Dencroft's instantly became warm
favourites. Whenever Dencroft's brown and gold appeared at the
scratch, the school shouted for it wildly till the event was over. By
the end of the day the totals were more nearly even, but Dencroft's
were still ahead. They had lost on the long jump, but not
unexpectedly. The totals at the finish were, School House
twenty-three, Dencroft's twenty-five. Everything now depended on the
long run.
"We might do it," said Kennedy to Fenn, as they changed. "Milligan's a
cert for three points, of course, but if we can only get two we win
the cup."
"There's one thing about the long run," said Fenn; "you never quite
know what's going to happen. Milligan might break down over one of the
hedges or the brook. There's no telling."
Kennedy felt that such a remote possibility was something of a broken
reed to lean on. He had no expectation of beating the School House
long distance runner, but he hoped for second place; and second place
would mean the cup, for there was nobody to beat either himself or
Crake.
The distance of the long run was as nearly as possible five miles. The
course was across country to the village of Ledby in a sort of
semicircle of three and a half miles, and then back to the school
gates by road. Every Eckletonian who ran at all knew the route by
heart.
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