As the first outings of a freezing New Year push off around the UK, here are my men’s club crews to watch in the months ahead.
Nottingham Rowing Club
Nottingham crews have consistently qualified for events at Henley Royal Regatta in recent years. Last summer, the club’s quadruple scull qualified for The Prince of Wales Challenge Cup, and their coxed four won the first heat of The Britannia Challenge Cup. Many of the athletes in those crews remain at the club this year, and their impressive string of results throughout the Autumn suggests they will return to Henley Royal Regatta as serious contenders in 2026.
The club’s top performer so far this season has been the coxed four. After winning on home water at Nottingham Autumn Head, the crew of Alex Glasspool (cox), Jacob Bailey, Henry Cross, Adrian Biddle and Dan Town then won the open club event at Fours Head, finishing in a time that would have placed them highly in the championship category too. The star performer in this crew is Biddle, who is part of the Team GB Performance Development Academy, and was the 26th fastest on the water at the November Trials after completing a sizzling 2k in the erg test.
Looking ahead, it will be interesting to see how Nottingham organises its crews for the rest of the season. The club has several specialist scullers on their roster, Biddle among them, who also sweep well. There is clearly a depth of talent in the club too, as the coxless four were the fastest overall at Nottingham Autumn Head, and also finished well on the Tideway in Fours Head. Essential and perhaps difficult selection decisions, therefore, lie ahead for Nottingham. We will likely see the club race in eights for the rest of the Winter season, after which their strategy for taking on Henley Royal Regatta this time around will hopefully become clear.
Molesey Boat Club
Molesey boasts a glittering history of silverware and alumni, and its name is often featured across multiple entries at Henley Royal Regatta. However, the men’s side has not taken home a trophy since 2022, when they won from behind in an epic final of The Thames Challenge Cup (which is worth a watch on YouTube if you have not already seen it). While most eyes will be on the women’s side this year, who look set to conquer the world, the men’s side are showing signs that they are beginning a resurgence of their own.
Molesey began their season with the exciting appointment of Sam Sheppard as men’s head coach. Sheppard is a Henley Royal Regatta and Head of the River winner from his time as a student rower with Oxford Brookes. He coached the GB men’s eight to Gold at the FISU World University Games last summer and also has experience coaching Team GB U23s. It will be exciting to see if he can achieve similar success in club rowing, and we are beginning to see how his squad is shaping up.
Molesey had some good performances at Fours Head, entering a record eight crews, with their fastest boat finishing ninth in the championship coxless fours. At Teddington Head, Molesey’s top men’s eights finished in first and third place. While these early results are promising, it will be challenging to get a definitive picture of how Moseley compares to rivals until the Head of the River Race in March. Until then, there will be much seat racing and erg testing across the club, as the extensive roster of athletes vie for selection into the top crews.
London Rowing Club
At the end of the 2025 summer season, London Rowing Club’s men’s squad were on top of the world. They blew away all competition in the coxless four in The Wyfold Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta, winning the final by over three lengths. In The Thames Challenge Cup, the eight won for the first time since 2006, equalling the competition’s record time in the final. Clubs across the UK will view LRC as the club to beat in 2026, and the question is: will they remain on top?
Early results from this season suggest that the answer to this question is yes. The men’s eight were the fastest crew at Upper Thames Autumn Head, and the club achieved a top-four finish in all championship categories at Fours Head. In October, sculler Rui Xu was invited to participate in the prestigious Wingfield Sculls race on the Tideway for the third time, where he held his own against some of the top club rowers in the country. Cox Rosie Margolis returns in the eight this season, which she steered to victory against the best of Dutch club rowing away at the Fortuna Cup in Amsterdam. LRC are showing no signs of slowing down, and they look set to rule the UK club scene again this year.
