Holders: The Windsor Boys School
Entries: 73 (To be reduced to 24 by Qualifying races)
The time is nearly upon us for the grand finale of the British racing circuit: Henley Royal Regatta. In the normally peaceful town of Henley-on-Thames, crews from around the world gather to compete over the 2112 metre course along the Thames. Few rowing spectacles compare to this extravaganza, both on the water and the banks; regardless of rain or shine (hopefully shine), it is an unforgettable week for competitors and spectators alike. For the crews, it is the sole opportunity of the season to get their hands on a hallowed red box, given to the select few victors of each event. So, who will be claiming the title of The Fawley Challenge Cup this year?
The Windsor Boys’ School Boat Club ‘A’
As the current title holders and a crew that has dominated their competition this season, the odds of Windsor retaining a Trophy that is almost theirs by osmosis seem overwhelming. Mark Wilkinson’s crew has performed wonders this season and stands as an authoritative testament to the quality of junior sculling. Despite the unruly conditions at the National Schools’ Regatta, this contingent seemed to tame the waters, easing into an eventual 16-second winning margin. At Marlow Regatta, they retook the win, and despite a far closer margin, they seemed to slow to a canter approaching the finish line. This shows that they can handle the pressure of being at the top and feel comfortable there. To Windsor, being at the top is like being a fish in water or a bird in its nest – they know it is where they belong.
There is no doubt in my mind that this unbelievable crew is ready to handle whatever the Henley Royal Regatta waters will throw at them, and in fact, tumultuous conditions will only advantage these guys. The probability of seeing green and gold raise The Fawley Challenge Cup for another year is high, seemingly more so than ever.
Leander Club ‘A’
At first glance, this may seem like a rogue pick for a top contender, with Leander prequalifying neither their ‘A’ or ‘B’ crew. However, this seems like an oversight from the Stewards. With the exception of the National Schools’ Regatta, this crew has had an excellent season, ending the head season in second place at the Schools’ Head of the River before placing second at the Metropolitan Regatta. Additionally, at Marlow Regatta, they took second in the time trial but withdrew before the final for unknown reasons.
Regardless, this crew will fly through the qualification stage. The question is whether attending qualifiers will impact preparation for their primary campaign, and whether they will still be seeded in the Draw. Unfortunately, these unknowns will remain so until the regatta starts next Tuesday. Indeed, this wouldn’t be how this crew would want to start their home-water regatta, but a crew worthy of the title should be able to overcome these occurrences. Let’s see what the 2023 champions can accomplish here.
Molesey Boat Club ‘A’
In my previous race preview for Marlow Regatta, I suggested that a good race on the day could put the contingent from Molesey in the A-final. Clearly, I set my expectations a little too low, with them taking third in the time trial and holding off Windsor ‘B’ to claim second in the final.
At this point in the season, it is common to see some crews make sudden leaps and bounds, while others may stagnate in speed. Molesey are the former, having gone from the lower half of the A-final at the National Schools’ Regatta to finals day contention only a month later. They have closed the gap to Windsor ‘A’ from 28 seconds to just over one second. It is speculation as to what has produced this, but guidance from their new coach, Julian Egan-Shuttler, must play a part. It has been a little while since we have seen Molesey progress far in The Fawley Challenge Cup (they were knocked out on the Tuesday by Northwich Rowing Club last year) but seeing a crew in black and white at the top can surely be no bad thing.
Marist College Canberra (Australia)
Travelling all the way from Australia is a huge commitment for any club, so it is indisputable that Marist believes they have a contingent worthy of challenging the British heavy-hitters. The Canberra-based crew are the reigning Australian National Champions (setting the national record in their heat), a title not to be underestimated, with extremely high depth in the schoolboy rowing field down under. It seems they have been battling all season with Kinross Wolaroi, another Australian crew making the trip over, as at the NSW Rowing Championships earlier in the year, they finished in third, five seconds behind Kinross. However, they peaked well and won when it counted.
The main question is how fit any Australian contingent will be, considering their season has been over for months. Maintaining a fitness level capable of winning nationals for that amount of time would be strenuous for any crew. Nonetheless, they will come with confidence and ferocity, so should not be underestimated.
Kinross Wolaroi School (Australia)
Mentioned previously, Kinross have been battling Marist all season over in Australia, and with both crews winning major events, they appear to be very evenly matched. At the NSW Rowing Championships in February, these boys took gold in the schoolboy coxed quads, a notable feat. Their ‘B’ crew also finished fifth, showcasing the depth of their impressive squad. Alongside this, they also claimed the win at the NSW Schoolboy Head of the River in the same event, and placed second behind Marist at the Australian National Championships.
One of the most interesting things to consider is how they will perform without a cox. Will a lighter boat give them the freedom to race more aggressively, or will the additional pressure of steering the narrow Henley Royal Regatta course disrupt them? Moreover, it is vital to consider how well they have maintained their fitness since the end of their season a couple of months ago. Regardless, I would put their pace up there with some of the top British crews such as Hinksey or Windsor ‘B’, so a semifinal appearance could be within reach.
Hinksey Sculling School ‘A’
In just a few short years, Hinksey have evolved from a local community club to a ferocious fighting force. It is unheard of for a club to go from C-finals to podiums in a handful of seasons, and then remain at the top. This is precisely what makes the club in blue and white so enthralling. With that in mind, their season can be summed up in a single word: inconsistency. Few crews can regularly alternate between missing A-final qualifications and making podiums at the next event. This trend continued into Marlow Regatta last weekend, where they finished 12th in the time trial, and then demolished the B-final in a performance that would have placed them fourth in the A-final. Comprehending the frustration of never knowing where you stand compared to your competition is difficult.
With a couple of great showings, we could easily see them racing Windsor in the final on Sunday. With a couple of poor showings, we could see them in Mahikis by Thursday. With that said, Hinksey are infamous for showing their best selves come Henley Royal Regatta, with a semifinal and final in the last two years, along with a final in The Britannia Challenge Cup back in 2021. For these lads, and coach James Mcanallen, everything else is secondary to Henley Royal Regatta, so if there is a time to see this crew pull out the stops, it would be now.
The Windsor Boys’ School Boat Club ‘B’
If you cast your mind back to Henley Royal Regatta 2022, you may recollect one of the most dominant showings in junior sculling history: Windsor ‘A’ versus Windsor ‘B’ in The Fawley Challenge Cup final. Few things have so concretely conveyed the preeminence of one club. This year, it is unbelievable to suggest, but it is not impossible to see it happening again. At Marlow Regatta, Windsor ‘B’ took third in a strong showing, which demonstrated not just the depth of Windsor’s squad but also the potential for the club to dominate for years to come. Particularly notable is stroke seat Castor Chute, the latest ‘Chute’ brother to pass through the program. His two elders, Marcus and Atticus, both competed at the pinnacle of junior sculling, and both claimed red boxes for Windsor. Let’s see if he can be next.
Although the information on the remaining members of this crew is limited (generally due to the cancellation of Sunday racing at the National Schools’ Regatta’), there are a couple notable results, such as Dara Thomson and Adam Elliott placing second in the Junior 18 double at Junior Sculling Regatta, only missing out to another Windsor double composed of members of Windsor ‘A’. Although I doubt that this crew will best the very best of the contingent around their ‘A’ crew, anything is possible for this programme.
Nereid Boat Club (USA)
One of the five international crews to receive a prequalification place, Nereid is one of the leading overseas competitors for the British contingents to deal with. This crew finished fifth at the USRowing Youth National Championships, marking them as theoretically the fastest American boat in the draw. Aside from that, they also finished third in the youth coxed quads at the Head of the Charles and took third at the Mid-Atlantic Youth Championship. However, on the whole, international entrants come into this event as the underdogs, and even the 2024 US national champion, Los Gatos Rowing Club, did not make the weekend last year.
I would expect this crew to be a little off the pace, but hopefully still competitive against crews such as Marist or Lea Rowing Club. The club is known as a bit of a hidden gem in the New York area, partly due to the club’s reinvigoration by coach Zach Spitzer, but as a squad that does not regularly travel overseas, adjusting may be difficult. Still, they beat fellow entrants Belen Jesuit Preporatory School (USA) at the USRowing Youth National Championships, so they are likely the most competitive US crew in the Draw.
Claires Court School ‘A’
Apart from arriving as bronze medallists at the National Schools’ Regatta’, Claires Court have kept their presence relatively low-key. They scratched their top crew at the Metropolitan Regatta and were not present at the Junior Sculling Regatta. However, every time they have shown up, they have been impressive, such as fourth at Wallingford Regatta and, most recently, fourth at Marlow Regatta.
Their main strength seems to be their final sprints, with bursts of speed coming at both the National Schools’ Regatta’ and Marlow Regatta in the final 500. Their weakness seems to be in the middle sections of the race, particularly the third 500, so it will be interesting to see how the extra 112 metres affects them. Making the weekend is possible for them, though I feel their key competition will come from overseas crews. A good draw will put them in a prime position to do well.
Tideway Scullers School ‘A’
After seizing the silver medal at National Schools’ Regatta in May, Tideway have made it clear they wish to be considered a contender for the top places. With shocking conditions on that day, this crew was clearly more well-versed in handling the rough chop than their counterparts, an advantage that could benefit them on the Henley Royal Regatta waters. However, since then, they have proven their success was not solely from their ability to handle the conditions, taking third at the Metropolitan Regatta, beating out Windsor ‘B’ by just half a second. Whether their absence at earlier events this season was deliberate or not is uncertain, but what is certain is their potential to punch hard in this category.
They are helped by the talents of Joe McCarthy, who represented GB in Munich alongside the lads from Windsor. Tideway crews are known for increasing in speed throughout the season, so let’s see if it’s true in this instance. They seem to be in the same boat (no pun intended) as Claires Court – their competition could definitely come from the international entrants.
Sir William Borlase Grammar School
Once a powerhouse of performance in the junior sculling category, it is fair to say that Sir William Borlase Grammar School have fallen from those heady heights somewhat. Under the tutelage of Jonathan Keir, though, this crew are starting to motor. They were 16th at the Oarsport Junior Sculling Head in March but appear to have found real speed since then, placing fifth at Marlow Regatta. William Wingrove and Samuel Vinall raced as a double earlier in the season, finishing fifth in the A-final at the Junior Sculling Regatta. This group of athletes clearly have momentum behind them and have earned themselves a pre-qualification slot.
Hartpury College
Led by Ben Jackson, this crew will be striving to become more than the sum of their parts. The talent onboard is considerable; all have competed in the GBRT U19 trialling process, with Louis Sheasby finishing sixth in February, Daniel Page in ninth, George Coates in 14th and Alex Repton in 17th. Their prowess in the single does not always seem to translate to speed in the quad, though. They placed fourth at the Schools’ Head of the River and second at the Junior Sculling Regatta before falling back into the C-final at the National Schools’ Regatta. Marlow was a marked improvement, finishing sixth.
Ruder-Club “Allemania von 1866” Hamburg (Germany)
The main European competition comes from Ruder-Club 1866, who are trekking to Henley-on-Thames for the second consecutive year. They have prequalified again, despite being knocked out in their first race by Shiplake College last year. This contingent comes from a club with a storied history of sculling and should be a prime example of strong German technique and grit. Last year, they demonstrated excellent blade work but struggled with the infamous turbulent water associated with Henley, causing them to fall off the pace and eventually catch a crab in the final metres. Nonetheless, it was an experience I am certain they will have learnt from.
Looking at their results this season, it doesn’t appear this combination has done much together, but individually, they have been competing at the top of the German circuit, including multiple wins in various events at the Ghent International May Regatta. I look forward to seeing what they can accomplish this year, though with tighter competition, it is difficult to see them making it to the second half of the week.
Prediction
Even with the international entrants thrown into the mix, I don’t see anything stopping Windsor from retaining the title and placing their hands on the prized red boxes. They have been unstoppable all season and deserve the win to round out their flawless record. Behind them is far more difficult to predict and will, of course, depend on the draw. On home water, I would put Leander as a favourite to make the weekend. Alongside them could be Molesey and Windsor ‘B’, but I would also never count out Hinksey to put on the show-stopping performance they’ve been yearning for all season. From the international entrants, I would expect the strongest to be the Australians, Kinross Wolaroi and Marist College, with both being extremely evenly matched. It is difficult to determine where overseas entrants typically fit in, but I could see either causing an upset and making it to the weekend. The great thing about Henley is the unpredictability and the fact you have to be superb consistently every race, so this could lead to some compelling outcomes.
