The team went into the final match lying in fourth place overall, knowing victories over Tamworth and Cheltenham would seal their place in division one.
R&N did more than enough on the day and while there were only a handful of A-string winners, t
he foundation of success came from consistent top three finishes throughout the day.
For the men there were only two individual winners, in the 1500m where Stephen Emery and Stuart Nelson achieved a double.
Emery's performance was especially commendable as he made the dash from Derby where he had earlier competed in the 800m for the Midlands, in order to cover for a late withdrawal.
John Bell and Dave Cowley claimed second place in the 400m hurdles and pole vault while Andy Reeves had another busy day, competing in five events and collecting a string of valuable points.
One encouraging feature of the season has been the introduction of a number of under-17 and under-20 athletes into the team, all of whom have shown that they are ready to compete at this level.
On Sunday, Ben Lees and Daniel Bennett stepped up in the long and triple jumps, each performing well with Lees claiming a personal best in the first round of the triple.
He also equalled his personal best in the B-string 200m.
The ladies had two individual winners, Samantha Cullinane in the javelin and the 4x100m squad whose 50.7 clocking showed why the club is one of the best in the country.
They also had a string of second places from Claire Spurway, Hannah Oliver, Ellena Ruddock and Sally Baker, while in the B-string Claire Pearson and Hannah Oliver claimed victories while strong second places came from Joanne Emery, Madeleine Smith and Emma McGowan.
In spite of a slow start by all clubs, the new format of combined men's and women's competition has proved to be a great success with a series of competitive fixtures which all clubs have enjoyed and performances that have steadily improved.
Next season, Bristol and Birchfield will be promoted making for stronger competition but there is no reason why, with a home fixture and good planning, R&N cannot win the league in 2009.
The final match of the season for the senior teams is the BAL Cup Final at Bedford on September 6 where the ladies are in the final while the men provide the warm-up by competing in the Plate Final beforehand.
On the same day, the NYAL team will be competing in their Auxiliary Final at Manchester.
Dave Lazenby led home a strong contingent of Wootton Road Runners in the Wellingborough 5.
Lazenby clocked 30mins 38secs to finish 24th overall, just ahead of his brother Chris in 30mins 39secs (25th).
Steve Heighway had a good run and was 31st with a time of 31mins 36secs.
Also in the leading pack for Wootton was Graham Hollowell, his time of 32mins 34secs earning him 39th spot.
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