As the summer sun begins to fade, rowing clubs across the country are beginning to roar back into action, so within the hubbub of welcome barbecues and the recruitment of graduating and relocating athletes, the 2025 campaigns are starting to take shape. Let’s look ahead to some of the club crews to watch as we swing into the new season.
London Rowing Club – Men’s Eight
2024 was supposed to be their year. They won their first Boustead Cup in more than a decade; they placed two crews in the top ten at the Head of the River and they put on a soaring performance at Marlow Regatta. But, on the first Saturday in July, it all came unstuck. Falling to their local rivals in the semi-final at Henley will have been gutting to the crew. However, it holds one silver lining. The rules of the club events at Henley Royal Regatta mean that most winners of the event cannot return to the level, leaving the London Rowing Club crew mostly intact to return this year. With this advantage, another season together plus what seems a very strong recruiting position – they will be fast again this season and absolutely determined to see it all the way through to the end.
Thames Rowing Club – Women’s Eight
The juggernaut of club rowing in the UK are at their most dominant on the women’s side, as Thames won their third successive Wargrave Challenge Cup this year after finishing third overall at the Women’s Eights Head of the River, which was their best performance since 2012. Having established themselves as the premier location for new graduates to ply their trade in the capital, they will be able to further strengthen their incredibly deep squad. This year, the ‘B’ crew made it to the weekend at Henley for the second year in a row and will likely form the backbone of their new top crew – programmes elsewhere in the country will struggle to be able to reload as efficiently, leaving Thames once again as the ones to beat in the club women’s scene.
Vesta Rowing Club – Men’s Squad
In recent years, Vesta has been relegated to number three in the Putney pecking order and after a second-round exit for their priority boat at Henley, the crimson and black needed to make a big splash to turn the tide. This summer, they did exactly that with the announcement of double Olympic Champion James Cracknell as the new head coach for the men’s squad this year. With the hiring of a big name, the committee will be hoping to attract a high level of athlete to their performance squad but with no previous coaching history there could be some early teething problems. While his ventures away from the sport have been mixed in their outcomes, Cracknell retains a record of great success within rowing, leaving the men’s squad at Vesta as one of the most interesting programmes in play.
Tyne Amateur Rowing Club – Women’s Squad
While much of the club scene is centred very closely on the River Thames, there remains some interesting stories to read in the ‘provincial’ clubs up and down the country, with Tyne being among the most notable of that group. The club, based on the other side of the bridge from the strong programs of Newcastle and Durham, has had a great deal of success in its women’s squad in recent years. In 2023, they won the provincial pennant at the Women’s Eights Head of the River and made it to the weekend at Henley Royal Regatta, but this season was not quite so forthcoming in speed. However, with the support of a very strong junior group plus the benefits of proximity to two British Rowing High Performance Academies, they will be in a strong position to contend with those down south again this year.
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