA, it will also be the Junior Trial for the Knockdhu International.

Sister power strikes again

SISTERS Katie and Charlotte Ireland were both winners in the junior races at the Ilkley Moor Fell Race.

Katie headed a Rossendale Harriers 1-2 in the under 14 girls standings as Laura Briggs took second, while newcomer Charlotte led home the under 10 girls.

Joseph Kelly was runner-up for the under 14 boys while, in the under 17s, Paul Wadsworth was the winner with Carl Andrew third and Aaron Kelly fifth.

Former Dale athlete Grant Cunliffe was fourth under 17 representing his new club Burnley as Pendle's David Wilson took second in the under 10 boys race.

Muddy marvel Debbie

DEBBIE Gowans of Accrington Road Runners was the women's winner of the fifth annual Muddy Bottoms Race, promoted by Red Rose Road Runners.

Dave Fielding completed the 17 mile course with Debbie while a third Road Runner, Tony Bolton, also took part.

Even an icy cold wind could not deter over 120 hardy athletes from racing over a choice of nine-mile or 17-mile routes across tracks and fields in and around Bamber Bridge, Brindle and Hoghton.

Blackburn Road Runners Brenda Fullard, Norma Smith, Liona Riding and Sheila Marshall took 3:35 while Darwen Dasher Maria Briggs was fifth over the nine-mile course in 2:11.