After a tough wnter of flooding and minimal racing, excitement and expectation are building into Schools’ Head of the River, and the pressure is on to perform at the biggest race of the year so far. With Four’s Head cancelled, we haven’t seen the top junior women go head-to-head in the quads yet, and all 31 crews will be raring at the chance to demonstrate their commitment and hard work over the winter period.
Marlow RC
Current holders of this event after an incredibly close victory over Shiplake last year, Marlow will be looking to defend their title. They come in with plenty of tideway experience; their bow from last year remains in the crew to add to a fourth-placed finish at the Women’s Eights Head of the River Race and second at Quintin Head in the junior eight. Marlow are no strangers to the quad and have had an impressive few years in this boat class, coming first and second at the National Schools’ Regatta in 2022 and 2023 respectively, and have already raced it this season at Wycliffe Big Boats Head, taking the win in the W 4x in the morning division. With two international medalists at the Coupe de la Jeunesse last summer in this crew, there is certainly a lot of experience in the boat that will no doubt serve them well over this challenging course.
Wycliffe College
After a brief foray into sweep last year, winning the championship girl’s eight at the Schools’ Head of the River, Wycliffe have chosen to return to their primary discipline of sculling, and have only entered a quad. There is also an impressive international record in this crew, with three medaling at the junior world championships last summer, and putting in an imposing performance at GB trials last month. They are also no strangers to the tideway, with the six fastest junior women’s times at the Vesta Scullers Head in their possession alongside the top four places at Pairs Head a few weeks later. However, they have barely raced since (except winning the WJ18 4x at their own head race), so we await next week’s results to see if their winter training has been effective.
Tideway Scullers School
If anyone knows how to take down Wycliffe, it’s the girls of Tideway Scullers, who also have the home advantage coming into Schools’ Head. They have raced multiple times on the tideway this season, recently in mixed age eights at WeHORR, and earlier in the year at Pairs Head. They also appeared in the quad at Wycliffe Big Boats Head, finishing second and beating Shiplake, which will give them confidence that they will be right in the mix next week. There is clearly some power behind this quad, with Delevante remaining from the Henley Royal Regatta-winning boat last year, and two coming in the top fifteen at GB U19 trials.
Hartpury College
Last year Hartpury came fifth in this event, and their quad went on to reach the Thursday of Henley Royal Regatta, and I think they are in a good place to go even further this season. They appear to have some very impressive individuals in their programme, taking the top three places at the British Indoor Rowing Championships over 2k, and excellent results at both U19 and U23 GB trials, with Sheppard having already represented GB in the JW4x last summer, coming away with a bronze medal. Hartpury have an excellent set-up, and I have no doubt their athletes will work well together and put in a strong performance.
Sir William Perkin’s School
A common name on the junior women’s sculling scene, Sir William Perkin’s School had an excellent season last year, culminating in a Friday appearance in the Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta. This crew was exceptionally young and so puts them in good stead for this season, with three of those girls remaining, and now with extra international experience from the J16 GB-France match or Home International Regatta. They have also had a strong start to this season, winning the WJ16-18 doubles at Reading Small Boats Head, placing third in the WJ18 2x in a tough Hampton Head field, and multiple athletes producing impressive performances at GB trials and training days. Their focus will now be on demonstrating their speed in the quad.
Other entries:
Putney High School and Kingston RC both had strong WJ16 quads last year, so I would expect these athletes to feature and push their clubs on to a strong result next week. Despite Shiplake choosing to prioritise the eight for this event, I’m sure any outfit they produce will be of a high standard, and I’d expect their quad to be competitive. Molesey also consistently produce strong junior crews, and with Cheesmur having represented GB at multiple international competitions, there is both power and experience in the crew. Finally it’s always interesting to see international entries, and although they’re starting low in the draw, the quad from Istituto Statale E. STEIN, Italy may interrupt the expected order.
My predictions:
1st Wycliffe College
2nd Marlow RC
3rd Tideway Scullers School
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