RAYLEIGH’s FitzWimarc School will be aiming to show plenty of fizz when the national final of the Sainsbury’s sponsored English Schools’ Cross-Country Cup is staged at Shepshed, Leicester, next month.

In the regional final at the Copthall Stadium, Hendon, they won the junior competition (years seven and eight) for boys and girls, while their intermediate boys (years nine and 10) were third to all go through to the big date on December 6.

The outstanding individual performance from a Fitz student was by Sophie Riches who won the junior girls event with team-mate Maisie Jones in third spot.

In the junior boys Daniel Gevaux was the top Fitz runner in fifth spot, while Ben Austin took the starring role for the intermediate boys with a fourth individual spot.

Apart from Fitz, there were also outstanding displays from the two Southend Highs and Eastwood School in the regional finals and all will be featured in Echosport leading up to the big national final date.

You can see Fitz’s top cross-country stars and others from the district in action at Gloucester Park a week tomorrow when the Rochford and Castle Point Schools Championships are staged at Basildon’s Gloucester Park course with a 10am start.

Before that, on Thursday of this week, Blenheim Park is the venue for the Southend Borough Schools’ Cross-Country.

Action in the morning is for the boys with races starting between 10.30am and 11.15am.

In the afternoon it’s the turn of the girls with action between 12.30pm and a last-race start time of 1.20pm.