NEW RECRUIT Neil Wilkinson led Morpeth Harriers to team success with a debut senior men's victory in the 98th North-East Cross Country Championships at Darlington.

And the 35-year-old former Salford Harrier, who has moved to the area to work as a hospital physiotherapist, immediately pledged himself to the North-East cause by accepting a place in the Inter-Counties Championships team.

But Wilkinson was made to fight all the way by Chester-le-Street's Martin Scaife, who set the pace from the gun and after conceding the lead midway through the race staged a desperate late rally, only to lose by 20 metres.

"I got really scared with 400 metres to go because I could sense him coming back at me and the crowd was cheering him on," said Wilkinson, who won the Greater Manchester Cross Country title in 1998. "But I managed to hang on and I'm delighted to have won at the first attempt. It was a brilliant contest - a really tough race."

Scaife was disappointed with the result after going into the race full of confidence.

He said: "I am preparing for a half marathon in the spring and my training had been going very well. But while everything seems to be going well in training I am not quite getting it right in races.

"But it was a good race and in the end there wasn't much in it. Maybe I'll do better next year."

The spectators were kept on tenterhooks throughout the 12K event, and there was a special cheer for ten-times champion Brian Rushworth, who, on the eve of his 41st birthday, claimed the bronze medal with a typical gutsy performance. The women's crown went to Chester-le-Street based Meryl Dodd, who also won the championship in 1998.

The 34-year-old Bingley Harrier paced herself perfectly as Darlington's Suzie Rutherford led the pack past the halfway mark, reeling in her younger rival and pushing into a winning lead on the third lap. Rutherford, paying for her earlier efforts, was later overtaken by Chester-le-Street's Kathryn Waugh.

The most exciting finish of the day was seen in the under-15 girls' race, when Morpeth's Anghared Porteous won a desperate sprint to the line against Tynedale's Stacey Smith - so close that the timekeepers could not separate the two runners. Morpeth, with three individual and four team titles, won the overall club championship.

Results: Senior Men (12K): 1 N Wilkinson (Morpeth) 39 mins 55 secs; 2 M Scaife (Chester-le-Street) 39.58; 3 B Rushworth (Sunderland) 40.12; 4 D Wardle (London Irish) 40.22; 5 S Bell (ClS) 41.08; 6 M Hood (Sund) 41.37; 7 R Hand (Durham City) 41.43; 8 A Toward (Morp) 41.47; 9 M Nicholson (Gosforth) 41.48; 10 R Cole (Middlesbrough Mandale) 42.01. Teams: 1 Morpeth 89; 2 Chester-le-Street 132; 3 Sunderland 188.