Ten J15 eights out of 300 total crews will battle it out on the 4400m stretch offered by Quintin Head in the predicted wind and rain next Sunday. For many of the crews, this is one of the first opportunities for them to sweep on the iconic Championship Course.
Shiplake College Boat Club
After a disappointing fifth in the B-final of Junior 14 octos at the National Schools’ Regatta, this crew has clearly worked hard to earn the honour of starting first in their category. This will serve them well, as there will likely be a timing gap between divisions, allowing them to have a clear run and the best line on the course. Quintin will be a prime opportunity for this crew to assert themselves as a top competitor.
St Paul’s School Boat Club
After missing out on a gold medal at the National Schools’ Regatta by just over a second for the second year in a row, the young St. Paul’s School scullers have not been quite as successful as their senior squad equivalents in recent years. However, St. Paul’s took a dominant ten-second win over Bedford School at Bedford Autumn Small Boats Head in the Junior 15 coxed quad. Plus, with seven crews entered at Bedford, they clearly have squad depth, and a commanding second place in the starting order will not hurt their chances.
Radley College Boat Club
Last year’s National Schools’ winners in the Junior 14 octo return. After a successful sculling season, this dominant crew has mainly been absent so far in the 25/26 season. Starting in the middle of the pack (fifth out of ten) may also cause steering difficulties if Radley College aims to repeat last season’s results and overtake their competition.
Wallingford Rowing Club
Wallingford RC is well-positioned for this race. Following a win in the double by Oscar Harris and Theo Stevenson at Upper Thames Autumn Head, and at Hampton Small Boats Head in the J15 single for Stevenson, with fifth, sixth, and 11th across both divisions in the same category, they have had a strong showing over the last few months. Transitioning from sculling to sweeping can be a challenge, and it will be interesting to see how Wallingford approaches it against competitive school programmes.
Bedford Modern School Boat Club
Following both gold and silver in the J15 coxed fours at Bedford Autumn Small Boats Head, Bedford Modern School could be a major competitor in this race. The two crews were separated by three seconds over 2000m, so this could have been a seat race or an internal competition between matched crews. This shows that Bedford has at least one competitive eight for their J15s and a number of strong athletes within the squad.
Predictions
I believe St. Paul’s School will win the open Junior 15 eights on their home water. Radley College will likely follow, with Bedford Modern School or possibly Wallingford RC in third. Shiplake College, starting first, may be a navigational obstacle, but Tideway-experienced crews such as St Paul’s should not have a problem.
