“For last year’s words belong to last year’s language.
And next year’s words await another voice.” – T.S Eliot: ‘Four Quartets’
With only a handful of sleeps left until the Scullers’ Head commences, it is safe to say that the 2023/2024 racing season is very much upon us. Thirty-five young, seasoned scullers will challenge the gruelling 6.8k Championship stretch. At present, it seems a tough call to predict a standout winner, given that the majority of the quickest of last year are no longer juniors. We could be in for a very close set of times.
St Paul’s School Boat Club
I’ve chosen to give St Paul’s their own section as there are too many strong contenders from the black and white mafia to allocate individual paragraphs to.
The first name to be discussed is undoubtedly Alec Wild. Following his departure from the Latymer Upper outfit of last year, Alec will be representing St. Paul’s over the next season. I think it’s suitable to place him at the top of this list, not only did he pick up a silver medal in the J16 event in 2021, but last year he placed 6th, and was the quickest J17 of the day.
Moving swiftly on to the strokeman of the SPS 1st VIII over the last two years: Philip Wolfensberger. Though he fell victim to an unfortunate stroke-rate related disqualification at last year’s early ID’s, Wolfensberger posted one of the fastest times of the day. He also comes to this season having just returned from Junior World Championships in Paris, representing GB in the 4- and brimming with high pressure racing experience. In short, he very much has that dawg in him.
Finally, a man in need of mention, Felix Peerless has an undeniable talent of making boats move quickly. Deploying silk in the seven seat for both Paul’s and his country – it would be no surprise to see him translate that to his scull, so expect him to be well into the dog-fight for those top positions.
Leander Club
Another sculler that requires mentioning is Leander’s Byron Richards. I think this one was a no-brainer, seeing as he’s returned to his single off the back of Junior World Championships, where he represented GB in this very boat class. With the coaching available to him at Leander, along with the sculling experience gathered from his GB campaign last year, one would be a fool to count out Richards. While he may not be very well accustomed to the incalculable Tideway conditions, Richards has proven himself a very strong sculler.
Other entries
While the aforementioned scullers are heavy contenders for medals, it’s impossible to count out the rest of the heavy-hitting cohort. There is heaps of talent in the group. Tideway Scullers’ Tom Patrick and Morley Pendred (who won the J16 category of the Scullers’ Head) will both know the course, and more importantly how to navigate it, better than anyone. In addition to the Scullers’ boys, Westminster Boat Club’s Timothy Gutsev proved himself to be a racer worth his salt at this year’s Coupe De La Jeunesse, propelling his pair to a gold medal. If talent in small boats is any indication of success in this event, Gutsev is a true dark horse that should not be underestimated.
Predictions
It’s never simple to give accurate predictions for events like the Scullers’ Head, as there are so many factors to take into account. I’d have to say the win would be very close between Wild and Wolfensberger, however Richards, Peerless, and Pendred will not go down quietly. Expect anything to happen this weekend!
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