After many months of rain, flooding, and cancelled head races, sculling is back on the River Thames. The lack of on-the-water practice will make the race far more open than we can imagine, as everyone will have made improvements with their land training, but not necessarily with their technical training. There were last year 20 entries for this event, but this year sees 29 entries, making it one of the largest categories. This is undoubtedly a testament to the patience of those who eagerly want to race. Let the racing begin!
Molesey Boat Club
This is a crew comprised of a very able crew that was successful at the J16 level and is now looking to stamp its mark among J18s. Their added advantage is the proximity of their boat club to the course. However, the past few months mean that this advantage has turned into a disadvantage, with significant disruption caused by flooding to their water training. It is therefore unknown how the crew will cope, but they are bound to pose problems to the perhaps more established doubles that are racing.
Maidenhead Rowing Club
This is a club that recently has become more successful in the doubles events, and this was reflected last year by the respectable fifth place that Maidenhead achieved. There is strength in depth, as they have entered three crews. These rowers have years of experience each and have competed multiple times at Hampton and other head races. Sadly, their water training has also been seriously disrupted by the flooding that the Thames has dealt Maidenhead. This however is unlikely to faze a club of such a stature and experience.
Lea Rowing Club
The Lea has seen changes, with rowers both leaving and joining the junior squad. It now has adopted a new and rigorous training plan which it hope will pay dividends at Hampton. Their training at the Royal Docks has not been impacted by the weather, and so they have been able to continue going out on the water. This could potentially give them a significant advantage over the other crews, but this is only in theory.
Predictions
There are of course other crews to consider; take Walton Rowing Club for example, who came second last year and train only a few kilometres upstream from the course. There is also Henley Rowing Club that has entered multiple crews. However overall, it is very hard to look beyond Molesey for the overall victory.
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