Following on from the success of the crews at the Schools Head of the River (more here), the Junior crews headed to Dorney Lake in Eton in order to compete in the Junior Sculling Head. It was the first national event that the Year 9 crews had ever rowed in, and they proved that, despite only starting rowing at the beginning of the academic year, hard work really does pay off, as they beat a number of other schools.
Director of rowing Mr David Currie accompanied the crews to Dorney. He said of the event: ‘this was the first external race for the Year 9s, having only competed in informal, local races up until now. The boys were also able to row for the first time on the famous Olympic course at Dorney, which was an amazing experience for them. The J14A octo rowed incredibly well and managed to place within the top 25%, coming 14th out of 63 crews. The other results are listed below:
- J14B octo – 40th out of 63
- J14C coxed quad – 51 out of 63
- J14D coxed quad – 52 out of 63
- J15A coxed quad – 11th out of 63
- J15B coxed quad – 54th out of the 63
The results are promising, but what is most promising was the boys’ enthusiasm on the day. If we can harness that enthusiasm, then they will be set for great things in the future.’