The dawn of a new year brings many things. A few extra holiday kilos. The dread of a return to the office. Resolutions to stop saying “bowball to bowball” every chance I have in the commentary box….
Most importantly – and most relevant to this article – it brings hope. Hope of that Head of the River win or redemption on Lake Barrington. Maybe even hope of a trip to Henley. The following crews will no doubt be toiling away on their summer camps, but that hope won’t be far from the front of their minds.
Mosman Rowing Club
This first one on the list almost goes without saying, but it would be quite frankly insulting if I didn’t mention the programme which has dominated junior women’s sculling over the past two years.
For 2026, Mosman will benefit from the injection of new head coach Alfie Young. Did they need an advantage like that? No. The thought of these girls hitting another level this year is nothing short of terrifying, but early indicators suggest we’re well on the way there.
The quad which won the U17 event at nationals in 2024, and placed second in last year’s U19 race, has remained together and only improved over the last nine months. With a couple of these girls only narrowly missing out on the national team in 2025, it wouldn’t surprise me to see an all – or at least majority – Mosman crew contesting the women’s quad at this year’s U19 World Rowing Championships. I would love to see them take on Henley Royal Regatta – but something tells me the green and gold is the focus here.
What I’m really curious to see is whether or not they make the foray into the eight. They were due to race the blue-riband event at All Schools before the regatta park was just about blown away, and I was very interested to see how they compared. The opportunity for a club crew to battle school eights doesn’t come along very often, so I hope we get to witness it in 2026.
Kinross Wolaroi / Pymble Ladies
Racing opportunities have been few and far between so far this season, and those we have had, left very little in the way of a form guide between the top two contenders in this year’s schoolgirl eights competition.
Both of these schools have an axe to grind with the 2025 season. While Kinross had a near-perfect run culminating in a Henley Royal Regatta weekend appearance, they had an uncharacteristic blip at nationals.
For Pymble, the early-season speed was devastating. They took the opening race of last season by over two lengths, and left everyone wondering, could anyone catch up? Sadly, that speed faded away by the end of the year, not withstanding a commendable row on Lake Barrington.
So far, we’ve seen these two powerhouses trade wins throughout term four. Pymble certainly look stronger than last season, and Kinross will no doubt have a lot of headroom given a gentle introduction to the year.
This isn’t a prediction article so I won’t make any bold calls here, but if you’re anywhere near a schoolgirl eights race in the next few months, make sure you’re watching.
Senior A Scullers
We’ve spoken plenty about our national team’s performance at the 2025 World Rowing Championships, so most will be aware of how lean our sculling group has been so far this Olympiad. Romy Cantwell was our sole contender in 2025, but I wouldn’t be counting on that continuing.
The recent national time trial saw a return to the elite level for many athletes for the first time since Paris, including Tara Rigney. With a strong base of U23’s coming up the ranks complemented by some experienced faces in the mix, I hope to be pleasantly surprised by what we see in the single, double, and quad in Amsterdam this year.
