When you’ve put down your oar for the last time, what do you really remember? Which memory stands out above the rest? Which medal, stashed away in some cupboard out of sight, really evokes the most potent memories?
For many, that’s a simple answer. Henley Royal Regatta represents everything special about rowing – brutally simply competition, glistening English waters, a carnival of colour on the bank and eccentricity abound. The Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup, the premier category for schoolboy eights, is a bucket-list event for any young rower plying his trade on grey rivers and man-made lakes up and down the country. Last year, we saw possibly the finest junior eight of all time climb that last step into immortality. As uniquely gripping as that spectacle was, and it is hard to understate the achievements of St Paul’s School in 2018, it hardly made for competitive, edge-of-your-seat viewing.
2019 welcomes a new host of crews, vying for a coveted red box, from over land and sea. The usual UK suspects are at the fore – Radley, Eton, Shiplake, Shrewsbury and, of course, Bobby’s black and white boys – but strong interest is emerging from other directions. The USA have brought nationally ranked crews across, Scotch College are returning after a year hiatus following their 2017 victory, and Germany have entered a strong domestic outfit. Combined, these boats should make for one of the most compelling narratives in years.
Radley College
The Radley spurt is coming. Approaching the National Schools’ Regatta in May, much had been made of their speed – they were some way off the pace at the Schools’ Head but made broad strides during the Easter break and early summer to re-gain parity with the pack. At Dorney, they exploded into life to dominate their semi-final ahead of both Shiplake and St Paul’s. In the grand final though, a different tale unwound. St Paul’s, so often capable of producing that which seems impossible, burst out of the blocks and were never recoiled. Some crews might take that as a season-defining blow, but Radley appear to have used it as fuel to the fire. They’ve been the fastest domestic crew since then, making the ‘A’ final of Championship Eights at Marlow Regatta and winning Open Championship Eights at the Metropolitan Regatta.
St Paul’s School
Holders of this event, and with three consecutive Queen Mother Cups under their belt, SPS continue to set the trend for schoolboy rowing in the UK. Now well renowned for reserving their best for the biggest stage, they’re arguably approaching HRR as slight underdogs after mediocre performances on the domestic stage since their win at Dorney in May. They’ve been plagued by injuries to key athletes, which has disrupted preparation, but Bobby will have his crew sharpened ahead of the biggest five days of the year. The draw could play a significant part in how far we expect to see St Paul’s progress – should they be seeded to draw a Radley, a Shiplake or a particularly promising American crew on the Friday, we could be witnessing an early exit.
Shiplake College
Big things are expected of Dave Currie’s project in the heart of Oxfordshire. They won the Schools’ Head but would have been slightly disappointed to miss out on the gold at the National Schools’ Regatta. They’ve vanished, without trace, since, although this is in part due to an injury to their three man, who we understand recently broke his collarbone. Whether Shiplake have the speed to truly compete at Henley next week remains to be seen – they’ve arguably performed most convincingly in the longer winter events but radio silence has left us to believe that the crew have been in a period of contemplation and intensive preparation. An exit any time before the weekend would represent sub-par returns on several years of investment.
Scotch College, Australia
A name to strike fear into the hearts of any British crew looking to carve their name onto the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup. The last time Scotch visited Henley, they came away with the trophy – seeing off St Paul’s, Eton College and Radley in successive days – and this crew look like a pretty tasty unit too. Unbeaten in domestic competition and winners of the Schoolboy Eight at the Sydney International Rowing Regatta, they look to be the strongest overseas entry and the crew most capable of challenging the established order in the UK.
St Joseph’s Prep, USA
Winners of the Stotesbury Cup Regatta – self-proclaimed as the world’s largest high school regatta – St Joseph’s Prep are a young crew with much to learn. They’ve had, by their own admission, a surprisingly good season which culminated in that famous win on home water. They also finished sixth in the ‘B’ final of Youth Eights at the USRowing Youth National Championships. Along with Kent School, they’re arguably the strongest Americans to make the trip over.
Kent School, USA
The fastest overseas crew at Marlow Regatta, Kent beat St Paul’s School Concord last weekend and at NEIRA earlier this year. They also won Rumsey Regatta and finished third at the Founders Day Regatta. They beat Phillips Andover Academy, St. John’s School and Simsbury High School in match racing during the season. Stroke-man Nick Fisher is a world junior silver medallist.
St Paul’s School, Concord, USA
This crew won a silver medal at the New England Interscholastic Rowing Association Championships and opted to train for Henley instead of competing at the national championships. You do feel that when a crew makes the long, logistically challenging, trip over from the USA, they have a sense that their raw speed should match up. Based in New Hampshire, this school have always been strong on the women’s side – numerous appearances at the Henley Women’s Regatta evidence this – but we’ve seen little of their ability for junior boys.
Eton College
Eton had a poor run out in the Championship Eight category at the National Schools’ Regatta, finishing fifth and outside the medals for the second year in a row. To redeem themselves, they won Championship Coxed Fours outright the following day and have put in good performances at the Metropolitan Regatta – third in Open Championship Eights – and Marlow Regatta – third in Tier 2 Eights. Whether they’re able to overturn Radley and St Paul’s remains to be seen – they haven’t managed to topple either throughout the summer and I feel that Henley may come a little too soon.
Flatow-Oberschule, Germany
A relatively unknown quantity, this crew won the right to compete at Henley all the way back in September where they won the Federal Competition of Youth Training for the Olympics. The last German crew to compete in the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup – Ratsgymnasium Osnabruck – made the Friday in 2015 and were a powerful unit. When they make the trip, they tend to be quick and we all know the penchant that Germany has for eights…
The Scots College, Australia
Much of this crew finished fifth in U17 Schoolboy Eights at the Sydney International Rowing Regatta. Ben Di Staso raced for St Augustines NSW, winning the event. They’re unlikely to challenge the top UK crews, or even their namesakes Scotch.
At this stage, it is genuinely too hard to call. Last year’s Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup was decided long before any crew took to the water, but in 2019 the relative speeds of the leading British contenders alongside the fastest overseas crews is yet to be determined. Radley, at this stage, look to be the fastest from the UK whilst Scotch College, ever-present at the business end of this event, will probably present the toughest foreign challenge.
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