With Henley Royal regatta just around the corner these championship crews will likely be using this event to get a last bit of side-by-side racing in to prepare for the biggest competition of the year. I would expect all these crews will likely be building towards competing in either the Visitors or the Wyfold for some.
Oxford University BC
An Oxford University four can always be relied upon to be up there at the sharp end of any field and this four is no different. Containing Swiss international pairing of Barnabe Delarze and Roman Röösli alongside the ever-impressive Tobias Schröder and Australian Jack Robertson, this boat it is clearly one of the most exciting crews to watch this weekend. With the level of talent in this crew it is clear they have their eyes set on wining the Visitors at Henley this year and so will likely be using this weekend not only to fight for more silverware but also get in some extra side by side racing before Henley Royal.
Oxford Brookes University BC ‘A’
It still is remarkable the depth within the Oxford Brookes squad as shown here with the talent in this four on top of the talent already in the other Oxford eights and coxed fours. Michael Glover and Matt Rowe are both extremely experienced now and with the returning talent of Max Thompson and the ever-reliable Gareth Syphas this is a crew that should have the speed to challenge the Oxford University crew. A recent second place at Ratzeburg Regatta with only the German U23 being able to edge them out shows that this boat is mighty fast although isn’t entirely as dominant as some past Oxford Brookes crews.
Dublin University BC
It was not very surprising to see that this Dublin crew was one of the fastest crews at Met Regatta just a couple of weeks ago. Third behind the two Oxford university fours was a very strong result and I would not be surprised if here they once again were only just edged out by Oxford University and Oxford Brookes. This crew though looks to be in a good place to be competitive come Henley.
Griffin BC
The Abingdon School alumni club once again is looking to qualify a crew for Henley Royal this year. This crew is likely targeting the Wyfold and so this regatta will be vital for bringing this crew together before qualifiers. With the likes of highly experience Agamemnon Crumpton from the Oxford University Lightweights and Christopher Fry from the 2019 Abingdon first eight alongside George Beer and Benjamin Crofts from last year’s Abingdon first eight, it will be interesting to see if this crew can come produce a strong performance here against some very top-class crews.
Molesey BC ‘A’
Molesey BC often at this time of the year gains a big boost from returning athletes based out in America. It is no different this year and this boat you would expect to be fast with the likes of Thames Cup 2021 finalist Henry Jones alongside 2019 Junior Worlds silver medallist and former St Paul’s athlete Joseph Middleton, the reliably strong Henley winner Oliver Knight and University of Bristol alum Harry Hetherington. How close they can get two the likes of Oxford Brookes and Oxford University will be interesting as we look towards Henley Royal.
Prediction
For me that Oxford University crew looks to be clear favourites with oxford Brookes ‘A’ their closest challenger. I would say that Dublin University will come home in third although there are some very fast crews entered particularly from the likes of Molesey and Thames.
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