TWO recent North-East race winners, Ian Hudspith and Terry Wall, both wearing the colours of Morpeth Harriers, are expected to be among the region’s top finishers in tomorrow’s Great North Run.

Great Britain international Hudspith, joining the ranks of the over-40 veterans next week, completed a hat-trick of victories in this month’s Tees Pride 10K in Middlesbrough, while 40-year-old Wall, a prolific competitor in local events, retained his title in the Sedgefield Serpentine multi-terrain 6.5-mile race last weekend after helping his club win the veterans’ relay at Farringdon the previous day.

Hudspith, who has a halfmarathon personal-best time of 62 mins 53 secs from his sixth finish at The Hague in 1996, has been the North- East’s top finisher in the Great North Run for the last three years. Last year he was 14th and third Briton in a time of 64.49, six seconds faster than his 17th placing the previous year, while his best time for the Tyneside event was 63.59, which won him tenth place in 2007.

Wall, who joined the veteran ranks in June, could challenge for the over-40 title.

He clocked his personal-best time of 69.12 winning the Redcar Half Marathon in 2004 and won the Newton Aycliffe 10K four times.

Chester-le-Street’s Great Britain international Alyson Dixon, now coached by Scottish legend Liz McColgan, three-times winner of the Great North Run, will be vying to become the region’s first woman to finish as she prepares for another crack at the marathon in New York on November 7.

The 31-year-old Wearsider has a pb of 73.40 from the 2009 Bristol Half Marathon, which earned her selection for the World Half Marathon Championships in Birmingham, where she finished 45th in 75.19.

Under the guidance of McColgan she won the bronze medal in the English Half Marathon Championships at Wilmslow in March in a time of 74.04 and was a creditable fourth in the Great Yorkshire 10K in Sheffield two weeks ago.

Chester-le-Street club-mate Angela Hibbs had the distinction of being the region’s first woman finisher last year when she was 13th in a time of 78.27. She brought her pb down to 77.17 at Wilmslow, where she finished fifth.

■ Houghton Harriers have cancelled their Michael Page Memorial 10K, due to be held in Hetton Country Park on October 10, because of problems with the course.

Entry fees will be refunded.