17,000km from the familiar waters of Sydney, 2025 sees thirty-two Australian entries set to contest the waters of Henley on Thames for the chance of a red box on Sunday afternoon. The strength of Aussie crews that have made the journey this year is impressive, and certainly the best we’ve seen in some time. From a resurgent national team riding the wave of World Cup success, to the all-conquering eights from St Ignatius and Sydney, there’s certainly a respectable chance of seeing an Australian crew victorious at this year’s regatta.
I’ll be bringing an analysis of every Australian matchup at the conclusion of each of the six days of Henley Royal Regatta, ready for those back home as you wake up. If you’re a bit in the dark, check out the previews for every single event here.
Day one was a fairly subdued affair in terms of Australian entrants, with only five crews having to race on Tuesday as a result of Kinross, Mercantile, Marist College, and Canberra Girls Grammar all afforded byes in the first rounds of the junior events.
Race one: Thames Challenge Cup. Barbarians R.C. vs Sabriana Club
In terms of racing spectacle, the first matchup of the week provided a brilliant show for those braving the height of a British heatwave. For Australian hopes though, it was not to be. Off the line, both crews faced steering challenges, with Sabriana first drifting into the centre of the course and Barbarians then testing how close they could they could get to the booms on the Berkshire station. It seemed to take a couple of minutes for the Aussies to find their rhythm, but they were already half a length down by the barrier and faced a challenge to overcome that early race lead. The margin never grew to more than a length, and the Queenslanders did make up some ground in front of the enclosures, but it was too little too late at that stage, and the Bad Boys are now free to enjoy the delights of the regatta for the rest of the week.
Race six: Thames Challenge Cup. Vesta R.C. vs Sydney R.C.
The margin of one length in this race perhaps doesn’t do just to the ease at which Sydney completed their first-round matchup with Vesta. Taking a length at the end of the island, Sydney were able to reduce their rate significantly, at just 26 as they passed the regatta enclosure with a three length advantage. Featuring the majority of the crew who won the Open Eight at nationals this year, this combination are clearly targeting a win this week. The boys in blue will be grateful for the opportunity to conserve plenty of energy in their day one contest, particularly as tomorrow’s matchup against a very strong and experienced De Hoop crew from the Netherlands isn’t likely to afford them such luxuries. Both crews were fairly evenly matched in terms of times to the barrier, so this will certainly be one to watch.
Race 24: Wyfold Challenge Cup. City of Cambridge R.C. vs Sydney R.C.
Despite prioritising their Thames eight, Sydney have also brought competitive Wyfold and Britannia offerings to Henley this year. The young crew, stroked by Junior World Champion Ambrose Hennesey had to face last week’s qualifiers, but clearly impressed the stewards who chose to name them as a selected crew in the main draw. Today’s race against City of Cambridge R.C. probably gave them a bit more than they bargained for in the first few minutes when City of Cambridge led to the barrier marker, but once Sydney had settled into their long and lively rhythm, they were able to pull away comfortable to record a verdict of three and a half lengths.
Race 33: Prince Phillip Challenge Trophy. Mercantile R.C. vs Wimbledon High School
The first of three Mercantile combinations to take to the Thames this week, their PP contender contains a smorgasbord of athletes from various school programmes across Victoria. Mercs were asked to attend the qualifiers last week, resulting in them not being afforded a day off in the first round. Nonetheless, they took everything Wimbledon had to offer them in their stride, and before easing off the gas had a commanding margin. As of the time of writing, their times to the Barrier and Fawley markers were competitive amongst the field, which will be some confidence boost as they come up against national champions Shiplake tomorrow.
A touching note to the Mercs campaign is that their boat is named after the late Ed Millear, who was coached by this crew’s coach Dean Kloufetos, and whose partner Mackenzie Pugh sits in four seat. Their row today honoured Ed admirably, and I’m positive the rest of their campaign will do the same.
Race 43: Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup. St Ignatius College vs Wallingford R.C.
Prior to their journey to Henley, there wasn’t much more to be said about St Ignatius after the season they’ve put together. Undefeated in domestic competition, no Australian school crew has been able to finish with overlap on the boys from Riverview, with few even able to manage that feat at the 1000m mark.
They’ve drawn a favourable route to the finals, with British heavyweights St Paul’s and Shiplake both on the other side. This first race is was not a complete walk in the park however, with Wallingford putting up a good fight to stay in touch, despite Riverview having taken almost three lengths by the barrier. Their times put them in the ballpark of the rest of the competition, but tomorrow may be one of their greatest challenges this side of a final, with what is set to be a close matchup with Hampton School.
Wednesday
In addition to the crews progressing from today, we’re due to see the crews afforded Tuesday byes make their Henley debuts tomorrow. Mercantile‘s Wargrave crew will take on Shiplake Vikings, who had a brilliantly timed run to the line today in the club women’s eights. Kinross‘ girls eight will take to the water with their triple-bucket rig, and Sydney‘s much-fancied Britannia entry will line up against Marlow Rowing Club in the club coxed fours.
