After an unfortunate one-year hiatus in the 2024 season, the stage is set for the 2025 Vesta Scullers Head. It will be raced on the full Tideway championship course (6.8km from Mortlake to Putney). This is a crucial event in the early head racing season, with competitors in the open championship category having a crack at a prestigious title, and utilising an early opportunity to brush off some summer cobwebs. The fast-approaching Great Britain Rowing Team (GBRT) November trials will undoubtedly be at the back of some of their minds during this event.
Marlow Rowing Club – Bryn Ellery
Ellery placed 15th in the 2023 Scullers Head and will look to improve on this in his first race for Marlow Rowing Club, after a recent departure from Leander Club. What this change in colours denotes for Ellery is yet to be shown. He is a proven winner on both the domestic and world stage, with multiple Henley Royal Regatta appearances — most recently in the 2025 Double Sculls Challenge Cup. With wins for both the Windsor Boys’ School and Leander, he carries a wealth of experience that may work in his favour.
Greenbank Falmouth Rowing Club – Tim Wilkinson
Another established sculler taking on the race is Greenbank Falmouth Rowing Club’s Tim Wilkinson, who placed fifth in 2023. He is certainly an athlete well placed to perform here, having raced the aggressively competitive Diamond Challenge Sculls at Henley Royal Regatta in many years, including a semifinal appearance in 2021.
Reading University Boat Club – Matt Long
Fresh off a strong fourth-place finish for Great Britain at the U23 World Rowing Championships in the bow seat of the BM4x, Long has had an exceptional run over the past few seasons. He was the victor of the lightweight single in 2023, with a 19th-place finish in the overall standings. He would be expected to fly some places up the rankings, as one of the younger athletes in this competitive field, who will have likely found more pace than his competition since the last event. Long is certainly one to watch for the title on Sunday.
Oxford Brookes University Boat Club – Jamie Copus
Jamie Copus of Oxford Brookes University Boat Club is currently the head coach of Fordham University’s Men’s Crew in New York. Spending his recent years in the US rowing circuit, he marginally missed out on selection to represent the USA in the lightweight single for 2025. Such a recent campaign in the single may give him a strong momentum heading into this year’s sculler’s head. It is also worth mentioning that Copus is the current holder of the headship.
Prediction
With it being such an early stage in the 2025/26 season, it’s hard to tell what kind of form the athletes will bring on Sunday. The title looks to be contested between Matt Long and defending champion Jamie Copus, but it may not be clear-cut. Tideway conditions are notorious for their unpredictability, and with a course over three times the standard 2000 metre racing distance, the top performers may just be those who can tame the waters on the day.
