RICHARD Buck claimed the notable scalp of Commonwealth Games relay gold medallist Jared Deacon at the UK Challenge event at Gateshead.

The 18-year-old Nestl Rowntree 400m sprinter pipped the South Shields Poly runner on his doorstep in a thrilling finish, clinching first place by just nine-onehundredths of a second.

The win will doubtless lift Buck's confidence as he aims to close in on a place on the Commonwealth Games relay team next year, particularly in light of junior gold-medal winning team-mate Martyn Rooney's stunning split as part of the sixth-fastest ever GB squad time at the World Championships on Sunday.

Buck's 47.67 puts him 22nd on the list - one point behind GB 400m hurdler Chris Rawlinson - after just one run. The best three results of the season go towards the final score, and Deacon is currently second overall with 430 points from three meetings.

Several Nestl Rowntree youngsters were in action at the AAA under-15/17 championships.

Alastair Smith and Becky Campsall came closest to getting in the medals with a fifth place each.

Smith ran 1minute 56.3secs in the U17 800metres, while Campsall clocked a 25.48secs 200m in the U15 girls race to follow up a 12.58 100m run for seventh.

Morgan Bell threw the hammer 46.94metres to finish 11th in the U17 men's event. Training partner Emily Gibbons managed 36.08m in the u17 women's hammer for tenth place, while long distance runner Charlotte Maxted had to settle for 14th in the U17 3,000m in a time of 11mins 24.76 secs.

Updated: 11:47 Thursday, August 18, 2005