Bringing an all-new combined event to Nottingham, British Rowing Junior and Senior Club Championships is set to be a showcase of top club talent. With seven entries in the Open Eights category and limited information available, these squads are lining up to be an unpredictable mix of experience, making for a thrilling clash of crews.
Auriol Kensington Rowing Club
The first crew hoping to stamp their name on the national stage is Auriol Kensington Rowing Club, who have had a decent string of results this season, including producing respectable performances at many of the major events. After starting the season with local successes at Quintin Head and Peterborough Regatta, this group have gone on to make up crews finishing within the top 150 crews at Head of the River in addition to finishing 6th and 3rd, respectively, in the G and H finals on Sunday of Met Regatta. These crews also faced a tough campaign at the qualifying stages competing for the Thames Challenge Cup at the recent Henley Royal Regatta. After ultimately missing out, Auriol will be hoping to use their disappointment to fuel their fire this time around, and with their significant race experience, this crew could be one to watch.
Star Rowing Club
After disruptive weather limited their opportunities to race early on in the season, Star Rowing Club have seized every opportunity since to show their strength. Recent successes include managing to qualify for the Thames Challenge Cup heats at Henley Royal Regatta where they put up a fierce fight against Vesta ‘A’, and finishing third in the F final of the Open Eights event at Met Regatta. Hoping to ride the momentum of their Henley start, Star will be raring to go for another chance to establish themselves on a national scale.
Lancaster University Boat Club
Another hoping to make waves in this event include Lancaster University Boat Club whose crew, despite having local success at the likes of Hexham Regatta, we haven’t seen much of at the bigger events. With limited indication of their standing amongst these more experienced crews, it will be interesting to see how they match up.
Hereford Rowing Club
Hereford Rowing Club have already demonstrated the strength they bring to the table with at least half of this crew performing well at some of the recent major events. Coombes, Fraser, Lomas and cox L. Head took to Dorney Lake to produce impressive performances both days of Met Regatta, placing themselves in the top 14 crews both days. Some of these athletes also saw the famous waters of Henley Royal where they qualified and made a round in the Wyfold Challenge Cup. Teaming up with Wynter, Chick, Partridge, Fraser and Fraser, we will soon see if they can repeat their performance in Nottingham.
Prediction
The recent results and sheer amount of race experience would suggest the likely frontrunners to be Star and Auriol Kensington, however, there is not enough information to rule out the majority of the other contenders completely. If I had to choose one crew to back, then I would hedge my bets with Star as I know they will be raring to go following the unfortunate early end to their Henley campaign, and I believe there is still plenty more to see from this crew.
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