GLENPARK Harriers have taken a run down memory lane as the club marks its 125th birthday.

The club has unearthed a treasure trove of old pictures from their archives and the Greenock Telegraph is delighted to highlight some of Harriers' landmark moments since the club's inception in 1895.

Before the club got off and running, Greenock runners joined the satellite branch of Clydesdale Harriers. The sport of running grew in popularity and numbers joining swelled to over 50.

In 1895 an agreement was reached with Clydesdale Harriers to allow for the Greenock satellite branch to break away and form their own club.

As a result Greenock Glenpark Harriers was formed in the October of 1895.

The club's first success at national level came when D Mills won bronze for finishing third at the Scottish Cross Country Championships.

By the 1920s membership grew to over 100 and the club attracted top class runners in the form of George Wallach and Olympic double medallist James Wilson.

Wallach represented Great Britain in the inaugural 10,000 metres at the Stockholm Olympics of 1912.

The 1960s saw the introduction club stalwarts Jim Sheridan and Richard Hodelet and the first running of the Harris Cup in memory of ex-president Tommy Harris.

The club saw dozens of new members, port taking the membership close to 100 in the 1980s.

The club's first national cross country individual title since 1922 was secured by Tommy Murray in 1989, having finished fourth in 1987 and winning bronze in 1988.

Murray wasn't the only individual winner as Alan Puckrin reached his peak on the country to win gold in 1994 as well as two bronze medals in the years either side.

From 1984 to 1996 the Harriers were rarely outside the top 10 at the National XC Relays and the club won the National Cross Country relays in 1988, with Phil Russell joining Puckrin, Cox and Murray in winning the title.

Numerous talented juniors came through the ranks to succeed in the senior events. Puckrin, Pat Duffy, John McFadyen and Billy Jenkins - to name but a few - all succeeded in the 10,000m, 800m and 3,000m steeplechase.

The club produced several excellent endurance runners, no more so than Hammy Cox who represented Scotland all over the world and recorded a club record of 2.18.

The club led the way with the introduction of the Inverclyde Marathon in 1981, long before the first London Marathon.

Success continued into the new millennium with Stephen Trainer winning bronze as an under-13 in 2001.

In 2003 David Butcher won silver in the National having won gold at the Renfrewshire and West. The same year probably saw the best ever junior girl performance when Debbie Miller slaughtered the field at the Under-15 West XC Champs.

The seniors reaped the benefits, with Chris Mackay and Chris McCall helping Robert Docherty and Stevie McLoone finish 10th at the National XC Relays in 2004 to record their highest finish for eight years.

With a healthy senior and junior membership and a record number of women members, the Harriers continue to be a major force in events across the country.

Here's to the next 125 years...