BUCS Head 2023 – Men’s Intermediate Eights Preview

Intermediate 8s is possibly one of if not the most competitive categories of the weekend when it comes to BUCs Head. With Head of the River also fast approaching we are now deep into the Head racing season and it will be exciting to see which crews shine when the pressure is on.

Durham

Durham has five eights entered demonstrating a massive show of force on their home stretch. With a crew also in Champ 8 this really is an opportunity for Durham to show off its depth throughout its men’s squad. They will though face some very strong competition for the win in this category although they certainly are one crew to watch out for.

Newcastle

Enjoying the benefit of racing on home waters, Newcastle has a chance here to lead the way in this category. While their champ crews have struggled there are signs that Newcastle has a very fast 2^nd 8 and one that must be seen as a challenger for the win. 5^th overall and just 12 seconds behind the 1^st 8, Rutherford Head showed that Newcastle has a chance here to fight for some silverware at one of the main events of the season.

Bristol

Bristol as a program has recently come to be quite dominant in the intermediate categories. While we haven’t seen them race too much so far this season, 10^th overall and 3^rd in Op Senior at Quintin Head is an encouraging result showing that they have some pace. While I don’t think they will necessarily win this category I would not be surprised to see them up there.

Queens

Probably the crew with the longest journey to reach the event, Queens will be wanting to make the trip worth it. With Queens producing a very fast Novice crew last year which won Beginner 8s at BUCs Regatta and some very strong seniors in their squad I would be unsurprised if Queens has one of the faster intermediate 8s.

York

With York University Boat Club Celebrating their 60^th Anniversary this year they will be hoping that it will be a successful year. Similar to many of the other medium and small programs BUCs Head will be one of the big races of the year and so they will be hoping to perform strongly. With the intermediate category often containing a broad range of crews from close to champ all the way to near novices such an event as BUCs Head will be a great chance to enjoy some very tough competition and enjoy an event which for many is one of the highlights of the season.

Edinburgh

It will be interesting to see how Edinburgh does here as it can be difficult often to gauge how fast Edinburgh intermediate crews are. With varied and inconsistent competition in Scotland to match Edinburgh it is often not until we see them race south of the border that we see how fast they truly are. Last time we saw them race on the Tyne at Rutherford Head the 2^nd crew placed 9^th overall certainly showing that they are not to be ignored.

Predictions

I think that Newcastle has a very strong chance here to take the win in this event. While I would also expect Durham and Edinburgh to place up highly as well. I think Queens could be a surprise as well and with the Intermediate category always being very competitive there is certainly room for some shock results.

About The Author

Alliott Irvine

Started sculling at 9 with Hinksey Sculling School. Developed my coxing while at Abingdon school. Currently head cox at Aberdeen University Boat Club.

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