Pairs head is back on the Tideway, and this year the women’s intermediate pair shows itself to be a popular category with an impressive 14 entries. London RC, Worcester, City of Bristol, and City of Cambridge have all entered two boats each, and the remaining crews are all tideway natives. With perhaps a few new faces and maybe some spots in champ boats up for grabs later this year, these women will undoubtedly start their season of racing with something to prove – definitely an exciting category to keep our eyes on.
London Rowing Club
London never fails to turn out some excellent athletes. The women had some strong sweep performances at Henley in the summer, testament to fantastic coaching programme and London’s mission to become the city’s top choice club for athletes seeking big wins at national events. With two crews entered into this event, it will be interesting to see how they fare. Based on the impressive performances that the club has shown so far this season, I imagine at least one of these crews will finish in the top three.
Tideway Scullers School
TSS athletes are no strangers to collecting pots and pennants. With a couple of crews also entered in the women’s championship category, the intermediate pair will still be one to watch. TSS seem to have been putting more focus into their women’s sweep events recently, which culminated in some impressive wins in the Aspirational Club Eight and Aspirational Club Four at HWR. The question is, can TSS repeat the same success in the intermediate pairs this weekend? I think it’s certainly likely.
Thames Rowing Club
Boasting the biggest women’s squad on the Tideway and a usual home favourite, it’s no surprise that two athletes have been pooled for this category. Much like TSS and London, the Thames women had some positive runs out in sweep boats at Henley in the summer, with three eights making an appearance at HWR and their first eight making the final of the Wargrave at HRR. Whether we see some new faces or familiar ones in this pair, they will certainly put up a good fight and live up to their club’s successful reputation.
Predictions
Despite the majority of crews being local to the course, I am curious to see to what extent the home advantage plays out. With some local wins in women’s sweep already under their belt, Worcester are definitely not to be ruled out, though it may not quite be enough to topple the trio of tideway titans mentioned above. Vesta, Putney Town, Auriol Kensington, and hosts Barnes Bridge Ladies have also supplied entries, so we may see some dark horses come to the fore on the day. Nevertheless, my prediction remains that Thames, Tideway Scullers School, and one of the London crews will take the top three spots, though in what order we will have to wait and see.
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