CHRIS Farrell has topped off 2016 in great style, having achieved a target of beating 30 minutes for a 10k road race.

He did this on Sunday at the Telford 10k, finishing only 30 seconds behind winner Joshua Grace and beaten only by runners of the calibre of Bolton’s Olympian, Tom Lancashire, who was pipped for victory by just one second.

While Farrell went this week from cross country to road, Simon Pymm went the opposite way and achieved a fine third place at the fell-like and well-regarded Tandle Hill cross country race, the second fixture in the South East Lancs XC League.

At Tandle Hill the over-50 vets took third team place but couldn’t match the under-13s and u15s boys who earlier at the same event had won their team prizes. Also at u13s Isabella Merritt and Matthew Mair collected two more individual first places.

In the senior women’s race, cross country debutant Heather Pinnell took third place in the women’s u20s category. Tony Hesketh took the second place for men in the V65 category.

Back on the roads, James Jordan took sixth place amid the festive fun at the Longridge Xmas Pudding Seven-Mile Race.

There will undoubtedly be more mingling of frivolity and competition at the Santa Dash race, which sets off from Curley’s in Horwich this Sunday.

In parkrun the Harriers had five first places through Gareth Booth (Preston), Richard Howarth (Cuerden Valley), Paul Muller (Lytham Hall), Lukas Siska (Haigh Woodland) and Alyssia Jackson (Queens Park junior parkrun). There were also notable second places, Joe Mercer at Heaton and Milly Lever was second female at Haigh Woodland.

Tandle Hill XC (Royton): men's placings – third Simon Pymm 42:02, 35th Gary Chadderton 47:49, 42nd Doug Fleming 49:17, 76th Tony Hesketh 55:07, 95th David Barnes 58:00, 96th Lawrence Pinnell 58:07, 112th Gordon Stone 01:01:19. Women's placings – 75th Heather Pinnell 55:51.

Juniors placings – u15s boys: second Lewis Wilkes, third Robert Seddon, ninth Kieran Kinealy; u13s girls: first Isabella Merritt, fifth Freya Whittle; u13 boys: first Matthew Mair, second Toby Middleton, third Nathan Lancaster; u11s girls: fifth Emma Bradley; u11s boys: third Ethan Isaacs, 23rd Elliott Whittle.

Longridge Xmas Pudding Seven-Mile Race – 6th James Jordan 43:28, 44th Paul Boardman 49:18, 322nd Ed Swift 01:23:54, Mytholmroyd fell race – 25th Dan Gilbert 56:29, Telford 10k road race (Shropshire) – 12th Chris Farrell 29:51.