THIS season's North Yorkshire and South Durham Harrier League has been brought to a close by the foot and mouth crisis.

Two meetings have been called off, and with little prospect of the League fixtures being resumed organisers have decided that the final placings should be based on the best three runs out of four.

The top individual awards go to the defending champions, Paul Bentley and Marie Stansmore, both of the Middlesbrough and Cleveland club.

Bentley, who became one of the youngest-ever winners of the senior men's title last year, suffered only one defeat in his three outings at the hands of Great Britain junior international Stephen Hepples, unbeaten in his two races.

The Teessider ran with great consistency in his three events, finishing three points ahead of up-and-coming Mandale Harrier, Rob Cole, with last season's runner-up, Shaun O'Grady in third place a further four points away.

Hartlepool Burn Road's Ian Cook, who completed a hat-trick of senior men's championships before joining the veteran ranks, won the over-40 title, beating the defending champion, new Marske's Tony Livingston, by two points.

Cook had hoped to spearhead Burn Road to victory in the team championship, but the Hartlepool club were pipped by one point by York outfit Knavesmire.

Stansmore, who won the North-East women's crown for the third time in four years in December, was unbeaten in her three NYSD races, winning the title from the consistent Darlington runner, Bernadette Taylor, second in her three races, and leading Middlesbrough and Cleveland to the team championship.

Middlesbrough and Cleveland also provided the Under-20 women's champion in Carolyn Summersgill, who was also unbeaten throughout the series, while clubmate Samantha Hart took the Under-15 girls title with maximum points.

* Durham County swept the board, winning all eight team titles and providing five individual winners - Richard Kemp (under-17 men), Ben Hannant (under-15 boys), Khalil Thompson (under-11), Michelle Holt (under-17 women) and Laura McKennan (under-15 girls) - in the National Association of Youth Clubs Cross Country Championships at Liverpool.