The club coxless fours at the Met this year will be a fantastic precursor to the Wyfold Challenge Cup at Henley. The coxless four scene at club level in the UK is always highly competitive, and this year the Met is a huge number of entries in this field on the Saturday and the Sunday – 32 and 25 respectively.
There will be a number of crews jostling for supremacy here, as well as some that will largely be using the regatta to gauge the likelihood of Henley qualification. For this preview, I’ll be focusing on the top entries for both the Saturday and the Sunday, before making top-three predictions for each day.
Taurus BC – Saturday
Taurus is fielding an entry of recent Brookes graduates, including Oliver Ayres, a member of last year’s Temple eight. These boys look quick, and while they presumably have taken some time away from the sport, presuming they’re going for the Wyfolds this year, they’ll be entering to win. The brutally effective Brookes style will play to this crew’s strengths – they’re a powerful unit that will look to dominate from the outset with a crushing rhythm. Expect to see these guys around the top on Saturday.
Thames RC – Sunday
Thames RC are a powerhouse of club rowing in the UK, and they’ll undoubtedly expect nothing less than the top spot on Sunday. Winners of both the Thames Challenge Cup and, notably, the Wyfold Challenge Cup last year, Thames are on a hot streak that they’ll be looking to continue in 2022. They’ve got massive depth through the squad and they’ll be going into this regatta with massive confidence. Earlier in the year they put two eights into the top ten at HORR, which bodes very well for the summer racing to come.
Marlow RC – Saturday & Sunday
Marlow have a good top end this year that saw them take a strong second place at Wallingford Regatta in Club Coxless Fours. Marlow always field some competitive senior club crews, and this year it seems like their squad is relatively strong. They had a good Brit entry last year that saw a Friday exit, and they’ll be looking for more this year. They probably won’t have the speed to match the likes of Thames or London, but based on results from HORR, they’re on a very similar playing field to Upper Thames and City of Bristol. There’ll undoubtedly be some very close racing across the event.
London RC – Saturday & Sunday
Fresh from a fruitful training camp in Varese, Italy, the London boys will attempt to continue building on an already successful season with strong results on both days at the Met. London are currently occupying a liminal position – a little off-the-pace of top end club crews like Thames and Molesey, but generally in front of the rest of the field. They’ll be looking to gain some serious momentum over the summer racing season, and the Met will be a great test of speed relative to stiff competition from the likes of Thames and Taurus. Expect these boys to challenge for the podium.
Upper Thames RC – Saturday & Sunday
Upper Thames often produce some classy units with an assured technical style. They’ve got a good crop of fresh talent this year, and have seen some success, though a 28th-place finish at HORR will likely have been received with disappointment. Upper Thames had a difficult regatta at Henley last year, drawing eventual winners Thames on the Wednesday despite being a relatively decent crew. They’ll undoubtedly be looking to right some wrongs this year. If they can field a competitive coxless four, they might opt to prioritise the Wyfold this year. They had a good showing in Challenge Coxless Fours at Wallingford recently, finishing 6th in a strong field, so they might well be looking in that direction. It will be particularly interesting to see how they match up with the London-based clubs.
Tyne ARC – Saturday & Sunday
Tyne have been having a great season thus far. The northern club has been keeping pace with the bigger London-based clubs throughout the head season, and have really come on strong in the regatta season, with a second place in Club Eights at Wallingford Regatta and third place in Club Coxless Fours. With a view towards putting together a strong boat for either the Thames Cup, the Wyfold Cup, or both, expect some good racing from the Tyne boys.
Elizabethan RC – Saturday
Westminster alumni always put together some classy units, and have a good history of Wyfold entries in recent years. Westminster are always technically very well-drilled, and have years of tenacity instilled in them with a rigorous, pairs-based Tideway programme. Often, a few years out of school does well to build ex-Westminster athletes into more powerful units, and this Elizabethan boat may well continue that trend. Definitely ones to watch.
City of Bristol RC – Saturday & Sunday
City of Bristol are a club that pretty consistently punches above their weight. They pipped Upper Thames at HORR, finishing 26th overall, and put a coxless four into the A Final of Club Coxless Fours at Wallingford Regatta. They’re coming off the back of a decent 2021 season that saw a Friday exit in the Thames Challenge Cup to a strong Tideway Scullers crew. Bristol certainly have the tenacity and ambition to take down some of the bigger London-based clubs here, and it will be great to see them competitive here.
Prediction
Saturday: the massive number of entries on Saturday should lead to some really hot competition. I’m going for Taurus out in front, with London behind them and Tyne in third.
Sunday: a closer race for the top spots. I’m going with Thames in front, followed by London and Upper Thames.
Good luck to all crews.
Five Man
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