It is a testament to the number of rowers and clubs competing that the National Schools’ Regatta continues to hold the event for second quads. This is the perfect opportunity for some crews to escape the shadows of their teammates racing in the Championship Quads, and to make a name for themselves. It is also a fantastic chance for smaller clubs and schools to be racing on the national stage. In total, there will be 17 quads racing in this event, which promises to serve up some tasty races.
Leander Club
Firm favourites to win the championship quads, Leander it seems are also on course to win the second quads. Their strength in depth is unparalleled, as the second boat contains racers with international experience putting them in good stead for a high-pressure environment like NSR. In all honesty, it is nearly certain that Leander will end up dominating this race, and they will be a force to be reckoned with next year too with many of these boys set to come back next year.
Windsor Boys’ School
An outfit that is no stranger to success, this Windsor Boys’ crew will be eager to make a name for themselves. The boat contains a couple of rowers who were in the victorious J16 quad last year at the British Junior Championships. However, more recently Windsor seems to have been mixing up their crews, so little is known about how well this crew will work together. Despite this, they will certainly put out a strong performance and challenge their opposition down to the finish line.
Henley Rowing Club
This Henley crew have been together for over a year now, having raced well in their J16 year. The past year has seen them perform consistently, though perhaps not up to the level of their older crewmates in the J18 boat. As previous years will show, Henley normally improve as the year goes on, and so it will be interesting to see how they match up against the likes of Windsor and Leander along with the rest of the field.
Claire’s Court School
Among the large number of J17 crews that competing in this category, Claire’s Court has always been up there fighting in the mix of things. Much like their J18 counterparts, the crew have consistently improved, with results getting better and better. They are in a good position to have a serious chance at pushing for the silver and bronze medals positions, and maybe even to cause a little upset to perhaps the more complacent crews on the course.
Predictions:
In reality, it will be very difficult for anyone to get past Leander in this race. Likewise with Windsor Boys’, they are almost guaranteed to finish in 2nd place. This means the real race will be for third. Marlow is always strong, and look out for Sir William Borlase too who could be a dark horse amongst the mix. However, I believe it will be Henley who will edge out against Claire’s Court for that bronze medal position.
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