Remembering Warrington Athletic Coach Bert Quennell – 1937

EARLIER this month Bert Quennell, one of Warrington Athletic Club’s great coaches passed away at the age of 87.

As a runner he’d put some excellent performances together, arguably his club record in 1966 when he won the County 20-mile Championship in a time of 1:51:18 was his best. It will be as a great coach that he will be remembered.

In 1995 during a sports interview, he told Nicola Dela-Croix that he was very proud of coaching two Warrington British Internationals Andy Green & Sue Bevan. He even played a part in advising one of his runners Jimmy Crehan who coached his wife Sue Crehan in her preparation for the 1988 Soeul Olympic Marathon where she finished 32nd in a fantastic time of 2:36.

Bert said of Andy “He was a good chap to coach. He won his debut in around 2:15” Andy went on to gain a pb of 2:12:02. Andy wrote “Bert gave up so many hours for me standing at the side of the track with a watch, come rain or shine (usually rain and wind). He always gave me the best advice. Sometimes I used to think, ‘Bert you’ve got that wrong’ But in the end, he was usually right. He was just a lovely bloke.”
Bert was born 2 years before the start of the second World War in Appleton Thorn in 1937. He told Nicola “I decided I wanted to be a boxer, a cyclist or a runner”. Bert explained “Boxers get hurt and cyclists need a bike, so I chose running.” He said that he was inspired by his brother Cliff who was the Warrington and District 100 yards Champion for three successive years. Of course, living high above Warrington with fantastic view quiet country roads, tracks and hills to train on he was in the ideal place.
At the age of 17 he joined Warrington Athletic Club (WAC), despite people saying that he wouldn’t succeed. He said his biggest regret was not having a coach and that he just fumbled around, learning and experimenting but he made up for that through his great willpower and determination. He would be up at 6 am to run 6 and a half miles to work and back home again.
Geoff Settle, former WAC chair said: “These were not fumblings but the start of the Bert Quennell coaching manual that he was formulating in his head. He went on coaching courses and worked out weekly schedules for his groups. These along with times and distances would be recorded and analysed when he got home even though he’d spent a working day as a BT Telecoms Engineer out in often horrible, cramped conditions in all sorts of weather. After a training session, I would spend an age talking about running and stuff until the groundsman switched of the stadium track lights”
His training philosophy was ‘no shortcuts’ s just calculated hard work depending on the season. In the winter on a Monday that would be cross-country training on a secret location with his men and women running as a pack doing 6 laps of a sloping muddy field. On Tuesday it was sessions on the very steep Stockton Heath Red Lane.
When spring came along his group would get ready for road and relay races. They would start with 400m repartitions with 1 minute recovery after each lap. The first few weeks would be 12 laps working gradually up to a peak of 20 or so weeks later. Derek Veron said “After a few weeks we were doing 20 by 400m at 70 seconds pace and I still have a copy from his notebook of a track session we did. Bert Quennell was a great coach a gentleman and respected by all.”
Bert came to Geoff’s assistance when he first took on the onerous task of organising the Chris Vose Road Race. The police weren’t going to permit the 10-mile road event because it had stopped the traffic in Town, especially around the hospital. Bert said, “Don’t worry, no one runs mile races anymore and he produced a wonderful 10km course that Traffic Sgt Phil Barnes loved he said, “That’s great I don’t need so many officers” When Geoff said he was short of marshals Bert said “Don’t worry there’s my family I’ll rope them in. He was the 7th son of nine brothers.”
As a, BT engineer out in extreme weather, Bert knew how to keep himself warm and dry. Ian Davenport said ‘He made a lasting impression on me. I have the image of Bert stood on the finish line in his warm and dry yellow oil skins & red cap, trusty stopwatch in one hand and black notebook in the other calling lap times as we went through.’
Bert helped many people in other ways without any fuss. Coach Helen Derbyshire said, “If he heard of a struggling young athlete whose parents couldn’t buy kit, he would put money towards running shoes. I was inspired by Bert Quennell and at the end of my career I too became a coach.”
He met the love of his life Carole shortly after he broke his lower femur after running into a stone slab. Doctors inserted a rod and told him that he would never run again. Carole was a neighbour and dog walker. She asked him to join him on her long dog walks as part of his recovery process and gradually he started to run again. During their long walks friendship turned into romance. About his proposal, he said “I asked Carole if she wanted to marry me or get another dog. Thankfully she chose me.” So began 28 years of happiness for the pair and a couple of more puppies along the way.
People would sometimes see a mischievous glint in his eye as he watched runners training. He’d spotted a change in runner’s gate and would call them across to quiz them to ask what had been ‘occurring’ during the week. They’d break down under scrutiny and confess to a small injury or bump. Bert was a great student of body language especially when looking into your eyes the window to your soul. He knew what you were thinking before you said anything.
There is an entry in the Appleton Thorn School Punishment book just after the war. Village Schools – Appleton Thorn Geoff said “I’m sure it was our Bert, right age right place. He was noted as one of four accused of catapult disobedience in January 1948 and a couple of years later Bert Quennell – of catapulting ‘fame’ was punished three times in 1950; for “Constant rudeness”, “bad work and finally he “tore a page in temper” and “Refused to work”. The archivist wrote “We’re sure that all those in the Punishment Book went on to be fine, upstanding citizens!” This was certainly the case with Bert he was respected and loved by all.

Nora’s Surprise Party LtoR – Carole, Bert and Derek (at back) Geoff & Jean

Geoff continued “I must thank Nora Carlin for being a great friend of Bert’s. I was Mayor of Warrington in 2016, and she organised a surprise party for him at the local community centre and I was guest of honour. Carole and my wife were there It was one of the best Mayoral engagements I’ve ever been to. Derek Vernon heard about it and walked all the way from Town and back to attend. It was a great afternoon reminiscing.
Paul Frodsham summed up by saying “Bert changed my life for ever! A great coach and an absolute gentleman.”