FOUR Croydon Harriers took on the best runners in the UK while representing Surrey at the Inter-Counties Cross Country Championships in Birmingham last Saturday.

Peter Chambers finished 14th in a high-class field in the U20 men's race in a field of 200 finishers. The Trinity School pupil was Surrey's third scorer and helped the county secure the team title in the process. Ben Savill was 112th in the same race.

In the U17 women's category, Stevie Lawrence was an unofficial 80th, while improving Rob Spalding finished 153rd in the U15 boys' competition out of 288 runners.

Less than 24 hours later, Spalding challenged in the season's final Downs League race at Epsom Downs. In an enthralling finale, the 14-year-old led his two nearest challengers over the two-mile course until ten metres before the finish line and ultimately had to settle for third as well as third overall in the four-race series.

Omar Harhara was fifth and Dane Lawrence tenth in the same race to ensure Croydon finished runners-up on the day and third overall in their team standings. Caitlin Dixon was 16th in the U11s race and ninth overall.

On the road Neil Aikman's preparations for the London Marathon continued apace at the Spitfire 20 in Cranleigh, finishing 60th in two hours, 21 minutes and 59 seconds to cross the line in 60th and 24th M40.

Sophie Bates, building up for the Brighton Marathon, was 13th in the women's race in 2:35.34. There were 548 finishers.

In indoor action at the British Masters championships at Lee Valley, Mandy Rowley-Jones struck silver in the W50 triple jump with an 8.91m effort, and was fourth in the long jump (4.02m). Kim Heamans finished fifth in the W45 long jump in 3.13m.

In the outdoor throws, Tony Richards won a clutch of medals, with silver medal-winning performances in the shot (11.98m) and discus (39.75m), but struck gold in the javelin thanks to a throw of 35.21m.

In the pick of the ParkRun action, Alan Burn secured a third-place finish.

THE police have been dragged into a controversial planning wrangle after campaign posters went missing.

Foxley Residents' Association chairman Brian Watson reported the disappearance of posters opposing a proposed extension to the Highfield House care home in Higher Drive, which campaigners had attached to street signs along the road.

He said his suspicions were raised because the signs were removed quickly, roughly a week after being posted, and that they were also taken from his road, Densham Drive, which is private.

A Met Police officer duly recorded the "offence" and promised it would be passed to the Crime Assessment Unit.

But a quick call to the council by the Advertiser revealed revealed council officers had taken them down because of fly-posting regulations.

Mr Watson had suggested the posters may have been taken by supporters of Highfield House, but said the council's removing them was "galling".

He said: "The signs have cost money; we have quite a few residents – about 100 – who have joined the FRA and we do not ask for a subscription.

"We just asked if anyone would volunteer costs, and we got quite a bit.

"We understand taking them from the road signs not on our road, but they did not touch them last time and they have come a cropper with Densham Drive, which is now private."

Residents bought Densham Drive last year, fearing it would otherwise be clogged up by Highfield House visitors and workers.

The 27-bed home, which cares for NHS patients with severe neurological problems, opened in December 2011 against stiff opposition from some residents.

Mr Watson and opponents are now campaigning again, ahead of the planning inspector's decision on whether to allow the home a 22-bed extension.

Their protest signs, which warn of a "nightmare on Higher Drive" and list traffic and parking as key concerns, have not been removed from private gardens along the road.

Mr Watson said: "We went to all of the people that had them last time and said, 'Would you like to display a poster again?' and bar two they all said yes. So they are all there with their knowledge."

A council spokesman said that, while the campaign signs did not have planning permission, it tried to be "even-handed and use a bit of common sense" in deciding whether to take them down.

The spokesman said: "A lost dog [sign] is a good example of things that have been there for a long time but nobody asked for permission to put them up."

He added that, although the posters attached to Densham Drive signs were on private land, that would not have been obvious to the workers removing them.

The planning inspector's decision on the extension is expected in around a month's time.

AN aspiring rapper was "deliberately executed" because of a feud between his brother and one of the alleged gunmen, the Old Bailey has heard.

Umar Tufail,  25,  was shot in the head as he sat in a car outside his home in Wharncliffe Road, South Norwood, on July 15 last year. 

The shot came from a car driven by Sanchez Thomas and his passenger Kyrone Daley.

The court heard that Thomas, known as Limits, had "history" with Amir Tufail, Umar's younger brother, also known as Rems.

Jurors were told their feud culminated in Amir allegedly stabbing Thomas, a member of Bromley-based gang Squeeze Section, in Tooting in March 2012.

Daley alleges the bad blood led Thomas to kill Umar.

He claims to have been offered a lift by Thomas to his girlfriend's house.

Reading from Daley's defence statement, William Boyce QC, prosecuting, said that while on route, Thomas stopped the car alongside the red Corsa Umar was sitting in, and opened the front passenger window. 

"Thomas repeatedly accused the victim of being Rems, which he denied," said Mr Boyce.

"He reached down below the driver's seat and drew out what transpired to be a firearm, which the defendant (Daley) was completely unaware he had in his possession. 

"When Thomas established that the victim was the brother of Rems he, without any notice, shot him."

Daley accepts that after the killing they drove back to Unity Close, West Norwood, where they both live, before taking a minicab to a house in Fulham. 

He will argue that he "felt pressured" to do so, and is not linked to Squeeze Section.

The court was told that Thomas claims a third person in the car, who asked for a lift earlier in the journey, was the gunman.

Last Tuesday he revealed the identity of the alleged killer for the first time, blaming a member of Croydon's Don't Say Nothing (DSN) gang called Pauser.

The start of the trial was delayed while police searched for the teenager.

They found someone answering the description provided by Thomas, down to his silver tooth,  but discovered from his mobile phone records that he was in Maidstone on the weekend of the killing.

Mr Boyce read the jury a third statement made by Thomas who now claims he was referring to another DSN member called Pauser.

Thomas and Daley, both 19, are charged with murder under joint enterprise. 

Mr Boyce said it was unclear who fired the single shot which killed Umar but they had been "in on it together".

He said: "This was a deliberate execution. You don't shoot someone at very close range in the head unless you intend to kill them. 

"You wouldn't do that unless you are confident the other person was in it with you."

The jury was taken through CCTV footage which showed their journey to the scene and then back to Unity Close. At no point are they seen to pick up a third passenger or is anyone else seen to be in the car. 

The vehicle was seized after the shooting and gunshot residue was discovered on Thomas' top.

On the afternoon he was killed, Umar had driven his family's red Vauxhall Corsa to Tesco and then returned home.

"He then made the regrettable and fateful decision, from his point of view, to pop out again," said Mr Boyce.

Umar went back to the car, started the engine and was shot in the side of the head.

His mother,  Francesca Thompson, left the courtroom in tears on Tuesday as Mr Boyce described how her son had been a "sitting target".

Amir and his friend Stephen Crawford were playing computer games in an upstairs bedroom when they heard what sounded like a gunshot.  They ran out and found Umar slumped over the wheel. 

He was taken to hospital where he died the next day. 

Thomas and Daley deny murder. 

The trial continues.

CYCLING campaigners are urging the council to put in "the strongest bid possible" to make Croydon one of Boris Johnson's "mini Hollands".

The Mayor of London has announced a £913 million, 10-year plan to transform cycling in the capital, including promising funding for up to three outer London boroughs.

It could involve a radical redesign of the town centre's roads to showcase how areas can be made cycling friendly.

Last April, Mr Johnson claimed Croydon was "at the top of the list" for Boris Bikes, ahead of four other London boroughs, but is yet to deliver on the plan.

Kristian Gregory, from Croydon Cycling Campaign, is worried the mayor may pledge funding to richer boroughs.

He said: "Now these fantastic plans have been announced, we need to put pressure on the council to make sure they put as much energy into a bid as possible.

"It is such a great opportunity that could transform the relationship between cyclists and drivers."

Mr Gregory, 26, from Thornton Heath, says Croydon roads are not suitable for cycling in their present form.

He added: "It is clear that currently the way the roads are set up creates a lot of hostility towards cyclists.

"But the benefits of cycling are numerous and should not be looked down on.

"As well as the health benefits, it is environmentally friendly and takes the strain off public transport."

Mr Johnson also spoke of his plans to "de-lycrafy" cycling in the capital, words that Mr Gregory believes should inspire Croydon's political elite.

"Part of my worry about any bid is that our councillors and representatives don't seem to cycle themselves," he said.

"Why would they try and push cycling when they all use motorised vehicles themselves?"

Councillor Jason Perry, Croydon Council's cabinet member for transport, dismissed this idea, saying the council is fully committed to making Boris honour his promise.

He said: "We are waiting for clarification as to what the plans actually entail, but I can assure cyclists that we will be putting a lot of our efforts into trying to secure the funding.

"Croydon is a cycling borough and if there is any way we can get £100 million for the council to spend on enhancing that, then of course we would put every possible effort in."

Last year, the Advertiser conducted a commuter challenge, which found cycling to be both the most cost-efficient and quickest way to commute into work during the rush hour.

THE Royal Family is kept online by super computers stored in an unassuming Croydon industrial unit, it has emerged.

Pulsant, based in Imperial Way, was this week granted the Royal Warrant as provider of hosted IT and data centre services to the Royal Household.

It joins an exclusive club boasting household names likes Coca-Cola, Aston Martin, McVities biscuits and Strongbow cider.

The company was this week tight-lipped about its involvement with the monarch's data.

And asked whether the Queen's private e-mails were stored at the site, its chief executive Mark Howling refused to comment.

He said: "Obviously, we cannot divulge a lot of what we provide to Her Majesty's household and that professionalism is part of how we have built our reputation.

"Royal warrants are rare and highly respected for recognising the highest standards of service, excellence and quality.

"Our Royal Warrant cements our commitment to delivering world-class data solutions and services."

Buckingham Palace has long refused to comment on the Queen's private electronic communications.

But the Queen is said to have let slip that she had an e-mail address and reportedly told the editor of Vanity Fair magazine at a garden party that she dictated them to a member of staff.

Our monarch is not yet on Twitter. However there is an online presence in the form of twitter account @BritishMonarchy.

There are also several popular parody accounts, one of which (@Queen_UK) has more than a million followers.

Pulsant serves more than 3,000 customers and sources all of its energy from renewable sources.

Paul Hughes, head of marketing and product development, added: "We are very honoured and it just shows what the company offers.

"To receive this from someone of the Queen's stature is astounding."

FURIOUS pensioners have accused Croydon Council of "running roughshod" over the elderly after revealing plans to move homeless families into their sheltered accommodation in Thornton Heath.

Residents of the Gillett Road Sheltered Housing Scheme are fuming over plans which they fear will force them out of their homes.

The council want to move homeless families out of their temporary bed-and-breakfast places into the block.

But Paul Phillips, 73, secretary of Gillett, Garnett and Laxton Court Residents' Association, said: "It will cause huge disruption to a lot of elderly people's lives. You can't have frail, elderly people living in the same place as kids running around – the two don't mix.

"Some of us are worried we might have to move out, which we do not want to do at this stage of our lives."

The residents have begun a petition to fight the proposals.

Malcolm Felberg, 79, a retired PR consultant, said: "If you have single-parent families, then it is natural they will have visitors over late at night and play music at the weekend.

"We understand what it is like to be young but we have come here to get away from that.

"The council are running roughshod over the elderly. They don't give a second thought about us."

Residents claim the council officers who informed them of the plans did not provide any written details and spoke "like someone from MI5".

Mr Felberg added: "You would have needed a computer to work out what they were telling us."

David Sykes, 73, a former security guard with chronic bronchitis and emphysema, said the location is ideal for the elderly because the flats are opposite Thornton Heath Health Centre.

He said: "We aren't young anymore and we need to be looked after. Cuts mean they have taken our wardens away so we already feel more unsafe.

"They are just not big enough for families. They will be packing them in like sardines."

A council spokesman said: "Like most local authorities, the council has faced a significant increase in homelessness and expects this to continue for the foreseeable future.

"This proposal will help the council to manage homelessness and be more cost effective to the taxpayer, as it will reduce the council's reliance on expensive nightly paid accommodation such as bed and breakfasts.

"We are considering Gillett because it is a difficult to let high-rise tower blocks and we know that generally, older people prefer ground-floor accommodation."

The spokesman said that "nobody will move if they don't want to," adding: "There are a number of suitable alternatives near to Gillett, which people could potentially move to.

"We will be assisting them every step of the way should they choose to move."

TWO IT firms have announced they are to merge and move operations to Croydon with the aim of becoming UK market leaders in their field.

Caterham-based WorkPlaceLive and Cirrus Stratus, from Wimbledon, currently employ 18 people but plan to recruit 15 more by 2015.

The company, which will operate under the WorkPlaceLive name, hopes to double its business each year over the next few years and ultimately host up to 100,000 desktops, which will make it one of the UK's biggest enablers of remote working.

WorkPlaceLive was started in 2006 by brothers David and Paul Sturges. It was one of the first companies to market hosted desktops and has built a solid client base of charities, not-for-profits, and SMEs. Merging with Cirrus Stratus will strengthen its business and customer base, enabling it to expand further into the professional services market including law, accountancy and recruitment.

The company is supported by two investors, Joseph Blass and Asher Gratt, with a track record of success in the telecoms industry.

They see a huge opportunity in the hosted desktop market, described by Gartner, the world's leading information technology research and advisory company, as a "high-growth sector in the IT market place", predicted to grow globally at a compound rate of 17.7 per cent through to 2016.

The UK market is predicted to grow at a compound rate of 10.1 per cent by 2016.

Mr Blass said: "We are delighted to have brought together these two dynamic companies.

"We aim to turn IT from a problem into a solution. Today businesses need to be flexible and able to respond to clients quickly. Our hosted desktops are proven to help clients reduce their costs and improve their performance, and enable them to offer a more flexible work environment that many employees want."

The new management team consists of chief commercial operator David Sturges, ICT strategy director Paul Sturges ,and chief technology officer Constantine Galonis.

WorkPlaceLive will be working to provide clients with a range of highly secure, robust and cost effective hosted desktop services that will enable employees to access their desktops from any location and work as though they were in the office, wherever they are located.

The company will also be expanding its range of services, offering a unified communications service which is integrated into the desktop service – making it ideal for remote workers. It aims to use cutting-edge cloud technology to allow clients from start-ups and SMEs to large corporates to enjoy enterprise-level IT performance, reliability and security.

ROSS WARNES says Oxted must learn from their experience of a cup semi-final as they look to build on a positive year for the club.

The O's bowed out of the England Hockey Knockout Cup on Sunday after a 6-1 defeat at in-form Premier Division side Surbiton.

But the O's skipper said the club should be proud of their achievements, having gone as far as they had ever gone in the competition and been the last national league club standing at the semi-final stage.

And having secured their Men's Conference East safety for another year with a 2-2 draw at Cambridge City on Saturday, Warnes said there was much to build on for next season.

He said: "It has been a positive year and a really good experience.

"We want more of that and we will have to see how we fare over the summer in terms of recruitment.

"But we are definitely proud of our achievements, albeit slightly disappointed that we couldn't run Surbiton a little bit closer."

However, Warnes said there was no shame in losing to the in-form Surrey outfit, who recently beat Premier Division leaders Beeston and the current English champions Reading.

He said: "They have got one or two world class players and that is the kind of step up you get when you go from where we are around the middle to top of the national leagues, to the top two in the Premier League.

"They have recently beaten Beeston and they are a serious side with big ambitions to do well in the Premier League play-offs.

"But if we had been offered at the beginning of the year the chance to finish third or fourth in the league and reach the semi-final of the cup, we would have been pretty pleased."

Meanwhile, Warnes said the O's were now focused on ending their season on a high, with Oxted taking on Bromley & Beckenham in their final league fixture on Sunday.

And the stakes are still high, with the possibility of Oxted finishing anywhere from third to seventh in the division.

He said: "There is a big focus on this weekend and a big appetite to get behind the club and sign off the season in style.

"We have the ladies at home in their semi-final on Sunday and then our final home game too.

"We want to finish on a high and we are looking forward to the game.

"There are some close links between us and Bromley & Beckenham and we know they will be looking to avenge the two defeats we inflicted on them earlier in the season.

"But we want to finish the season well and then we can enjoy the summer and look ahead to next year."

OXTED Ladies are raring to go for their Investec Women's Vase semi-final clash with West Bridgford Monarchs on Sunday, according to skipper Lisa Nightingale.

The O's captain says that the holders are "massively looking forward to the game", despite their opponents having an enviable record so far this season.

The Monarchs have won all 20 of their matches in the Notts Women's Hockey League, while they have defeated the University of Liverpool and Bloxwich on their way to the semi-final of the Vase.

But Nightingale insists that record will count for nothing when the two sides meet on Sunday, adding that the O's could not afford to take any notice of that.

"They haven't lost or drawn a game all season," she said.

"But we know that Surrey is generally regarded as one of the strongest county leagues and we finished second in that.

"We have also had some good results and we beat Lymm in the last round, who also had a pretty impressive record.

"They [West Bridgford] may have a good record, but we can't let that affect us, we just need to go out there and play our hockey and hopefully we can win."

And despite seeing their training schedule disrupted by the recent weather, Nightingale says the squad was fighting fit and ready for the challenge.

"Everyone is really up for it," she said. "We want to get on and progress in the Vase - it is a competition we really like and we want to keep playing hockey this season. We have a good squad and will be ready for it."

Nightingale added she hoped the club would get a good crowd for the game, with Oxted's men also due to play their final league game against Bromley and Beckenham after the ladies' match.

She said: "We know there will be a lot of family members there and hopefully a few club members too.

"We want to replicate what we did in the competition last year and hopefully a good crowd will be there to cheer us on."

Meanwhile, the ladies' coach, Mike Trim, said he was confident that his side could go out and produce a performance.

He said: "They proved in the last round they are capable of rising to a strong challenge and hopefully we will do it again."

CRYSTAL Palace threw away a fantastic opportunity to go second in the Championship last Sunday as they were put to the sword by bitter rivals Brighton & Hove Albion.

The Eagles actually had the better of the first period but were undone in the final five minutes of the half as the hosts scored a quick-fire double; one a brilliant free-kick from David Lopez.

Boss Ian Holloway did not think the Seagulls deserved to be 2-0 up at the break, however.

"How they went in 2-0, on the balance of play, I don't see that," he said. "It was a huge amount of skill [for the second goal]. The goals made them grow, but well done, they scored three, we didn't – simple," he said.

"Their wide men had more joy than ours funnily enough, seeing as though it's normally us that play that way. I didn't think we attacked as well as we can with the team I had out there.

"They scored two quick goals and I'm disappointed how we conceded them. I can't remember any of my lads having a decent game. We lost 3-0 to the team that played better on the day.

"We have to dust ourselves down and look optimistic again."

When asked about the rivalry between the two clubs, Holloway believes it is not just Brighton who Palace have as a rival at this point of the season. With the automatic promotion spot up for grabs before kick-off, a win would have put Palace in the driving seat.

"It's about who can finish the season in those two places," he said. "I don't care about rivalry – we have rivalry with all other teams in this division. I just think it was their day, to be blunt."

The match began at a ferocious pace as expected, but with the ball zipping around on a slick surface, both teams made mistakes.

Palace nearly took the lead after 21 minutes when Bolasie sent in a dangerous free-kick which Matthew Upson headed towards his own goal, but goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak got down brilliantly with a low stop.

And they should have scored two minutes later when Zaha played a great ball into Jonathan Parr, but he shot straight at the keeper when either side of him would have been a goal.

However, the hosts opened the scoring on 43 minutes thanks to Leonardo Ulloa. Will Buckley got down the right and delivered a ball to the back post for the striker to head home via a deflection.

And they doubled their lead just before the break thanks to a stunning free-kick from Lopez.

Kagisho Dikgacoi had committed a foul on Buckley on the edge of the box, leaving the winger to curl the ball over the wall and off the underside of the bar. Julian Speroni had no chance and Brighton's tails were up.

Just minutes into the second period, they grabbed their third after some woeful defending from the Eagles.

Liam Bridcutt delivered a ball to the back post for Orlandi, who headed back across goal to an unmarked Ulloa, and he had all the time in the world to volley low past Speroni.

Brighton could have added a fourth after a quick breakaway from a Palace corner when Ulloa forced Speroni into a save, before the stopper was up quickly to deny Buckley on the rebound.

Parr created Palace's last chance of the game when he sent in a great delivery but Zaha volleyed well wide with a first time effort.