HALSTEAD Road Runners returned to the Spitfire Scramble 24-hour event at Hornchurch Country Park, fielding a ladies' team of five, two men’s teams of eight and two solo runners.

Many of the team members had participated in the popular event in previous years, but the heatwave caused blistering conditions for runners and impacted on the trails underfoot.

The Halstead ladies claimed the top spot in the Ladies Team of Three to Five category.

Despite leading from the off, they faced some fierce competition from the Loombandit Ladies.

The Halstead Ladies each completed five laps - the equivalent of 29 miles.

They were captained by Jo Roulson and consisted of Natalie Snow, Sam Hillyard, Nicole Smith and Caroliena Cameron.

For the Men, Nathan Roulson not only superbly organised the club’s attendance at the event but also ably led the Men’s A team of Neil Poulter, Steve May, Bob Langley, Ivan Filchev, Jim Clark, Sam Wolton and Juan de Gea.

The men placed highly on the final leaderboard in fourth position after all putting in some consistent and strong individual performances.

Unfortunately for the second Halstead Men’s Team, their captain, Karl Hillman, badly turned his ankle on the first lap leaving him out of action for the remainder of the event.

His team-mates - Phil Jeffries, Trevor Sibley, Ian Chandler, Richard Tiller, Kris Bell, Axel Voigt and Adam Buckle - didn’t let this affect their mood, though, pulling together to pick up the slack and they finished ninth in their category.

For the soloists, James Smith completed 14 laps, approximately 81 miles, over the 24 hour period.

He placed sixth overall, while John Warne was accompanied by friend of the club and fellow solo runner Vicki Bailey for some of his laps.

Warne completed ten laps, approximately 58 miles, to finish 14th in the men's solo standings.