The Tideway spring classic, Hammersmith Head, is back for another year, bringing with it a whole host of fast crews looking to tear up the Tideway. Raced between Chiswick and Hammersmith Bridges on the outgoing tide, many clubs will be looking to get some experience on the Championship Course in the run up to the Head of the River Race. Most of the large Tideway clubs have entered Championship Eights, with a mixture of schools and smaller clubs making up the rest.
University of London BC
The University of London are currently one of the top places to row as a student in the UK. The recent GB trials shows this, with Joe Middleton achieving the title of second fastest U23 sculler. UL also performed well on the sweep side, with Josh Burke and Tom Cross placing 12th overall. Wins in recent fixtures against Goldie show UL can compete with, and beat, the best of the best. Entering two eights into the championship category here also shows good squad depth.
London RC
London RC have been in top form in the past few weeks, with a strong second place at Quintin Head, and a narrow loss to Thames RC in the Boustead Cup. The top eight contains a plethora of talented and experienced athletes, such as strokeman Calum Jenkins, a Britannia Challenge Cup finalist from last season, and one of a few LRC rowers who represented England at the Home International Regatta 2022. This crew will certainly be in the hunt for the win.
Radley College BC
Always one of the top rowing schools in the country, Radley College will be looking for redemption this season after losing the PE final last year. After a ninth place finish at Quintin Head, Radley seem to be on course for a great performance on Sunday, and a successful season.
St. Paul’s School BC
After last year’s surprise PE win at Henley, St. Paul’s seem to have held their form. Their crop of talented young rowers are constantly improving, with stern pair Philip Wolfensburger and Felix Peerless fresh from a top performance at GB junior trials. In addition to this, SPS were the fastest junior eight at Quintin Head. At this point, it looks like another back-to-back Henley win might be on the cards. The question is, how will they hold up against the big guns of UL and LRC?
Vesta RC
A club that has been moving more towards performance in the last few years, Vesta are fresh from a decent 14th place finish at Quintin Head. The home advantage should help, but Vesta were still a good twenty seconds off the top crews at Quintin. Come Sunday, we will see if they have upped their game.
Shiplake College BC
Shiplake College are always fast during head season, but will this be the year where they finally hold that speed for the regatta season? After sending their classic matched eights to Quintin, we will see Shiplake at their full strength on Sunday, which, judging by previous head seasons, should be pretty fast.
Prediction
Overall, I predict a win for London Rowing Club. While both LRC and UL eights are stacked with talent, London beat UL by over ten seconds at Quintin Head. Both programmes will have stepped up the intensity in the run up to HoRR, so expect times to be close. As for third place, it’s between St. Paul’s and Radley.
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