Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club’s veteran men’s track & field team has qualified for the Southern Counties Veterans finals for the first time in the club’s history.

Led by team manager Dave Orchard, the vets won their final match at Croydon Sports Arena to win the South West London division last weekend.

They won three of the four divisional fixtures, finishing runners-up in the fourth, and will take their place at the finals held in Ashford, Kent, in September.

John Webster, the club’s oldest active athlete who celebrated his 77th birthday at the end of last month, contributed to the team triumph with a club over-75 age record of 2.51m in the long jump.

Individual wins came thick and fast with Mike Amsden taking the over-35 100m in 12.2 seconds, before linking up with Dominic Bokor-Ingram, Vic Ray and Mark White to win the sprint relay in a club record 49.7secs.

Stuart Milton gained a double success in the shot and discus, while Bokor-Ingram also won the over-40 100m and 400m.

Dean Cheeseman won the over-40 high jump and shot, while Mark White took the over-50 100m and 400m.

Team manager Orchard led by example, winning the over-50 javelin and finishing second in the shot - Charles Laurie took the over-60 100m.

Hercules Wimbledon’s veterans women’s team finished a solid fourth out of sixth teams on the day to finish fourth overall.

Gina Galbraith broke the club women’s over-40 record in winning her 1,500m race in five minutes 17.4 seconds, with Vikki Filsell taking the B race.

Galbraith was also second in the 400m, with Filsell third in the 100m A race and second in the 400m B event.

Anna Garnier broke the Hercules Wimbledon over-60 record in the 400m, clocking 1:17.7 to finish second in her 400m race, and she also won the 1,500m, while Lisa Thomas broke the club record in the over-50 2,000m walk, clocking 13:48.90 for third place.

Elsewhere. Hercules Wimbledon’s Tor-Ivar Guttulsrod won the Veterans Athletic Club five miles road walking championship in Battersea Park in 44:42.

At the same venue, Peter Giles set a new age course record in winning the over-70 5km road race in 20:07.

Also in Battersea Park, Kieran White broke the Hercules Wimbledon veterans over-40 record in finishing second in the Sri Chimney 5km road race in 16:15.

He took 22 seconds off the mark set by Steve Sinnott in 2003.

Hercules Wimbledon teenager Harry Wright helped Surrey to second team place in an under 17 inter-counties match at Norman Park, Bromley, on Sunday finishing sixth in the high jump with a personal best of 1.75m. He achieved his lifetime best despite suffering from a chesty cough.