THERE was plenty of guts but no glory for Bradford area cyclo-cross riders in the fifth round of the National Trophy at Peel Park.

However, two were in with a great chance of victory in the veterans' races, only for a mechanical failure and cramp respectively to scupper their chances.

Cononley's Ian Taylor was involved in the day's hard luck story as he was leading Darren Atkins in the men's 40-49 years' race when his rear mech broke in the closing stages, which meant that Taylor had to carry his bike and back wheel up the last incline and along the finishing straight.

Atkins won by 25 seconds but they were far enough ahead so that Taylor was still able to finish second, 38 seconds in front of Pete Middleton.

Taylor said: "Darren got away when I slipped off on the third lap but the same thing happened to him later and I was able to catch up.

"It was nip and tuck for a while between us until my rear mech broke when I put the bike down.

"I had to carry it for about 250 metres but I was too far ahead to be caught for second."

Team-mate Andy Peace, from Haworth, was seventh.

Taylor is still leading the series with 232 points but is only four points ahead of Atkins, with the sixth and final round to go in Derby on Sunday, January 5. Peace is a distant third on 151.

Bingley's Marie Jackson (Paul Milnes Cycles-Bradford Olympic RC) was the pacesetter in the women's veterans' race when cramp struck.

She explained: "I was in the lead for quite a while and then I got cramp in my right quad and calf.

"Not winning is disappointing but you can't be too disappointed with finishing second."

Jackson is second overall in the series, 12 points behind Maddie Smith (Bolsover & District CC), who has now won three of the five rounds.

Alfie Moses (Paul Milnes Cycles-Bradford Olympic RC) only finished third in the junior men's category behind Mark McGuire (Team Bicycles) and Tom Craig (Pioneer Scott Syncros) but has wrapped up the series victory.

If the top two shed their worst result, he is still 48 points ahead of Joshua Waters (Sherwood Pines Cycles SRAM RT), and there are only 40 points available for the winner.

Moses, who chose to start on the inside of the bend, was ninth after the first lap but clawed his way back up the field.

However, he admitted afterwards: "Maybe I should have started more to the middle of the first bend."

Series victory apart, another bonus for Moses is that he has been chosen for his Great Britain debut in a World Cup race at Namur in Belgium on Sunday.

Shipley's Chris Young (Pedalsport CC) was second, 17 seconds behind Tim Gould (www.zepnat.com-Kuota-GSG) in the veterans' 50 plus, but still leads the series by 14 points from Philip Roach (Team Jewson-MI-Thule-Polypipe).

Young said: "I have had a cold and when I tried to push to get first, there was nothing there."

Moses' exhausted team-mate Sophie Thackray, from Eldwick, was fourth in the girls' under-16s and is third overall, while fellow Paul Milnes rider Finlay Cooper-Oldroyd was sixth in the under-14 boys to be seventh overall.

Wibsey's Euan Cameron (East Bradford Cycling Club) came 11th in the boys' under-16s, while Bingley's Rob Jebb (Hope Factory Racing) and Birkenshaw's Billy Harding (Orange Monkey Pro Team) were tenth and 15th in the men's elite race to be 12th and 19th in the standings, with Harding sixth among the under-23s.

Evie Richards (Malvern Cycle Sport) won the women's race, defeating fellow teenager Amira Mellor, of Paul Milnes Cycles, who is still the series leader.