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Rowing Report 2008/09

This year has been an especially enjoyable and active one for the rowers. We have trained hard throughout the year going out on the river Soar every Sunday morning at 7.30am. Many boys and girls have had their first introduction to rowing during these sessions and it is remarkable how many have continued to get up at this anti-social hour to row even in poor weather conditions. This work was supplemented by indoor rowing training during the autumn term after which we were able to extend our water time to Wednesday and Saturday afternoons during the spring and summer terms.

The girls were the first to compete this season when they raced in the Head of the Soar against various local clubs during November last year. They came second in their category. The next event was the Splash and Dash event at the National Watersports Centre organised by Nottingham University for student freshers. A girls eight and boys eight raced and found that they were on a par with many of the other beginners who were already at university.

Encouraged by this the students enthusiastically continued to train and a group of girls went to the Cambridge scullers head in March this year. They raced in all forms of sculling boats ranging from singles to quad sculls. Michelle Sangan and Alex Person came away with the prize for most stylish scullers of the day.

A group of boys began to show promise towards the end of the autumn term and continued to make good progress into the spring term. So much so that we were able to enter them for the South Yorkshire Head at Doncaster and then the Schools Head of the River on the Thames. They acquitted themselves exceedingly well and came 30 out of school 1st eights. The first time the college has entered the prestigious event. George Perry the novice cox deserves special mention for keeping so calm and steering a fine course over the Boat Race course involving something like four hundred boats on a river where shipping rules and regulations apply.

We have had a hectic summer term of racing and have competed at numerous regattas including Nottingham City, Shrewsbury (lost in the final of Senior 3 Eights) and Loughborough where a four comprising Finn Kavanagh Williamson, Lawrence Myatt, Terry Musgrove Greg Strong and Jamillah Robinson just missed out on the medals despite getting a lightning fast start that surprised all of the other crews in their six boat final. At York our boys won the novice eights against Butler College from Durham despite half the crew having already fallen into the river whilst practising starts for their fours race. The Ball Cup proved to be a fruitful event to go to where Michelle Sangan won the Junior 18 singles title, the first four the blue ribband coxed fours event and we also won mixed fours. The boys eight have made so much progress this term that they along with Michelle Sangan, a very fine sculler, were able to compete at the National Schools Championships at Holme Pierpont. This is only the second time in the college’s history that we have been able to enter crews into this prestigious regatta.

The season was brought to a resounding climax by the boys racing in the Henley qualifiers last week in front of 5,000 people (again a first for the college at the world’s most famous regatta) and then finishing off the season together with the girls at Ironbridge where fine performances were put in by the whole squad. In the most difficult event of all, Louis Kirkpatrick and the captain, Kavanagh Williamson competed bravely in the pairs race against experienced opposition. Kathryn Clark and Rebecca Stonhill had a good row in the women’s novice sculls and Lawrence Myatt provided us all with excitement and mirth when he came down the course neck and neck with his opponent only to fall in with fifty yards to go. Heather Crossley sculled tenaciously and very well in getting to the final of her singles event and coaches Marcus Joy and the Adjutant showed us all how to do it when they raced together in the Veteran B double sculls.

It was most satisfying to see how a group of almost complete beginners can achieve such high standards in such a short space of time through their own hard work and dedication. Most notable amongst these have been Heather Crossley and Louis Kirkpatrick.

We know that all the upper sixth rowers will provide their future universities with accomplished performers in the sport of rowing and we also look forward to building upon the success of this season with those who are left behind for next year. Next year a girl crew at Women’s Henley and a Eight in the main draw at Henley in front of 50,000 people.

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