It's do or die for Thames Valley Harriers on Saturday.

Anything less than second place at Copthall in the last BAL Division One match, and the Shepherd's Bush club will be a Di vision Two outfit in 2009 for the first time in their 121-year history.

You'll get decent odds on a Valley drop after they finished plumb last in Liverpool a week ago - a result of no-shows and lack of depth throughout the team that made the third long-distance trek of the season.

Despite the gloom, there were some heartening results on Merseyside, which coupled with the possibility of their strongest line-up might just TVH out of jail.

A scratch team quickly assembled in Liverpool finished second in the 4x100m relay - an amazing result considering Valley didn't even field a team in the last match.

Until the last 30 seconds, the quartet of Jason Commissiong, Stuart Benson, Myles Fisher and Nav Childs were actually leading only beaten on the dip.

But if there's any athlete who's given his all for the sky-blue cause - it's Childs.

He competed in SIX events in Liverpool, including a second in the pole vault and fourth in the 'A'string javelin.

200m A 3 S Benson 21.60; 400H B: 1 T Patton 55:20; 110H: 5 M Fisher (16 yrs-old) 16.10; long jump A: 4 N Childs 6.73m; long jump B: 3 M Hulyer 6.34; pole vault A: 2 G Conlon 3.80m; 4X100: 1 Kent AC 42.60; 2 THAMES VALLEY HARRIERS 42.60 Team result: 1 Trafford 374; 2 City of Sheffield 309; 3 Kent AC 293.5; 4 City of Liverpool 277; 5 Gateshead 265; 6 Border 237; 7 Harrow 227; 8 THAMES VALLEY HARRIERS 203.5 Current Standings: 1 Sheffield 22; 2 Trafford 21; 3 Gateshead 16; 4 Kent 15; Liverpool 14; 6 Border 8; Harrow 8; THAMES VALLEY HARRIERS 4

* IT'S NOT the biggest surprise Thames Valley Harriers are breeding a new generation of sprinters. After all, they're the club of Linford Christie .

And the former Olympic gold medalist would have been proud of the efforts of Reece Mitchell and Elimo Smith in the recent U13 Young Athletes League at the stadium named after Christie next to Wormwood Scrubs.

Mitchell roared home in the 100m (13.2), and then doubled to take the 200m in 26.6.

Smith guaranteed it was TVH's day in the short sprints, when he won the B-string races in 14.7 and 29.9, as well as second in the long jump (4.31metres).

Auszamen Searles came from behind to cross the line first in the 'B' 80m hurdles in 15.7.

His team-mate, Oliver Berg repeated the exact time to the tenth of a second - but had to settle for second in the 'A'race.

Oliver was also runner-up in the 'A', 1500m in 5:20:0mins, while Archie St Aubyn won the 'B' event in 5:29.1.

Nathanial Wade was second in the B long jump. The 4x100m relay team were easy winners.

The girls also cut a dash on their home track. Grace Andam also doubled to take the 75mH (11.1) and 150m (21.9). Hannah Wiltshire and Sophie Morgan likewise starred for TVH.