Henley Fours and Eights head is a popular event that gives crews the chance to compete against each other over a 3k stretch, on what should be some slightly calmer waters than those commonly seen during the big Tideway races.
London RC
London RC has been a historically strong contender in this event, with their men’s squad taking a clean sweep in 2019. While the same has not been seen from their women’s squad yet, this year’s cohort is by far the strongest and biggest that they’ve ever had, putting in some competitive performances so far this season at Fours Head and Quintin Head. There is no doubt that this is a highly motivated squad that will be looking to further progress on the club history that was made last year, reaching the final of Henley Women’s Regatta. Exciting things are set to come out of the embankment based club, and I expect a strong performance this weekend from their two crews in this category.
Marlow RC
Marlow RC is entering two women’s eights into the event, a senior eight, as well as a junior eight, with both in the Band 1 category. Marlow had a dominant junior girls quad in the 2020/21 season, so it’ll be interesting to see how their junior squad can perform amongst senior athletes. They also demonstrated good strength in their senior squad last year, with their Wargrave Challenge Cup crew reaching the Friday of Henley Royal Regatta, only being knocked out by eventual winners, Leander. Hopefully, they will have carried forward some of this momentum into the 2021/22 season, and it’ll be exciting to see what result they can produce.
Leander Club
Leander Club is a name synonymous with top performances and fast crews, and I would expect their result at Henley Fours and Eights Head to be no different. While their squad will be without some of the top athletes who will be away at GB Trials in Boston, performances at Fours Head back in November would suggest that their ‘development’ squad is sufficiently strong to compete at a top-level against the country’s best club crews. Furthermore, they will be racing on their home stretch and as such will have the best knowledge of when to push and lines to take.
Oxford Brookes University BC
While many of their top athletes are away at Trials, Oxford Brookes will still be strong, as we saw last year they are beginning to build a similar level of depth as we have seen from their men’s squad. This is proven by their three entries into Band 1 Eights, the most of any club in this category. While rivals Leander are setting off first – the organisers showing their favourites – Brookes will certainly mount a challenge.
Upper Thames RC
Also located out on the famous Henley stretch, Upper Thames RC are tucked away from many of the country’s bigger club names. However, this is by no means a reason to discount them as contenders. Their women’s squad put in a particularly strong performance at Fours Head, with their championship quad coming in fourth place behind Leander and a composite Tideway Scullers crew, whilst beating the likes of Oxford Brookes and Reading University. The recent show of strength, along with the home advantage should see Upper Thames fighting it out for one of the top three spots.
Prediction
Based on the current head season’s results as well as historical performances, I would expect Leander to come out on top, especially with the advantage of it being their home stretch of water, followed by Oxford Brookes. There will likely be a bit of a tussle between Marlow and London for the remaining podium spot. Whatever the result, the race will provide an exciting chance for strong crews to race in head race format over more of a ‘sprint’ distance which could throw predictions into the air.
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