NORTH-EAST Harrier League officials are trying to find a suitable cross country venue to ensure a continuation of the traditional six-meeting competition this winter.

Having lost fixtures at Consett and Chester-le-Street, the League has only been able to find five clubs willing to host meetings in the season ahead and are stuck for a course for the weekend of December 15/16.

Several clubs have expressed a willingness to host a fixture but the suggested venues lack adequate changing facilities for the hundreds of athletes taking part.

North-East Counties AA chairman Bill McGuirk said: "We have one or two irons in the fire and we are still hopeful of finding a suitable venue for the pre-Christmas fixture.

"The last thing we want is for the League to be reduced to five fixtures - once we lose one meeting we could lose others."

The five confirmed Harrier League fixtures are: Sunday, November 19, Blaydon; Saturday, January 5, Temple Park, South Shields; Saturday, January 12, Sunderland; Saturday, February 16, Wrekenton, Gateshead; Saturday, March 1, Prudhoe. The Sherman Cup/Davison Shield meeting will be held at Temple Park, South Shields, on Saturday, October 27.

* The North Yorkshire and South Durham Harrier League season starts tomorrow at Summerhill, Hartlepool.

Other fixtures: October 21 Barnard Castle; November 4 Flatts Lane Country Park; November 18 Thirsk; January 13 Whitby; February 10 Stockton; March 16 Richmond.

* Derwentside AC has been forced, by rising costs, to scrap its popular annual ten-mile road race after a run of 21 years and replace it with a multi-terrain event on October 21.

The new event, the Hellhole 10K, gets its name from part of the course going through Beamish Hellhole Woods.

The out-and-back race, which uses cycle tracks, will start at Tanfield School at 10.30am.