For majority of these crews this will be their first-time racing sweep boats and starting over this gruelling 4250m course will be a challenging race for all. However, based on this past season’s sculling results, we can expect tight racing and exciting results.
Henley Rowing Club
Henley have really been the crew to beat all year in the WJ15 category with wins at The Scullery, National Schools’ Regatta and medals at JIRR and British Championships. With their B quad not far behind on any occasion, I doubt the squad will have issues joining together. Based on the club’s reputation, I have confidence that the rowers will have a smooth transfer from sculling to sweeping and will not face many difficulties along route.
Latymer Upper School
Having not raced at national level at all last season, seeing Latymer Upper School on this entry list was a welcome surprise. With their current WJ16s having won the B final of the WJ154+ at National Schools, this crew has a lot to deliver.
Headington School
Headington have had a successful 2022 season with their highlight being a first octo win at Nat Schools and placing third in the second octos. This squad obviously have a lot of potential and with already having two potential eights crews, they could have an advantage over those who mix crews around more. Headington are a well-respected rowing school, and they are sure to be in the mix for medal positions on Sunday.
Hinksey Sculling School
Hinksey have had a mixed season with a 21st place at The Scullery at the start of this year however they jumped up the ranks at Nat Schools to finish second in the B final. With a variety of entries at Nat Champs, they placed 3rd in the C final for quads and 16th place in the singles, this could suggest Hinksey are mixing crews around and have not found set seats yet. With such a variety of results it is hard to predict how they will do but I believe they will have a clean and technical row.
Wallingford Rowing Club
Being the home club this weekend, Wallingford have pressure to deliver. Having done this course multiple times, this crew should know what they are doing and will deliver a race plan masterpiece. This squad’s stand out result is a 2nd place finish at Nat Champs in the singles category proving they will have a powerful crew set out for their home head.
Prediction
This will be an interesting race, with many being new to sweep there are many factors that could go either way. Personally, I would say I couldn’t see anyone rivalling Henley as the top crew, but I do believe we could have a close race for second between Latymer Upper School and Headington. Out of these two crews, I predict that Headington could have the upper hand leaving Latymer Upper with bronze.
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