With a swathe of cancellations to end 2023, we arrive in a new year with little to no real guide on how fast crews across the UK are going. We can take educated guesses; Thames, London, Vesta, Scullers and the provincial leaders in Cantabrigian, Agecroft, City of Bristol etc will have competitive squads but who is really going to be leading the charge for Henley silverware is a relative unknown. Given that club sculling is a far smaller bracket here in the UK, we’re going to primarily focus on sweep with some notable sculling mentions.
Thames will clearly be at the front of the pack. They have won two consecutive Wargrave Challenge Cups and stand tall as the undisputed domestic champion. Their women’s squad were tailing in the shadow of the men for some time but now can rest easy on the back of several seasons of total dominance. They had some very strong showings at the Pairs Head back in October so expect them to come good again in the summer months. Leander always produce an interesting development crew, which is usually pitched at athletes who are looking to make the leap from competitive club rowing to full-time training. They were beaten finalists in 2022 and 2023 at Henley so will be out to topple the established order. Molesey are usually something of a dark horse in every sense of the word – the black death appear on the summer starting blocks with little to no warning of speed and often blitz the field. Word is they’ve got a very competitive squad in 2024, evidenced by a comfortable win at Rutherford Head at the end of last year. Can London find their feat on the women’s side? A recent addition to that illustrious institution, their women’s squad is slowly growing in stature, boosted by some inbounds from Vesta, and will be looking to make their mark. Tideway Scullers blow hot and cold – they have endured a lot of hardship off-water but a stellar junior women’s squad, who have largely stuck around to support the cause, might mean they’re moving quickly in small boats. Moving beyond the Tideway, expect pacy programs from Upper Thames, who will have felt bitterly disappointed to lose out to Worcester in club fours at Henley Women’s Regatta last year, and Cantabrigian, who have arguably become the dominant provincial force under Tom Copeland. Word has it they’re in a re-building year so we might not see as competitive a showing as in previous seasons.
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