The banks of Inniscarra will be a flurry of activity this weekend as over 1200 competitors from all over the country will gather at the National Rowing Centre in Cork for the 2025 Irish Rowing Championships. Without a doubt, one of the most exciting events will be the men’s senior pair, which is overflowing with talented oarsmen including Olympic bronze medallist Daire Lynch, Irish indoor 2k record holder, Fionnan Tolan and last year’s men’s senior eight, coxless four and pair champion Barry O’Flynn.
Cork Boat Club “B”
Returning champions, Fionnan Tolan and Barry O’Flynn, will be on the hunt to recapture the magic of their performances from last summer, where they not only took home a pot in the men’s senior pair but also the men’s senior four and eight. They were first across the line at the recent Cork Regatta, however, they were followed closely by UCDBC, who finished just a second after them. Strokeman O’Flynn also took home the gold in this event at Skibbereen Regatta earlier this year, where he partnered up with Thomas Earley, so he is no stranger to winning in this boat class.
Cork Boat Club “A”
The Cork Boat Club “A” combination of Johnny Cuddy and Michael Cronin did not race at Cork Regatta so their current form is unknown heading into this regatta. Both men were part of Cork Boat Club’s domination of last year’s Championships, with Cuddy in the stroke seat and Cronin as the bowman of the senior eight that won last July. They showed promise early on in the season, placing second behind O’Flynn and Earley at Skibbereen Regatta, so I expect to see them at the front of the pack this Saturday.
University of Galway Boat Club (UGBC)
A younger crew relative to the rest of the field are the University of Galway Boat Club pairing of Cormac Benson and James Murphy, who are a newer combination, having competed in this lineup for the first time so far this season at last month’s Cork Regatta. Benson and Murphy held their own, finishing first in the intermediate category and third overall, only four seconds behind the Cork Boat Club winners. The tight margins between their senior competition have given them the confidence to step into the senior category. Whilst we haven’t seen much racing from them this season in this lineup, I would advise their competitors not to overlook the youngsters from UGBC.
University College Dublin Boat Club (UCDBC)
University College Dublin Boat Club are well-renowned for making their eights go fast; however, I expect this pair to also be of a high standard this weekend. As previously mentioned, the pair from UCDBC finished only a second behind Boat Club at Cork Regatta; however, there has been a change in bowman from Paul Flood to Olympic bronze medallist Daire Lynch, who will join Michael Campion in the stroke seat. Adding Daire Lynch to UCDBC’s ranks this season has added more speed to an already highly skilled squad, and Lynch showed he can move a pair when he took home the win in the men’s senior pair at the University Championships with Andrew O’Leary.
Prediction
Whilst I believe it to be unwise to bet against Olympic medallist Lynch, I expect to see the Cork Boat Club “B” crew claim victory for the second year running. However, this is a boat class where anything can happen, especially in such a stacked field like this.
