Henley Royal Regatta 2022 – Friday Briefing, Fawley Challenge Cup

Friday Review:

St. Andrew Boat Club vs Hereford Cathedral School

The first Fawley race of the day was certainly a close one. St. Andrew BC had the better start and got out to an early lead which they extended to two-thirds of a length by the time the crews reached The Barrier. Hereford then mounted a comeback and it looked like they were going to get through with the gap reduced to half a length at Fawley. St. Andrew BC then responded and kept moving away with a final margin of one and a half lengths at the finish.

Kingston Rowing Club vs The Windsor Boys’ School ‘A’

As expected, The Windsor Boys’ School ‘A’ put in another brilliant performance against Kingston RC. They were dominant from the start, leading by one and a half lengths at The Barrier and extending that lead to four lengths at Fawley. They maintained this lead most of the way to the finish, with the final margin being three and a half lengths.

Leander Club vs Claires Court School

This was another tight race in The Fawley, with both crews level at the end of the island before Leander just edged out ahead to a half-a-length lead at The Barrier. Claires Court stuck with them and reduced Leander’s lead to a canvas at Fawley. They then continued to row through Leander, taking the lead just past the regatta enclosure and held on to win by one length.

The Windsor Boys’ School ‘B’ vs The Dolphin Swimming and Boating Club, USA

The race between The Windsor Boys’ School ‘B’ and The Dolphin Club was initially a very close contest. The crews were level at the end of the island and at The Barrier. However, The Windsor Boys’ ‘B’ crew began to pull away before The Dolphin Club had a technical issue with one of their gates causing the three-man to catch a crab. This unfortunately resulted in a verdict of not rowed out.

Saturday Preview:

St. Andrew Boat Club vs The Windsor Boys’ School ‘A’

The Windsor Boys’ School ‘A’ have been dominant so far this year, most recently winning at Marlow Regatta by ten seconds, and I expect that to continue tomorrow. I do think that St. Andrew BC will push them hard in the early stages of the race, but unfortunately for them, I don’t think they will be able to match the speed of The Windsor Boys’ School ‘A’ crew.

Claires Court School vs The Windsor Boys’ School ‘B’

It’s very impressive for a club to have two crews at the semi-final stage of The Fawley, and that is exactly what The Windsor Boys’ School have. Their ‘B’ crew will have benefitted from a fairly comfortable race today, whereas Claires Court were trailing at both The Barrier and at Fawley and only came through to win by a length. Therefore, I believe The Windsor Boys’ School ‘B’ crew will win tomorrow, setting up an all Windsor Boys’ School final on Sunday.

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