The first of the Tideway Heads, this Sunday sees 27 J18 Pairs row the 4.5km course from Chiswick Bridge to Hammersmith Bridge. They will be divided into 3 categories: Championship, Senior and Intermediate, with the winner likely to come from the first category.
Eton College
Eton would have been top contenders to win this year with their sole entry of Wahl / Burges Watson, after Burges Watson’s appearance at Coupe . However, they appear to have scratched this crew, and with no other entries, they’re out of the running for this one.
St Paul’s School
St Paul’s have a number of entries spread across the three categories, with four of their athletes who competed in their 1st VIII last year racing in the championship category. Middleton/Valt, made up of Junior Worlds’ athlete Joe Middleton, who raced in the 4- ,and Coupe athlete Dom Valt, who raced in the 2-, will race along side Kwok/Taylor, made up of Felix Kwok and Milo Taylor, who raced together in the Coupe VIII last year. They are joined by a number of athletes in the senior J18 category, who raced in the St Pauls’ 2nd VIII last year. Both of their championship combinations could take the overall win, with an intimate knowledge of the course. But Middleton’s Junior Worlds’ experience may make the difference between the two.
Shiplake College
Shiplake have four entries in the championship category, made up of athletes from their medal-winning 1st and 2nd Eights last year. The most promising pair is likely to be Brockway/Ash. They both raced in the Shiplake 1st VIII last year and will be no stranger to the Tideway after their record-breaking Schools’ Head win this year. They’re joined by three other Paris, made up of a mixture of first and 2nd VIII athletes, with some new L6th getting in amongst the senior squad. Shiplake may not have been victorious at NSR last year, but they return to the Tideway as defending champions.
Radley College
Radley have four entries, all in the J18 Senior category. Their excellent depth is really on display here as, despite losing a number of athletes to university at the end of last season, they have been able to call upon last year’s 2nd and 3rd VIII athletes to step up and fill the gap. Radley looked like favourites for regatta season right up until the NSR final and the Friday of Henley. They did a lot of the hard-work that was required of them last season, but will want something to show for it this year.
King’s College School
King’s have J18 pairs entered, but only one is racing in the J18 category, in senior J18 pairs. The other, Betteley/Thompson, has made the step up to to the Open Championship 2-. They both raced at Coupe last year, in the VIII and IV respectively, and finished 6th last year in CH8+ at NSR. This is the last year for this promising KCS year-group to make an impact, and these guys will want to start early, even if they’re not directly against their schoolboy opposition.
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