SOUTH-ESSEX Schools dominated the final of English Schools Track and Field Cup in Bedford on Saturday.
Southend High won both the girls titles on offer while Rayleigh’s FitzWimarc School triumphed in the inter boys competition.
The Eastwood Academy were also celebrating after winning the junior boys final.
And their head of boys PE Scott Wheeler was overwhelmed by the victory.
“When we were announced as the winners there was a mixture of tears and cheers,” said Wheeler.
“The boys went mad and it’s a great achievement which we’re very proud of.
“Going into the final we were hopeful of maybe pushing for a place on the podium but never really thought about winning it.
“We have one club athlete in our squad and we’re also quite a small school so we’re very happy to have won it for the first time.”
Eastwood finished on 516 points to finish just ahead of second placed Woodlands School, from Basildon, and third placed Southend High.
Southend took second in the inter boys final with Westcliff in third.
But neither of them were able to overhaul FitzWimarc who produced a stunning performance to shock even their acting head of boys PE John Bradley.
Inter boys winners - FitzWimarc School
“We went into the final ranked sixth or seventh on scores,” said Bradley.
“We had scored 525 points but got 577 in the final, which was just incredible.
“It’s clearly the year of the underdog with Leicester City winning the Premier League and Wales doing so well in the European Championships and us winning the final was unexpected as well.
“This group have always been incredibly hard working and more than half of them ended up getting personal bests on the day.
“We’re really proud of them and how well they performed.”
Southend High were also full of smiles after their victories made them the most successful girls school in the competition’s history, much to the delight of their head of PE Sue Simpson.
Inter Girls winners - Southend High
“We now hold 18 national track and field cup titles,” said Simpson.
“We are now equal with Southend High School for Boys who also hold 18 titles which is an incredible achievement for us both.”
Southend won the junior girls final with 444 points while their inter girls scored 508 points, the highest ever to be recorded at that age group.
The impressive total saw them finish three points clear of Millfield with FitzWimarc in third.
And Simpson was proud of the performances.
Junior girls winners - Southend High
“The intermediate girls scored a massive 508 points but it was an incredibly tight competition which came down to the final event of the day, the relay, to decide who finally took the honours,” said Simpson.
“The junior girls also had awesome performances on the track far exceeding their expected targets and this gave them a 29 point lead going into the field competition.
“As usual a few of the athletes feel the pressure of the whole event and some of them lost their form but we still took the title.”
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