Update: Since the writing of this preview, the Henley Fours and Eights Head 2025 has been cancelled. This preview was written with the assumption that the event would go underway.
Racing down the iconic Henley Royal Regatta course is a dream for many, although this time with a decently sharp bend right before a tight squeeze coming past Temple Island. I think the course will provide some tight racing and put a lot more pressure on the steering capabilities of the coxes of the crews, a challenge that I think they will not have trouble coping with as both of the clubs in this pretty small division are familiar faces at some of the biggest races on the calendar. Of the four J18 eights going out to race on Saturday, there’s an even split, two from Westminster School Boat Club and two from Reading Blue Coat School Boat Club.
Westminster School Boat Club
The crews of Westminster School Boat Club are widely known for their performance in the eights division of the most prestigious junior races on the calendar, showing appearances at races such as the National Schools’ Regatta and Henley Royal Regatta. As for their results, they do not just come to race; they come to win. This is shown through their exceptional seventh place in the A-final of the Championship 8+ division at the National Schools’ Regatta last year. To top it all off, they got through the first round of Henley Royal Regatta in the The Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup for Junior Eights, beating Schülerruderverein Alter Teichweg for an opportunity to race the winners of the cup.
Reading Blue Coat School Boat Club
Reading Blue Coat School Boat Club is not at all less successful in their performance, also finishing at the top of races of similar calibre as Westminster. Their performance at the National Schools’ Regatta was just short of Westminster, coming in sixth in the B-final, which is a commendable achievement nonetheless. They then went on to race in the The Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta and got through the first round before losing to The Southport School, Australia. Although they are a bit less of a formidable opponent than St Paul’s School, who won the cup in the final, they are a formidable opponent nevertheless. At the end of the year, Reading Blue Coat School put in a great performance at the British Rowing Junior and Senior Championships, where they ended up atop the podium, ahead of all of the other junior eights attending.
Prediction
Although only two clubs are attending, they are extremely tight in their previous results, even though I doubt any of the rowers from last year’s crew were J17s and so will not be able to stay for another year of racing. However, the club’s previous performances can give us an insight into the future, so from that, I think that one of the Westminster crews will go home with the win, just because their results last year slightly outperformed those of Reading Blue Coat School. However, this prediction is not concrete, and it is possible that something completely different may happen on the day, whether that’s to do with the challenging course or the power of the crews themselves.
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