The Henley Reach may be better known for the sport’s premier regatta, but Upper Thames Autumn Head provides a different challenge to a more local cohort early in the season. Racing across two divisions over 3000m, this weekend presents the perfect challenge for clubs to establish themselves in the rankings before delving into the nitty-gritty of Tideway Head season, and here we see plenty of bigger names mixed in with local talent across the open senior events.
The Eights
London Rowing Club will be descending on Henley in force this weekend, with six entries across the Band 1 Eights. Last time we saw an LRC eight on this stretch, they stormed to victory in The Thames Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta, beating out local rivals, Thames Rowing Club. Undoubtedly bolstered by an influx of new and returning talent, it’ll be exciting to see how they fare this early in the season.
The most likely challenge to LRC comes in the form of Marlow Rowing Club, who boast three eights in the top division. Another club rumoured to have benefited from an influx of new faces, this is a crucial opportunity for Marlow to make their stamp on local water and set themselves up ahead of eights racing later in the season. Having seemingly been more focused on fours and quads in recent years, it’s promising to see a depth of talent from this club early in the season.
A relative unknown across all three bands of the open eights comes in the form of Oxford University Boat Club. Mark Fangen-Hall‘s squad will have undergone considerable changes in recent months, with many of last year’s Boat Race athletes moving on to pastures new. Considering this, Sunday will certainly take shape as the first test for those in Dark Blue, with pressure mounting, especially given CUBC’s success stateside, which is at the forefront of everyone’s minds. With many internationally experienced athletes, including Harry Geffen, arriving, it will be exciting to see how this squad comes together for their debut race this season.
Further down the draw, it’s promising to see multiple entries from the likes of Southampton University Boat Club, mixed in with local clubs including City of Oxford Rowing Club, Wallingford Rowing Club, and Maidenhead Rowing Club. Many of these athletes won’t have been down the track since Henley Royal Regatta qualifiers or early rounds, so what better way to get fired up for a new season?
I’m finding it hard to look past London Rowing Club to post the fastest times of the day, but I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Marlow Rowing Club threaten the chances of an LRC 1-2-3. I’d hope to see Oxford University Boat Club take the Band 2 and 3 wins, but it’s all to play for down the 3000m track on Sunday.
The Fours
Both coxed and coxless fours are again littered with entries from London Rowing Club, who will undoubtedly be looking to dominate the open sweep events. After lifting the trophy for The Wyfold Challenge Cup, the open club coxless fours event at Henley Royal Regatta, I’d be surprised to see the wins go anywhere else this weekend. With five entries in the coxless fours and two in the coxed fours, I’m sure that some competitive rivalries will emerge within the LRC squad, as an early opportunity to test the mettle of the athletes in this format creates a dream scenario for their coaching team.
Beyond the Tideway powerhouse, the coxed fours provide an opportunity for close racing between the likes of Warwick Boat Club, the Royal Air Force Rowing Club, and Reading Rowing Club, while the coxless fours will test the steering skills of those from Upper Thames, Cygnet Rowing Club, and Maidenhead Rowing Club. For many of these local clubs, this will be an indicator of the strength of their squads early on, and provide a test run for possible Fours Head of the River crews ahead of the opening of entries this week.
I’d be surprised to see anything except a London Rowing Club win, but I would like to see crews from Upper Thames, City of Oxford, and Warwick Boat Club put themselves in the mix for some early-season success to build on. Like the eights, it’s all to play for over this relatively short course.
The Quads
Sculling’s top dogs dominate the Band 1 quads: Reading University Boat Club. Racing what appears to be their top four quads in the premier event, we then see a further four in Band 2, and another two in Band 3, rounding out the 40 Reading athletes racing this weekend. The only challenges to the Clams appear in the form of Upper Thames Rowing Club and London Rowing Club – the latter not particularly well known for their sculling prowess. Upper Thames Rowing Club could be one to watch, especially with the likes of Matt Swiss, who most recently raced at Scullers’ Head after his debut in The Double Sculls Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta last summer.
In the Band 3 events, it’s promising to see more variation in the entries, including those from institutions such as Southampton University and Bournemouth University Boat Clubs, which may be beginning to focus on academic quads at Fours Head and BUCS Head later in the year.
It’ll come as no surprise to hear that I believe Reading University Boat Club will take home the silverware in the open quads, and the race for the rest of the draw becomes for who can put themselves in the mix with the RUBC armada. It seems that Upper Thames Rowing Club may be most likely to disrupt a clean sweep, but I’m also interested to see how the scullers from London Rowing Club may fare.
