Splash and dash in the mud: Brilliant #LindsaysXC fun as hundreds run at three venues

Sunday 7th December 2025

Photo by Bobby Gavin

*Please note this is a ‘quick’ report from events at three venues. Subject to further corrections in due course. Thank you for your patience.

West at Erskine

Naomi Lang returned from an end of season break to win the Lindsays West District XC in fine style.

Nominated for our 4J Athlete of the Year award the previous weekend, she swapped glad rags for the Glasgow University Hares and Hounds kit to tackle the mud at Erskine.

Naomi duly won from a chase ‘posse’ of Shettleston Harriers runners as those in blue and yellow were second, third, fourth and fifth!

Jamie Burns later gave Shettleston another podium moment as he won the Men’s race from Cameron Smith on Cambuslang Harriers and Jonathan Downey of Kilmarnock Harriers.

‘I raced a couple of times in October after the World Hill and Trail Champs in Italy,’ said Naomi, who won a superb bronze in that event.

‘I rolled my ankle and was in need of the break anyway. This is my first race back and it just felt . . . short. Normally my trail and hill races are much longer and I’m seeing a wee irony there . . . because for a spell I always though cross country was ‘long’.’

Shettleston won the Senior Women’s team golds after that excellent packing with Naomi helping Glasgow Uni to silver. Bellahouston Harriers took home bronze medals.

Cambuslang Harriers won the Senior men’s golds from Shettleston Harriers.

Glasgow Uni’s Charlotte MacPhie and Giffnock’s Oliver MacDonald won the U20 titles.

West age group champions in other ages were:

U17: Millie Gairns of Airdrie and Daibhidh Kinnaird of Cambuslang

U15: Nina Clark of East Kilbride and Donald Macinnes of Giffnock

U13: Eilidh Adam of Kilmarnock Harriers and Carlo Brown of Cambuslang

Photo by Bobby Gavin

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Photo by Neil Renton

East at Stirling

Central AC’s grip on the Scottish cross country scene at Senior Men’s level looks as strong as ever – and the East District podium underlined that.

Jamie Crowe won the title once again at Stirling and was followed home by team-mates in yellow via strong runs by Hamish Hickey and Aidan Thompson.

Central thus duly won the team golds from Corstorphine AAC and Aberdeen AAC.

The Senior Women’s race featured an exciting finish with the top three separated by only three seconds after their 8k of strong running.

Edinburgh AC’s Nancy Scott took the win by one second from Morag Millar of Central with third-placed Kirsty Dickson only a couple of seconds further back.

Nancy’s victory guided home Edinburgh to the team golds from Central and Gala Harriers.

Our U20 champions in the East were Charlotte-Rose Burton of Edinburgh Uni and Rowan Taylor Lasswade AC.

In the U17 age groups, there were title wins for Rachel Caves of Harmeny and Ray Taylor of Falkirk Victoria Harriers.

And we had further East District champions in younger age groups as follows:

U15: Emi Daunt of Edinburgh AC and Harry Robinson of Dundee Hawkhill Harriers

U13: Millie Glass-Park of Aberdeen AAC and Blake Burchill of Harmeny AC.

Photo by Neil Renton

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Photo with thanks to Carol Sim

North at Elgin

East Sutherland’s Ross Gollan retained his Lindsays North District Men’s title by 32 seconds from Robin Regan, who led Inverness to their seventh team championship in a decade.

Catriona Graves regained the Women’s crown she last won in 2022 with 20 seconds to spare over fellow Highland Hill Runner Sarah Hodgson, and this 1-2 sent the Hill Runners well on their way to a fifth consecutive team award.

Andrew Baird of Inverness was a clear winner of the U20 Men’s race and was able to do battle with Gollan for much of the distance, until turning off to complete the shorter U20 route. Inverness were U20 team champions.

Similarly, The U20 Women’s champion, Stornoway’s Abbie Stewart, was able to mix it with the front of that senior field until the two events parted company. There were no complete teams.

East Sutherland’s Gordon Lennox and 2024 overall women’s winner Helen Leigh of Inverness were the Masters champions and the team titles went respectively to Inverness and Highland Hill Runners. Rob Burnett (Inverness) and Muriel MacLeod (Stornoway), who also won W40 silver, were the top v50 athletes.

Inverness dominated the young athletes contests with three individual and five team wins from six races.

The individual winners were:- U17 men – Billy Sutherland (Ross County); U17 women – Lois MacRae (Inverness); U15 boys – Archie Grant (Inverness); U15 Women – Niamh Doorley (Inverness); U13 boys – Toby Smith (Lochaber AC); U13 Girls – Hayleigh Reid (Peterhead).

Ross County took the U17 men’s team title and Inverness the rest.

With thanks to Charles Bannerman