The PA is typically the toughest of the student events to qualify for, with only 16 crews making it to the Regatta and many decent crews missing out at qualifiers. While the Temple has been dominated by Oxford Brookes in recent years the PA has been won by various different clubs with recent winners including Harvard, Imperial, Newcastle, and Edinburgh.
This year it looks as though many of the top universities have opted to aim for the PA, instead of contesting the Temple with Brookes. The year off means that any previous winners will likely have graduated and so clubs have more freedom in terms of who they can put where – and in the case of Oxford Brookes – two year’s worth of eligible athletes to enter the student events.
Oxford Brookes
The top crew from Brookes entered features athletes who were part of the 1-2 result in both the Championship Eights and Coxed Fours at BUCS Regatta, off the back of which will be gunning for the win in the PA. The four athletes, Toby Lassen, Miles Devereux, Jake Wincomb, and Matt Haywood are all first years, which is a testament to the quality athletes being attracted to Brookes and the standard they are performing at so early in their student careers. This crew will be looking to play their part in Oxford Brookes’s most successful HRR ever, with aspirations to win multiple events across various levels of competition.
Newcastle
This crew is identical to the one which placed fourth at BUCS Regatta back in June, which also won the quad event with the same lineup. The four quality athletes in Dan Wilmot, Joe Adamson, Alex Milne and Bruce Turnell have Henley successes and international experience along with the tenacity associated with the crews from the Blue Star. Their potential advantage over the Brookes crew – who are undoubtedly favourites – is that they will have been in this crew since BUCS, whereas Brookes have been in eights until after Wimbleball camp, and since have been waylaid by Covid related crises.
UL
UL have put their top athletes in this crew, clearly a statement of intent to try and win a Henley event after a period away from the top levels at the Regatta. Placing a strong third place at BUCS Regatta behind two crews from Oxford Brookes, UL look like the only crew along with Newcastle who might be able to challenge for the win.
The Dark Horses
Surrey and Bristol are both clubs who have been steadily climbing the rankings over recent years and both have had some impressive results this season. Bristol won the Academic Fours at Met Regatta before having to miss BUCS, which probably the reason they haven’t prequalified. They’ve been churning out some promising speeds at home on the Avon and will be keen to test themselves against the best in the country.
Surrey won silver in the Intermediate Coxed Four at BUCS Regatta this year, a result which shouldn’t be dismissed just because it isn’t a championship category. They’ve had a personnel change since then and a period of training alongside crews from Molesey BC under the watchful eye of coach Sam Tuck and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them right up there and winning a race or two.
I expect the PA to be the most exciting of the three student events this year, with tight races all the way through the week, not just on the weekend as we often see in the Temple.
My prediction is that Brookes will dispatch UL on the Saturday to meet Newcastle in the final, with Brookes coming out with the win overall.
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