HURDLES pair Gianni Frankis and Hayley McLean both won gold medals for Essex at the UK Intercounties Championships in Bedford.

And their efforts helped Essex win the overall title at the championships.

Frankis, left, from Pitsea, ran a wind assisted 13.57s to win the 110m hurdles after running a legal 13.61s in the semi-final.

Stanford-le-Hope’s McLean – the European Junior champion – won her final 400m hurdles race of the year in a comfortable time of 58.98s.

Elsewhere there was a bronze medal for Rayleigh pole vaulter Liam Yarwood who cleared 4.35m inside because conditions were too bad outside. Team-mate Mitch Etheridge was sixth (4.15m).

Southend AC’s Tom Frith was fifth in the mile (4m 27.13s) despite only making the start by five minutes because of traffic problems, while Rayleigh’s Sophie Riches was 10th in the 1,500m (4m 36.54s).

Lee Dollard was Basildon’s sole representative. Despite twisting his ankle in the wet conditions before his heat, Dollard sped to a 100m PB of 10.82s, but it was not quite enough to make the final.

Essex team manager Keith Palmer said: “We had a great team and gained the highest points score and winning margin I can remember.”

l Former Southend High School for Boys pupil Richard Morrissey was forced to pull out of the intercounties match with injury.

The Irish international’s final race of a terrific season was at Hendon in July where he ran a PB of 46.42s over 400m.