Kicking off the 2025 calendar year, Quintin Head is always a fan favourite for its Tideway setting, but at a shorter length of just 4.6km, compared to the coveted Head of The River’s 6.8km. With some mighty competition boarding the boats on the 25th January, Saturday’s racing will see matchups between St Paul’s, King’s College School, Abingdon, Dulwich College, Shiplake College and Radley College, who probably have more Henley Royal Regatta wins between them than races cancelled in 2024!
St Paul’s School
Kicking off the flotilla, no surprises really, are St Paul’s School. The titans of schoolboy rowing, St Paul’s have consecutively dominated event after event in almost any category they set their minds to. In fact, they’re spearheading the whole event; a junior boys crew leading a pack of 300 eights is certainly a major feat! In the J16 event though, they are exercising the depth of their squad with three crews entered this year. Usually at this point we’d be raving about ‘quantity over quality’, but given the track record the Paul’s boys have, I think they’ll be ticking both boxes come Saturday. One slight bump in the road is evidenced from last year, where the (absent this year) Westminster crew pulled the victory out in front of St Paul’s, forcing them into a claustrophobic second place, two seconds behind. Though the trophy engraving seems almost set already, the ‘unbeatable’ have been beaten in the past, and this might facilitate the upturn of the assumed rank order.
Radley College
13 seconds off victory last year, but still in a commendable fourth place at 54 in the overall ranking, Radley College are dusting off their ‘lifeguard’ outfits and are ready to save the day for their school. We’ve come to expect a slow start from these boys as a lot of their contingent play rugby right through the festive period, and their starting position at eighth (in the second half) perhaps hints at a lack of racing experience this season. They will need to be ‘as wise as serpents’ but if they are, as their motto suggests, ‘as harmless as doves’, then they may not be able to achieve. Alas, a racing mindset is one willing to put it all on the line for victory.
The King’s College School
Setting off second and chasing down St Paul’s, King’s College Wimbledon seem to be the biggest threats to the ‘champions’ at this time. Moreover, there is another element on their side, a victory at the recent 5200km Teddington Head course. I’m confident King’s will be grateful for a 600m shorter course, but having a solid victory already in their armoury will definitely inspire confidence when it comes to Saturday’s race. Whether they have the potential to beat St Paul’s is questionable, but setting off just behind as primary hunters means that they will have their nemeses in their sights all the way. In addition, having two crews in the mix will provide an exciting element of intra-squad camaraderie as the crews are able to bounce off each other in training, working together to achieve mutual successes.
Shiplake College
Shiplake’s reputation precedes them, with a fantastic training programme and strong technical focus. The college’s deep pool of talent extends into a Fawley Challenge Cup semifinal last year at Henley Royal Regatta, and switching into the eight seats will evidence the up-and-coming athletes from the junior 16 category, who will hope to go on to achieve, and better, such accolades. Shiplake are regulars at the top of the tree, though at Teddington Head they came a disappointing fifth, nearly a minute behind first place. Hopefully though, the ‘beekeepers’ will have learnt from their misfortune and used that setback to retaliate and close the gap on King’s College.
With an unlucky 13 crews entered this year, luck will be at the grasp of those crews who can handle the turns and waves, which are an unfriendly yet inevitable companion. The early winter training has been in full swing for a while now, so crews’ strengths will be starting to peak. But as well as the rowers, their coxes will need to navigate the twists and turns of the course with precision, ensuring their crew maintains the quickest line they can when negotiating bends and overtaking. In a field of such calibre, the strategic nous of the cox may make or break their race.
Prediction
It’s London. It’s January. So pack a raincoat, your emotional resilience, and be prepared to fork out for an overpriced hot chocolate post-race. It’s a well-known fact that Quintin Head always delivers two things: unpredictable weather and the chance to blame your race performance on it. Who will win though? My money is on a St Paul’s–King’s College tussle, perhaps infiltrated by Radley, though it is all still to play for given the promise of the other contenders and the lack of solid evidence after a disappointing season of cancellations. We’ll just have to wait until Saturday to find out!
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