This article was written before the release of the entry draw due to the late release of supplementary entries.
The Open category remains an exciting event, commonly featuring fresh U19 crews and experienced rowers from the top of their respective clubs. The Open Quad remains a way for the North Island’s top scullers to race head-to-head without ability constraints. Early-season crew combinations can be challenging to predict; therefore, this article will focus on the clubs.
St George’s Rowing Club
As the base for Glendowie and Maclean’s College, St George’s typically retains several strong scullers coming out of these schools after their U18 seasons. This year looks to be no different, with U19 rep Nathan Strachan electing to stay at St George’s, joined by Ash Schutz, who put in strong performances last Maadi in the U17 Single and U18 Double. The St George’s Quad put in a strong performance at the Karapiro Club Regatta, finishing first with a two-second margin over second place. Strengthened by fellow U19 rep Blake Cooper, who remains uncertain for the composite crew at Christmas Regatta, St George’s will no doubt have more rowers to pull from their ranks in Cooper’s absence. I would expect St George’s to be highly competitive in the Quad this season, and with the depth of sculling talent now present in the squad, the club looks like a strong challenger for sculling silverware this season.
Waikato Rowing Club
Waikato certainly has a wide range of scullers to choose from, as they performed exceptionally well in the Men’s Single Sculls at the Karapiro Club Regatta, and placed fourth in a tight field in the Open Quad. At this stage, it’s unlikely the crews entered are close to their final form, but the prospect of seeing potential combinations remains exciting nevertheless. Karl Manson, winner of the Open Single, was interestingly left out of the Open Quad at the Club Regatta, electing to race and stroke the Open Eight instead. Manson’s involvement in the Open Quad saw Waikato win the event at Day One of the Memorial Regatta only a few weeks ago. Similarly, we have yet to see Olifiers race any boat larger than the double this season, with the last time he raced the Quad at the New Zealand Rowing Championships in February. With two of the North Island’s fastest single scullers in Manson and Olifiers, Waikato looks to be in prime condition to take out the Quad if they choose to pursue the boat. I would expect Waikato to field another Quad at the Christmas Regatta, but it may be that the Quad may again be mixed with rowers throughout the club, as it was at the Club Regatta.
Tauranga Rowing Club
Tauranga has been one of the dark horses of the season so far; a slightly disappointing finish to the 24/25 season saw the club fail to qualify for an A-final in the Senior category at the New Zealand Rowing Championships, but if their current form is anything to go by, they look to be back firing on all cylinders. The composite quad that placed second at the Club Regatta was a mere two seconds back on a St George’s Quad, and being within range of a crew that had U19 internationals in it is a promising early sign for Tauranga; this is bolstered further by their success in the Open Double, where Berquist and Hollard took third place. The two have already started to build momentum, racing in the North Island Provincial Regatta for the Bay of Plenty, and taking third place in the Open Double there in September. Tauranga appears to be in a strong position to have a successful season in both the small boats and the quad, with early-season success already evident. I would expect them to field a quad similar to the one that raced at the Club Regatta.
Predictions
A fully strengthened Waikato Quad would be highly promising, and if that were the case, I would predict Waikato to win the Quad at the Christmas Regatta. However, if Waikato still chooses to race mixed crews, it could be close again, with St George’s and Tauranga not far behind.
