With Latymer, Marlow, Sir William Perkins, King’s School Ely, King’s School Worcester and Hereford Cathedral School all racing together in the Championship Quads category at Schools Head of the River the day before, it will be interesting to see how the standings change after that race. With plenty of new boats entered alongside these, I’m sure many people will be excited to see how those quads who have raced the previous day compare to those who have come into the race fresh. Tuesday sees the addition of clubs like Henley and Headington joining the line-up along with many clubs now entering more than 1 boat, the category of 35 is set to be very competitive. With this race both shorter and more manageable (despite the strong winds forecast) than the Tideway, I imagine we could see some very fast times from some of these crews.
Henley Rowing Club – With 3 boats entered, it’s safe to say that there’s a chance of Henley dominating the top places. At Hampton Head, and more recently at Henley fours and eights, the WJ18s focused on sweep rowing but achieved wins in all their races. Along with this, four of the J18 rowers placed in the top twenty at the GB trials which included 1st and 3rd in singles and 1st when put into doubles. I believe that this proves their capability in sculling while their wins in the sweep boats show that they have power. I imagine that these three boats, particularly the boat featuring those who trialled for GB, will do exceptionally well.
Latymer Upper School – Latymer have entered 2 boats in this category having entered only 1 boat in the tideway race the day before. This might mean that the fresh boat has time to shine and prove themselves alongside their teammates. Throughout the season, it appears that the club have generally only entered one quad into their events. This crew has managed to gain 2nd place at Quintin Head, beaten by Lady Eleanor Holles to first place. It is also likely to be this crew who placed 2nd at Hampton Head in the W4x- category, this time only beaten by Tideway Scullers School. At Henley Long Distance Sculls back in November, they placed 3rd as a quad and rowed several doubles into top spots too. I think these results combined with their understanding of the course guarantees them a place among the top positions in this race. With almost no information on the other quad, it is difficult to tell how they will perform, however, if we use their club history for producing very fast crews, I imagine they will definitely hold their own among the other boats.
Glasgow Academy Rowing Club – The Academy seem to have had a very successful season of wins for many of their crews in the local and major races in Scotland. With very few results to compare with the other crews in this category, I don’t know how the crew will compare when we get to Dorney on Tuesday but with their apparent string of wins from this crew which has been said to be performing better than any of the previous quads from Glasgow Academy, I think they have a high chance of being in the standings for the top places.
Marlow Rowing Club – Marlow have not had many wins so far this year but have had a win in a single at Reading Small Boats Head. However, with one of their two quads entered into the Championship Quads on Monday, I think we’ll get a better understanding of what they are capable of. I think that they have potential to do well but with a lack of evidence to back this up, I’m not sure if they will be reaching the top places.
Headington School Boat Club – As the only club to enter 4 boats into this category, I’m expecting big things from Headington. Normally, they’re known for providing good results and I’m sure they will continue this reputation on Tuesday. They achieved a few good results at the GB trials which shows us what they are capable and it is obvious how much effort they have put into their training this season. However, it is difficult to find any results for any of their quads from recent events so there is a slight sense of ambiguity surrounding their performance. I know that they will pull out all the stops to achieve the fastest time they are capable of pulling.
Sir William Perkins School – There are 2 boats entered but, throughout the season, it appears that only 1 quad has been entered in most events and so there is very little information on the quads and how they compare. The biggest teller for us will be on Monday with the Schools Head of the River in which they are both competing. It seems that one quad has been getting consistent victories throughout the season including a win at Reading Small Boats Head. At Weybridge earlier this year, they won their category but their competitors are not within this race which makes it hard to class how their time compares to others within this category. The result that helps us see their potential greatest is their 4th place at Hampton Head which indicates that they are very capable of placing in the top three with one boat and a possible high finish with the other boat.
Royal Shrewsbury School – They achieved a very large victory at Wycliffe Big Boats Head in the WJ18 category. Other than this win in the quad, they seem to have focused a lot on rowing in eights this season with several good victories. I feel that they will provide a very stable result and it will depend on how well they adapt from eights into the quad on how they do in this category.
Sir William Borlase’ Grammar School – Recently this quad won their category at Bedford Head proving that they are capable of rowing very well. It is difficult to tell how they will do overall as they do seem to be limited on results but with the few results they do have being good results, I don’t see a reason for them not to do well overall.
The Kings School Worcester Boat Club – Kings are among the list of boats who will have raced the previous day, and their performance there will be very telling of how they will fare here although I imagine the unfamiliarity that might hinder them on the Tideway won’t be a problem for them here. With very few results to compare to other schools/clubs, it is difficult to tell how they will do on Monday. This crew appears to have done well in their events although limited, having received Fastest Women’s crew at Monmouth back in September and a more recent win at Wycliffe Big Boats head. The only result to compare to other boats within this category is at Henley Long Distance Sculls where they finished slightly lower down the table than the other crews in this category, however they are likely to have put in a lot of training since then.
Other notable mentions include Great Marlow School Boat Club, Maidenhead Rowing Club, Kingston Grammar School Boat Club, St Pauls Girls School Boat Club, Cannottelei Lago D’Orta from Italy and the Kings School Ely.
Overall, I think we will be seeing Henley, Latymer and Sir William Perkins in the top places with the possibility of a Headington boat too.
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