Quintin Head marks the start of the head season on the Championship Course in London. While it is still early in the year the Head of the River is fast approaching and crews will be hoping to show some strong results here while they have a few weeks still to find some more speed before the biggest head race of the season.
Thames RC
One of the major titananic clubs on the River Thames, Thames Rowing Club has consistent depth right through its squad. While their second crew at Wallingford Head was close on speed to the Thames first eight the result was maybe not as strong as hoped for as they were clearly edged out by crews from Brookes and Leander. Here on more familiar waters this Thames crew certainly has the speed to win in this category
University of Bristol BC
With no Bristol Head this year we have not seen much from Bristol University. Last year was one of their strongest with a win in the Men’s Intermediate Eights at BUCS Regatta. If this crew is anywhere near to as fast as that crew then you can expect them to lay down a time that might even challenge some of those in the Championship category.
Exeter University BC
Exeter University has recently had camp at Wimbleball Lake where the magical waters will no doubt have helped inject some speed into this crew. Exeter University has had a strong men’s squad for quite a few years now and this race will be interesting to see if this year will be a strong as previous season.
Nottingham University BC
Nottingham University will certainly be hoping to step up after a slightly disappointing result at Wallingford Head where they missed out on the win in Tier 2 Eights. Surrounded by strong programmes like Thames and Molesey a fast time here would be huge in generating some confidence right at the start of the year for Nottingham.
Imperial College London BC
With the first eight in Championship this is a chance to see what the depth of Imperial’s squad is this year. They have been able to produce a very large and competitive men’s squad for the past few years and on home waters it will be interesting to see how this crew matches up against the likes of Bristol University or Thames.
Prediction
There is a wide range of crews in this category, but I would expect that Thames and Bristol will be challenging at the front. Imperial will likely be able to put out a very strong second eight and I am going to be watching out for the Molesey eight which almost certainly will have some pace.
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