Whilst the fete itself suffered from a waterlogged field, it did nothing to deter the 64 runners that lined up for the 5½ mile course.

The leading group of five runners that included both Sean Carey and Nick Barber in contention for the win took a wrong path mid way through the race and lost valuable time.

Local resident Greg Elwell running in the colours of Halifax Harriers triumphed in 43:04.

First Todmorden Harrier to finish was Nick Barber who recovered back to 8th place just over a minute behind the winner. With top future prospects Sean Carey in 12th and Matt Crowley in 18th not far behind, they narrowly landed Todmorden the award of first team ahead of neighbours Calder Valley.

Sean added to this season’s growing credits as he pipped his club mate to the under-18 prize which was some consolation for the lost places in the overall placing.

First lady home was Todmorden based, but unattached runner, Lauren Jeska in 49:35. The first Harrier lady was Paula Haworth, who along with Sarah Moss and Rachel Allen combined to take the honours as first ladies team.