An event designated for the schoolboy engines that don’t quite have the resource to step into the championship arena, First Eights is a well-heralded category for schools and clubs with a little less firepower but equal temerity and determination. Reading Blue Coat School, winners of this category in 2022, have made the transition into Championship Eights so the crown is left unclaimed – who will step forward and seize the day?
Bedford School
Serial monogamists to this specific event, Bedford have been middleweight swinging for a little while. Led by Pete Mulkerrins, the boys in blue were seventh in this category last year and will be looking to make up lost ground particularly in a field that looks a little depleted (four of 2022’s top five aren’t present on Friday). They picked up a recent win on home water at Bedford Head before racing a selection of Time-Only crews at the Head of the Trent. Their senior eight also clocked the fastest time at the Head of the Nene in early February .
St George’s College
Leading the pack, St George’s College are a curious case of fits and starts. They’re generally either searingly quick or off the radar; 2022 saw them place fourth in this category at SHORR before decanting into a coxed four and winning a silver medal in Championship Coxed Fours at the National Schools’ Regatta. They also had three boys representing GB last summer at the Coupe De La Jeunesse – an impressive season to be sure. What 2023 brings remains to be seen – they’re the fastest returning club in the category and a cancelled second division at Wallingford Head robbed us of the chance to see them race.
Claires Court School (scratched)
Under the guidance of Alex Richardson, this program continues to build positive momentum (particularly on the girl’s side, where one might argue they’ve reached their zenith after a 2022 Henley Royal Regatta victory in the Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup). There is no doubting that CCSBC favour the quad; they’ve got two entries in CH4x so expect this crew to be either their second or third-ranked boat.
Monmouth School
A bastion of First Eight rowing, Monmouth have flitted from top to bottom and back to the top again. So much of rowing is down to the production line of talent and legacies are extraordinarily hard to build without the resourcing and attention-to-detail at J14 level. Monmouth are an example of a school who often build from the bottom up and naturally rely heavily on home-grown talent to outshine their competition. Last weekend, they were the second-fastest crew in the morning division at Gloucester Head and finished 13th out of 25 in J18 Eights at Quintin Head (beating St George’s College by less than half a second).
Winchester College
One of the UK’s stalwart boarding schools, Winchester have had a rocky few years in the rowing wilderness. After falling out of the Championship roster, they’ve struggled to maintain a foothold in First Eights, finishing 12th in this category at the 2022 Schools’ Head of the River before finishing sixth in the ‘C’ final of Championship Eights at the National Schools’ Regatta. Word is they’ve been going well in 2023, with a lot of paddling practice at Eton Dorney and small boat prioritisation before Christmas. They boated two quads at Fours Head, finishing 25th and 24th in Junior Quads. They were also 25th in Club Quads at Fours Head.
Bedford Modern School
Bedford Modern have had a solid start to the season. A 13th-placed finish in Junior Coxed Fours and a couple of positive showings at the Head of the Nene and Head of the Trent leaves them well positioned to better the 18th they achieved in 2022.
Emanuel School
Competing on their home turf of the Tideway, Emanuel School will definitely possess a competitive advantage against crews from further afield. In this event last year, Emanuel placed 10th and their aim this year will be to consolidate their placing in the top-ten of this category. They finished 37th at Wallingford Head of the River overall, but critically ahead of crews like Monmouth School.
Predictions
Unlike the championship events, there isn’t always a wealth of readily-available information on these crews. Early nods should probably go to Monmouth, Winchester and St George’s College. Don’t discount the Irish crews making the trip – usual suspects Enniskillen haven’t traveled this year but Methodist College Belfast Rowing Club and St Joseph College Rowing Club, Ireland won’t have crossed the Irish sea without a level of comfort in their own speed.
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