MIGHTY Morpeth Harriers, fresh from their hat-trick of victories in the Northern Six-Stage Road Relay Championships, will be hot favourites in the annual Blaydon Harriers Nichol Hunter Memorial Cross Country Relays tomorrow.

The reigning North-East cross country champions came unstuck at Shibdon Pond last year, losing by two seconds to a youthful Gosforth team which had caused a major upset two weeks earlier at Farringdon, Sunderland.

But Gosforth have lost athletes because of university commitments and could only claim the bronze medals when they defended their title in the opening cross country event of the season three weeks ago.

Morpeth's main rivals at Blaydon were expected to be Sunderland Harriers, who challenged them for their regional title last winter, but the Wearsiders are staging their centenary dinner tonight and are unlikely to be out in force tomorrow.

The meeting starts at noon with a fun run for under-11s and the main programme, with events for all age groups, starts ten minutes later.

* Sunderland Harrier Steve Potts retained his title in the Derwentside ten-mile road race - despite having to fend of an attack by a stray dog near the end of the race.

Potts won by nearly two minutes in 54 mins 39 seconds, slightly faster than last year.

New Chester-le-Street recruit Tracey Laws also retained her women's title in 69 mins 36 secs, beating clumate Dawn Elliott.

Results - Men: 1 S Potts (Sunderland) 54.39; 2 A Tatham (Quakers) n56.21; 3 D Purvis (Chester-le-Street) 56.35; 4 M WSmith (Unatt M40) 57.53; 5 J Ross (Northern Fell Runners M40) 58.22.

Women: 1 T Laws (ClS) 69.36; 2 D Elliott (ClS W45) 70.42; 3 J Dooley (Tynedale) 71.03.