The Metropolitan ‘Met’ Regatta serves as a key stepping stone on the path to Henley Women’s and Henley Royal, and while not the final stepping stone it’s potentially the biggest, with the following regattas not playing host to the sheer volume of entries that we see at Met. For the women competing here, they will likely have Henley Women’s in their sights, although this category doesn’t directly correspond to an event there the athletes will be hopeful of a seat in the Aspirational Academic Eight or Coxless Four.
Dublin University Ladies BC, IRE
Although we don’t see them often, the clubs from Ireland are certainly ones to watch and in this category is seems so given their three entries on both days. Dublin Ladies won the Women’s Championship Coxed Four at the Irish Rowing University Championships this year against rivals including NUI Galway and University College Dublin, a result which positions them as the top Irish club ahead of this weekend’s race.
University of Surrey BC
A club on the rise, Surrey did well at BUCS this year and will be looking to carry on their form through the business end of the summer. They placed sixth in the A final of the Women’s Intermediate Coxed Four at BUCS Regatta, admittedly not a result to write home about, however with arguably a weaker field here at Met, Surrey should be in the mix.
Oxford Brookes University BC
While only racing on the Saturday, the Oxford Brookes crew will without doubt be in contention in the event. They didn’t have a crew entered at BUCS in the coxed fours but that says nothing for their form as they enjoyed success elsewhere on that weekend. It will definitely not be their top athletes in this boat but as we have seen over the years Brookes have an unparalleled level of depth in their squad which we now see on the women’s side as well as the men’s.
Prediction
On the Saturday I expect Oxford Brookes, Dublin and Oxford University to be at the front of the field, and on Sunday with a different entry list I’d expect it to be Dublin, NUI Galway and Surrey.
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