As a smaller sweep event, the Girls 4- is one of the more overlooked categories in the legendary NSR lineup. Although only seven crews entered, and the race will lack the usual swathes of eager spectators, it will be a highlight the summer after an incredible number of months deprived of racing.
Glasgow Academy RC
Although their social media presence is lacking, this club’s medal haul sure isn’t. Over the last three years, athletes have won 22 international medals, with the club boasting a tally of 23 occasions where athletes have been chosen to represent Great Britain, with them representing Scotland even more frequently. They also hold the record for the Fawley Cup in the boy’s quads at Henley, but only time will tell if this has translated over to their girls’ sweep rowing.
Lady Eleanor Holles BC
The slightly onomatopoeic abbreviation of LEH (when pronounced phonetically in the slightly childish way as I tend to) comes with a solid reputation. They currently hold the Girls’ Championship 8+ title, so a strong sweep education is a guarantee. They have also been doing extensive match race training with various other clubs in their eights, so you can expect the sweep crews to be finely tuned at race pace. 34% of our readers who polled thought that their Championship Eight would be victorious again, so their smaller boats are unlikely to be far behind. With this in mind, LEH is undoubtedly one to watch.
Royal Shrewsbury School BC
Shrewsbury have also, broadly, been spending time sweeping lately, hopefully putting them in good stead for the 4-. The girls showed their sculling skill at the virtual Schools’ Head, with two first-place results, so if their apparent progress over their (comparatively short) Easter Camp can be relied upon, they should be in good stead for a strong result.
Tideway Scullers
I talked about this club extensively in my Weybridge Silver Sculls review back in October, and for a good reason: they had several good results from their juniors in the sculling boats. This appears to have been continued in their sweep results, with their Junior Women’s 4- having won gold at the 2019 Four’s Head. Despite little else being found on their recent training, this holds potential for a good result.
Other competitors include the more elusive Great Marlow School BC; Trentham BC, who had 16-year-old Meg Knight pull a blistering sub-7 minute 2K at the U19s Virtual Championships, showing a strong erg culture; plus Walton RC, who also got multiple honourable mentions in my Weybridge Silver Sculls review, particularly in the younger divisions.
Prediction
Despite the lack of racing earlier in the season, an unexpected result isn’t unlikely. Lady Eleanor Holles and Glasgow Academy appear to be in the most powerful positions, with LEH’s sweep titles putting them as the likely favourite.
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