The Schools’ Head of the River – the culmination of a winter’s worth of work, a savage head racing season, and the eights season on the Tideway, over almost as soon as it has begun. After months of delays, setbacks, cancellations and crippling conditions (and the eventual success of Hammersmith Head last weekend at last signalling a return to normalcy), we have arrived at the stalwart of the British junior rowing scene that is the Schools’ Head of the River, the gateway to the summer racing season. With over 300 crews spread across 24 categories, you can rest assured that the Tideway will be teeming with life, with many crews seeking to add to an extensive list of past Schools’ Head wins, and many looking to make a name for themselves in this prestigious event. The question I have, however, is whether the championship Junior 16 eight will go the same way as at Hammersmith Head, to an old favourite, or whether they will be usurped by a surprise newcomer – only time will tell.
St Paul’s School Boat Club
At risk of sounding like a broken record, it is incredibly tricky to overlook the prowess of the crew nosing onto the Tideway from St Paul’s School Boat Club, and I must anoint them as one of my favourites to take this event. Their commanding victory at the recent Hammersmith Head, by a margin of over ten seconds, puts them in an incredibly strong position from which to tack on another win to their deluge of Schools’ Head victories, and I think really shows how they have turned up the pressure on their training as they have come closer to this key event. Add in a home-water advantage, with what I’m sure will be an air of confidence following an almost 20-second win in the Junior 15 eight last year, showing a pool of incredible talent and power: I almost hate to say it, but I do think these boys will be very, very difficult to beat.
King’s College School Boat Club
In a repeat of the clash of Hammersmith Head, I can imagine that the boys from King’s College School Boat Club will be heading into this race with a chip on their shoulder and gritted teeth as they face up against the St Paul’s crew that pushed them into third place. Fuelling the fire will be the memory of the loss to St Paul’s in the Junior 15 eight at last year’s event, although a narrower margin at Hammersmith shows a definite improvement in the crew, giving me faith in their abilities. However, they stand as a relatively untested crew, as do many following the abysmal conditions and rife cancellations of the winter, so I think it will be a big ask to put on the performance required to seize a victory, yet not an impossibility.
Hampton School Boat Club
The third main contender for the podium spots is Hampton School Boat Club. They were hot on the heels of St Paul’s at Hammersmith Head in second, and also finished in second and seventh at the Junior Fours Head in the coxed four. Off the back of third place in the Junior 15 eight in 2025, this group from Hampton definitely possesses the gumption and spirit needed to stand up to a St Paul’s onslaught. I’m sure that the coaches will have selected their crew with great care and attention to put up the best fight they can and continue the positive trend emerging from this boat club of late.
Abingdon School Boat Club
Following on from what is, safe to say, a surprising fourth-place finish at Hammersmith Head, I think that Abingdon School Boat Club have started to make their way onto the radar in respect of a strong finish in this event. A sixth-place finish in the Junior 16 coxed four at the Junior Fours Head demonstrates that they clearly have some talented rowers within the club, but I’m not sure if there will be sufficient consistency throughout the crew to put out a truly competitive performance. As such, I think they’re unlikely to contend for first, but I can imagine the lads from Abingdon would be happy with a solid third or fourth-place finish, besting their sixth place in the Junior 15 eight last year, and could round out the top five crews nicely.
Istituto Statale E. STEIN, Italy
I am always a fan of an unknown variable, a dark horse if you will, and that is certainly the case with the Istituto Statale E. STEIN, hailing from Italy. International crews like this always go a long way towards spicing up a racing scene that is otherwise fairly consistent, and it is a great opportunity for British crews to test their mettle against new opposition and see how some alternative training methods, perhaps not so common in the UK, come to fruition. There’s not much to point to to say if this crew will be in serious contention for the win, but a tidy third place at Junior Fours Head hints at an underlying steel that could show through and seriously rattle the home favourites.
Radley College Boat Club
It’s been an interesting winter season for the Junior 16 cohort from Radley College Boat Club, and one that I can’t imagine they’re entirely happy with. It began well with a strong start at Wallingford Head last year, beating out two St Paul’s crews in the Band 1 Junior 16 eight. This was followed up by a confusing set of results at Wycliffe Big Head, with their ‘A’ crew placing fifth, ‘B’ crew placing eighth and ‘D’ crew actually pushing through to take the win over a Shiplake crew. Maybe the cancellations throughout the winter and a good start led to a little complacency, taking their foot off the gas – we can’t be sure, but what I can be sure of is that neither the boys nor the coaches would be happy with the eighth-place finish at the recent Hammersmith Head. As such, I can definitely imagine that these lads will be taking to the water with a chip on their shoulder, but I’m finding it difficult to see that they’ll manage to brush it off and overturn the St Paul’s crews that they’ve previously bested.
Latymer Upper School Boat Club
I think there’s going to be a lot of contention for the top five spots in this event, with a fairly well-matched middle field, as evidenced by the crew from Latymer Upper School Boat Club. Another relatively untested crew, as many have dealt with the conditions of this violent winter, the outings they have had so far have been fairly promising, coming in fifth at Hammersmith Head, with only 0.2 seconds keeping them from overtaking Abingdon School and taking fourth. That makes for a pretty good fight to be had, with these boys determined to prove that they can do it, and can beat out those that bested them, and many others determined to show them that they can’t, so I wouldn’t rule these lads out of the fight for fourth and fifth, just as at Hammersmith.
Lymington Amateur Rowing Club
Another mystery crew is the eight hailing from Lymington Amateur Rowing Club. They are a programme that primarily participates in the South Coast coastal rowing circuit but has been making great strides into the world of river rowing (they won Club of the Year at the 2025 British Rowing Awards). I think it is absolutely incredible to see so many volunteer clubs, such as Lymington, readily working hard and participating in such prestigious events, and it really goes to show how the world of rowing is changing and opening up, and welcoming crews and clubs that do not typically fit the mould of dedicated river and elite training. Whilst I don’t necessarily think that they may have the power to dislodge any of the favourites from the podium, I will most definitely be keeping an eye out for them coming down the Tideway, as I think they are a perfect example of what our sport is becoming.
Prediction
Ultimately, I have to lean towards the old faithful of St Paul’s School Boat Club to secure the victory, with a strong set of performances so far this year and an excellent track record in previous ones, leaving little room for debate. The waters become a little murkier when it comes to the rest of the podium, however, but I believe we’re likely to see a repeat of the podium at Hammersmith: Hampton School Boat Club pulling into second, and King’s College School Boat Club clinching third. As for fourth, I think Abingdon School Boat Club is a safe bet; however, I do not think it’s safe to take your eyes off that crew from Istituto Statale E. STEIN. I love an underdog, and I’m totally prepared for them to pull something out of the bag and surprise us all, disrupting that podium.
We shall just have to wait and see who comes out on top and who is struck by bad luck on this momentous Friday the 13th…
