Returning to Holme Pierrepont, Nottingham, for the first time since 2015 will be a weekend of tight racing as all crews look to highlight their speed for one of the last times this season. As the race weekend comes closer and the nerves and excitement build, these 21 crews entered in the girls’ championship coxed four category will be looking to this regatta to showcase their year’s training as the season draws to a close. Starting the weekend of racing with a time trial on Saturday morning, followed by finals the same evening over 2000m, this category will guarantee spectators a show.
Marlow Rowing Club
Marlow Rowing Club have had a successful season so far, marked most recently by their second-place finish at Wallingford Regatta just over a week ago. This shows the potential of this crew going into the biggest race of the regatta season. Finishing over the line only two seconds off of Headington School, I am sure this result has ignited even more ambition as they prepare to fight for the gold medal position. Additionally, their ‘B’ crew making the final at Wallingford Regatta showcases the depth of this squad; this strength in numbers speaks volumes about the club’s development and the immense potential for a very successful weekend of racing. Furthermore, with Headington not entering this category, you can likely imply that this crew is a firm favourite going into this weekend.
Kingston Grammar School Boat Club
Kingston Grammar School also had an impressive race day at Wallingford Regatta, finishing in third place and winning their heat by over 14 seconds. It can be expected that these results reassured this crew of all their hard work and training, and they will now look forward to being able to highlight their speed down the 2000m course in Nottingham. Finishing only six seconds off of Marlow Rowing Club and enjoying an eight-second lead over Wimbledon High School at Wallingford Regatta, this could make for an exciting duel between the Marlow and Kingston Grammar crews as they battle for the medal positions at Holme Pierrepont.
Henley Rowing Club
These four will be ones to watch. Having entered various events in this year’s National Schools’ Regatta, highlighting the depth and talent across many categories, they hail from one of the country’s most successful programmes. In their most recent race at Wallingford Regatta, this crew performed well. Having come second in their heat, they had an automatic qualification into the final and wound up sixth overall. I imagine this Henley unit will look to improve their placement in the A-final at the National Schools’ Regatta, striving for a podium spot.
Wimbledon High School Boat Club
After winning the repechage, this crew went into the final at Wallingford Regatta more fatigued than others. However, they did not let this waver their confidence, finishing in fourth place, eight seconds behind the Kingston Grammar School boat. With GB trialist Mia Parladorio in their line-up, I can anticipate that this crew will be desperate to show their full speed during the time trial and side by side racing once again against these familiar crews from Wallingford, and therefore Wimbledon High School very well may be competing for a podium spot.
Other notable mentions
Shiplake Boat Club and Tideway Scullers both narrowly missed out on the final at Wallingford Regatta, finishing around four seconds slower than Henley. Despite this, it would be a mistake to dismiss these crews.
Additionally, Aberdeen Schools Rowing Association were last year’s winners in this category, and are likely returning with a strong legacy and high expectations to match their open water win from last year.
Surbiton High School, Putney High School and Royal Shrewsbury School have each entered two crews, highlighting the depth of their respective squads. Perhaps one of these crews could challenge some of the more established outfits, adding a layer of suspense and unpredictability to this event.
Predictions
I think this contest will be Marlow’s to claim, due to their most recent success at Wallingford Regatta; however, crews including Kingston Grammar and Wimbledon must not be dismissed. As well as this, ASRA will be returning to defend their title. This category is a field that is packed with ambition and talent, with some recent tight margins and national medals up for grabs; the spectators can expect a fiercely competitive race.
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