Schools’ Head 2023 – Championship Boys Eights Preview

“Remember March; The Ides of March Remember” – Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar

As riverrun from swerve of shore to bend of bay, all sown must be reaped, and every dog must have its day. Schools Head marks a volta in the racing season, a departure from the frivolities of small boats and matched eights, and the point where all consequences become grave, and all mistakes life-or-death. The race, 4.25 miles down the hallowed Boat Race course, will break the bodies of men and likely, when the results are released, a few hearts.

Shiplake

There are three constants to life; death, taxes, and Shiplake winning Schools Head. Since a loss to Westminster, Shiplake have gone on an unbeaten run, obliterating Teddies and Eton at Reading, Teddies (mercilessly) at Wycliffe, and rolling the competition at Henley. The fact that everyone has their own personal theories as to why Shiplake’s head seasons are so awe-inspiring is indicative of their dominance, and mine is simply that they’re really good at tapping down, little elaboration required. Rumour has it that Shiplake think they’ll win if they can average 350 watts, and with rowers as techy as the coupe returners of Middleton and Crichley, and the imported 6 foot 10 giant of Wallis, that seems very feasible. 

Radley

Radley are the epitome of a Brexit boat club. In their drive to take rowing back to the good old days, they refuse to rate higher than 33 and refuse to force their rowers to do the sport year-round. Somehow this seems to work, reaching last year’s Henley final and finishing a solid second at Quintin, but I have a feeling that this is the year it all comes unstuck. After a series of underperformances at trials, Radley has a collection of solid but unspectacular oarsmen, and, even with the mercurial Gray-Cheape at the core of their crew (having defeated any washed allegations at Feb trials), they might have to form more than the sum of their parts. 

St Pauls

St Pauls, St Pauls, St Pauls. After a rare season away from the sharp end (until Henley obviously) the prodigal sons have returned. I can’t help equating 2023 Pauls with Man City, and I’m not just talking about the managers. While City and Pauls clearly have the pieces for success and are still firmly in the driving seat of the title race, other schools may just have more of a love for the game. However, with the Haaland-like figure of Karadogan anchoring their crew, and the second fastest pair in the country, Peerless and Wolfensberger, in the stern, not to mention talent from Throsby to Fowlie scattered throughout their boat, a victory is firmly on the table, much like it was at Quintin. For the Tideway crews, there’s always a clear sense of nationalism at Schools Head, and St Pauls looks like the strongest local challenge to fend off a foreign onslaught.

St Edwards

To continue with the footballing analogies, St Edwards (affectionately Teddies) could be the PSG of rowing. Aiming to upend the game with four scholarships a year, they’ve been plagued in the past with internal turmoil and early exits. However this year could be different. Their versions of Mbappe, Messi, and Neymar are the triumvirate of Hillicks-Tulip, McDonnell, and Bain, their blend of agricultural brutality and pure finesse spurring their matched eights to the win at Wallingford and incredibly fast times at Quintin. While they may have lost to Shiplake at Seville, Wycliffe, and Reading, fourth time may be the charm, and if there’s a headwind, they probably become my favourites for the event.

Eton

I’m going to be real, I have no idea how Eton will do. On paper their eight should be fast, Scott obviously a talisman, Perkins’s J16 6:12 unparalleled, and Ginsberg and Audley-Williams returning from last year’s gold-medal crew. However, with a disappointing Quintin, 12 seconds behind St Paul’s and only three ahead of Teddies’ matched crews, and defeat at Reading, the question remains whether they can pull it together and continue the light-blue hegemony that’s quaked junior rowing for the last decade. On the other hand, insider information suggests they’ve got an outside shot for a breath-taking victory after they managed to beat another key player for the event – à la gossip girl I’ll leave the reader to guess which one.

Westminster

2023 has marked Westminster’s return to relevancy since the glory days of 2015-16, a newfound swagger and bombast about them, their fifth at National Schools last year and Henley 2021 weekend going very much under the radar (I was actually a bit surprised looking up recent results). They’ve been stringing together a very solid series of performances despite absences at Fours and Pairs Head, which are helped by having the country’s top rower, Peel, in their 5 seat, but also by what look like a gargantuan pairing in the midst of the boat. As of now, Westminster are like a baby bulldog, ferocious, yapping, and plucky, but a top-three showing on home waters could elevate them to the status of serious contender, and they’d be my dark horse to outperform expectations. 

KCS and Latymer

I’ve grouped them together because both KCS and Latymer, are in building years, on the Tideway, and have a good shot at upheaving this year’s established order. Despite a young and raw group, apart from their leaders, Corbett and Scowen, KCS managed to end Quintin Head half a second behind Eton, and though their early season results were shakier, there’s something brewing down in Putney with a different vibe to last year, complacency turned into raw aggression. Meanwhile, I’m sure Latymer have a fast eight in them; last year’s J16s second at Nat Schools and Wild one of the country’s top strokesiders, but nobody’s seen it, their mixed eights well off the pace so far. My gut says one of these two is going to have a corker of a race, but I’m unsure which.

Predictions

10^th Llandaff

9^th Shrewsbury

8^th Latymer

7^th KCS

6^th Radley

5^th Westminster

4^th Eton

3^rd St Edwards

2^nd St Pauls

1^st Shiplake

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