It is finally that time of year when all the junior rowers in the country pack their bags and trailers and make their way over to Eton Dorney for the National Schools Championships. Being one of the biggest competitions of the year, there will be more nerves flying around the place than normal and adrenaline levels will be high. The high-pressure environment can work well for certain crews and we often see exciting, surprising performances throughout the weekend. This year, there are 11 crews entered in the coxless fours event and it is especially difficult to predict which boat will get its hands on the Colts Cup at the weekend.
The four from Clydesdale have performed well at Scottish competitions such as the Scottish Spring Regatta and Inverness head, however, these are nowhere near as competitive as National Schools’ will be. The crew with Abby Pringle, Ava Robertson, Dara Wood and Beth Logan have not been sweep focused for long, but the fact they have entered this event shows that they are confident in their ability to transfer skills. The girls will have to find another gear to be competitive but it is still entirely possible that they can rise to the challenge.
The crew to look out for will be the coxless four from George Heriots School, made up of Amy Newton, Isla Bathgate, Sarah Happs and Anna Noake. Three out of the four girls all competed at GB final trials, with Amy getting selected for Munich Regatta, where she was part of the two winning coxless fours. Heriots normally focus on sculling – this combination of rowers came sixth in the quad at the Schools’ Head – so it will be interesting to see how their sweeping compares.
The Tideway Scullers School four featuring Martha Kemp, Emilia Regan, Ariana Daly, and Felicity Howard is another crew with potential. Both Martha and Felicity were in the very same event last year, coming fifth. I’m sure this valuable experience will help the crew to climb up the rankings on their second attempt. The Tideway Scullers program has been consistently very strong this year with seven female athletes attending GB early ID trials in November 2021, highlighting the depth of the team. While this coxless four might not be the A boat, I think they have the potential to put in a good performance at National Schools’.
The crew of Shrishti Tandon, Margot Faguet, Sofia Tyler, and Ella Male, from St Paul’s Girls School have performed well recently, coming second at Wallingford Regatta in this event. At the junior GB final trials regatta in April, the pair comprising Tyler and Male came top of the B final, which is a very strong result considering the very difficult competition.
Other crews to look out for are Walton, who have one returning member from the four who came second in this event last year. A four from LEH is never one to be underestimated with some strong results this year, including a second place at the Fours Head.
Overall, from the results this season, I think it will be a close race between Heriots, SPSGS and Tideway Scullers. I would never underestimate the Scots but it is a very open race, ultimately coming down to who wants it most.
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