The Oarsport Junior Scullling Head takes place immediately after School’s Head, so recovery is key for crews after tackling the gruelling SHORR course if they are to put their best foot forward as they take on the two 1800m legs at the Scullery. This event has 34 entries- roughly double that of at School’s Head- as we see many girls who raced the eight at SHORR aiming to prove their sculling ability the following day, which will make for very competitive racing.
Crews to watch:
Henley
At Henley Long Distance Sculls earlier this season, Henley’s W.J16.4x- took a definitive win almost 30s clear of the next placing crew. HEN-RUSSELL also took the win in W.J16.2x at Hampton Head, in addition to having a Henley RC crew place 2nd in JW.16.2x at February trials. This crew will certainly be fast, and likely the ones to beat.
Maidenhead
Maidenhead finished 4th in W.J15.4x+ at the Scullery last year. They don’t seem to have been racing at the same events as other crews this season, but were within 1 second of the Henley RC crew that won W.J15.2x at the British Junior Championships last year, where they also took the bronze medal in the quad, so should be aiming for the top end of this category.
Latymer
Latymer were second in W.J15.4x+ at last year’s OJSH, 8 seconds behind winners from Henley RC. They don’t seem to have stepped on quite as much as Henley have in the past year, finishing close to 45 seconds behind them at the Henley Long Distance Sculls at the beginning of the season. Latymer will have their work cut out to match last year’s result, but have a strong tradition of producing quality sculling crews, so no doubt will still be in the mix.
Surbiton
Both Surbiton’s J15 and J16 girls have been producing impressive results so far this season. They were very successful at Hampton Head, winning both W.J16.4- and W.J16.8+, finishing 3 seconds ahead of a strong Henley RC crew. They certainly have shown they have the ability, but their result at the Scullery will ride on how they manage transitioning to the quad after a lot of sweep focus.
Headington
At J18 level, Headington often seem untouchable, but less so throughout the younger age groups. Their top sculler finish 4th in JW.16.1x at February trials, joining the NCRA winner in the double the following day to top JW.16.2x. At Hampton Small Boat’s Head, HSOBC’s doubles were only 9th and 10th, so they don’t seem to have the depth to be as competitive as is often expected of them in the quad.
Sir William Perkins’s School
SWP have shown a lot of promise so far this year, finishing only 2 seconds behind a talented Marlow RC crew at the Henley Long Distance Sculls. They may not be ‘big names’ yet on the junior women’s rowing scene, but have consistently been performing well in recent times. SWP- Linney raced as a coxless four at Hampton, posting the third fastest time in a small category, but I would not count them out, especially as their quad entry at SHORR would indicate that unlike most entries here, they have been prioritising their sculling.
Marlow
Marlow finished 2nd at the Henley Long Distance Sculls, but were a long way off the winning Henley RC crew. They definitely have a strong J16 cohort, sending scullers who placed in 2nd and 3rd in JW.16.1x at February trials. This quad also took the win at Hampton Head, finishing 11 seconds ahead of Latymer. They look to have progressed well throughout the season thus far, so will be looking to close in on Henley on Tuesday.
There is also an impressive selection of international crews, especially in this young age group, including Liceo Cantonale Ticino, Switzerland, Istituto Statale “E. STEIN” Gavirate, Italy and Cannottieri Lago D’Orta, Italy.
Prediction:
- Henley RC
- Marlow RC
- Sir William Perkins’s School
RockOver
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