The Boat Club

The 1969 season has been only moderate: the 1st VIII came 41st in the Schools' Head of the River at Putney, compared with our previous performances of 25th and 21st; and in the Summer Regattas the School crews won three cups, whereas over a dozen years we average five. However, we narrowly missed winning a further eight events, either in the Finals or giving the eventual winners their closest race, and at the end of the season the School IVs were still only beginning to get into top gear.

After the Yorkshire and Schools' Heads of the River, Nottingham Regatta and the Triangular Match, the 1st VIII spent the remainder of the season in IVs. All the School IVs had their own characteristics. The 1st IV, thickset and strong, settled immediately as a crew and rowed comfortably at a high rating, but were really on their feet only late in the season, while the 2nd IV were longer in the water, had more run, and their rating, low though not as low as it looked, rose steadily by a pip a regatta as they developed more power. Both these crews would have been formidable had the season been only a fortnight longer. The 3rd and 4th IVs enjoyed their seasons but suffered from lack of coaching: the former very neat but lacking in weight, while the latter were rough but had done much to catch up the 3rd IV by the later regattas. The Colts VIII was coached by Mr. Nixon for the whole of the season, and went from strength to strength: after beating Durham School and Lancaster R.G.S., as IVs they narrowly missed cups at Lancaster Colts Regatta, at Durham and at York, to be rewarded at Leeds Regatta, where after a sluggish start they simply rowed past all opposition.

The Captain, J. N. Town, and S. R. Buckman, last year's Colours, were invaluable in giving cohesion to an inexperienced 1st VIII, while the other School leavers, A. H. Powell, I. D. C. Summers and M. J. R. Warnock were real workers and improved enormously. The oarsmen staying at School, R. D. MacLeod as Captain, M. C. Pearson and P. R. Haigh-Lumby, together with a good cox in S. W. St. J. Oliver, are indeed a bright prospect and with a good Colts VIII, a galaxy of good coxes and some keen 1st year boaters, the Boat Club could well have a bumper year. We have a good Shell VIII and some attractive fixtures : with the formation of Junior Colts crews to compete in regattas, and a programme building up to the National School Regatta at Pangbourne, with Henley in the offing examinations permitting, we might well do something to assail the pre-eminence which the large Thames schools at present enjoy. D.S.M.

CREWS 1st VIII

IBow A. H. Powell 2 P. R. Haigh-Lumby 3 R. D. MacLeod 4 M. R. J. Warnock 5 I. D. C. Summers 6 S. R. Buckman 7 J. N. Town

Str. M. C. Pearson

Cox S. W. St. J. Oliver 1st IV

Bow A. H. Powell 2 S. R. Buckman 3 J. N. Town Str. M. C. Pearson Cox S. W. St. J. Oliver

2nd IV Bow R. D. McLeod 2 M. J. R. Warnock 3 I. D. C. Summers Sir. P. R. Haigh-Lumby Cox T. J. Young

3rd IV Bow J. R. Williamson 2 P. G. Wood 3 R. M. Yule Str. I. A. Gill Cox D. C. Smith

Colts VIII Bow S. R. Batchelor 2 J. D. Harrison 3 R. L. Elsy 4 A. N. Lawrence 5 I. D. Raley 6 R. J. T. Hamilton- Williams 7 J. R. Blacker Str. J. T. Morley Cox D. J. McCartney 4th IV Bow J. M. Pearson 2 C. S. Pickard 3 J. D. Lovell Str. D. P. Rounthwaite Cox J. S. R. Tindall

Colts 1st IV Bow J. R. Blacker 2 R. J. Carson 3 A. N. Lawrence A. Str. J. T. Morley Cox D. J. McCartney

Colts 2nd IV Bow R. L. Elsy 2 J. D. Harrison 3 - D. Raley Str. R. J. T. Hamilton- -1 Williams Cox C. P. G. Booth

Colts 3rd VI Bow S. R. Batchelor 2 M. J. Winterbottom 3 P. R. Bailey Str. C. P. M. G. Steadman Cox G. A. Reed K. I. P. Heap substituted in 2nd IV (Bradford), 4th IV (Durham) and 3rd IV (Leeds).

COLOURS 1st VIII Colours awarded to all 1st VIII 2nd VIII Colours awarded to Young, and 3rd and 4th IVs Colts Colours awarded to Colts 1st IV.

RESULTS:

Sat. 17th May. NOTTINGHAM REGATTA Maiden VIIIs 1st VIII lost to Beckett School. 3rd IV beat Nottingham Univ. Sch. of Agriculture, and lost to Abingdon. Wed. 21st May. Triangular Match v Durham School and Lancaster R.G.S. at

York.

Durham School 6 points, Lancaster R.G.S. 3 points, St. Peter's 3 points. 1st VIII lost to Durham and Lancaster. 3rd IV lost to Durham and Lancaster 4th IV beat Durham and lost to Lancaster. Colts VIII beat Durham and Lancaster to win Colts VIII Cup.

Sat. 31st May. LANCASTER COLTS REGATTA Colts VIII beat Heriot's School, Edinburgh. lost to Priory School, Shrewsbury.

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Sat. 7th June. BRADFORD REGATTA Schools IVs 1st IV beat Bradford G.S. lost to Lancaster R.G.S. in the Final. Maiden IVs 2nd IV beat Hull University "C" and Royal Chester. lost to Hull University "A" in the Semi-final. 3rd IV beat Gainsborough lost to Hull University "A". 4th IV lost to Lancaster R.G.S. "B'

Wed. 18th June. DURHAM REGATTA Junior IVs 1st IV lost to Durham A.R.C. Maiden IVs 2nd IV beat Newcastle University, Leeds University, St. Chad's College and Durham A.R.C. to win Division A of Lady Herschell Plate. 3rd IV lost to Durham School. 4th IV beat Hull University (scratched). lost to Bede College. Schools Novice IVs Colts 1st IV beat Durham School. lost to Consett G.S. in the Final.

Sat. 21st June. YORK REGATTA School IVs 1st IV beat Bradford G.S. lost to Lancaster R.G.S.

Junior IVs 2nd IV beat Lancaster University. lost to Bradford G.S. Maiden IVs 3rd IV lost to Van Mildert. 4th IV lost to Hull University. Colts 1st IV beat Chester City G.S. lost to Bradford G.S. 2nd IV. 2nd IV beat Sunderland (scratched) lost to Archbishop Holgate's G.S. 3rd IV lost to Chester College R.C.

Sat. 28th June. LEEDS REGATTA 1st VIII lost to Nottingham and Union B.C. (Eventual winners of Junior/Senior VIIIs.

Junior IVs 2nd IV beat John o' Gaunts, Leeds University, Bede College. lost to Nottingham and Union.

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Maiden IVs 1st IV lost to Nottingham Britannia after a re-row. School Novice IVs

Colts 1st IV beat Archbishop Holgate's G.S., Bradford G.S. and Lancaster R.G.S. to win Schools Novice IVs Cup. Sat. 12th July. COMMEMORATION RACES 1st VIII beat Old Peterites. 2nd VIII beat Colts 1st IV/Old Peterites.

HOUSE RACES Sun. 6th July Junior IVs Semi-Finals Manor beat Dronfield. Grove beat Rise. Finals Manor beat Dronfield. Sun. 13th July. Senior VIIIs 1st Round: Rise beat Temple by 21 lengths (D.B. 2.07; Finish 4.39). Semi-finals: Grove beat Queens (scratched). Rise beat Dronfield by 21 lengths (D.B. 2.05; Finish 4.37). Final: Grove beat Rise by 2 lengths (D.B. 1.58; Finish 4.19).

SHOOTING

This term the strength of the Rifle Club, at 28, is much the same as in preceding years, and the policy of allowing first year boys to join has continued. This is beginning to have beneficial effects.

For several reasons practices this term did not settle down as well as usual. Early in the term inability to secure range bookings, together with cancellations because of rain, gave us rather a poor start. Then too much time was spent in practising for the Northern Command C.C.F. match, open for the first time to any member of the C.C.F. Attendances at practices showed signs of weakening—a new and unwelcome development. There were some rifle troubles. G.C.E. seemed to interfere more than usual. The smaller inner at 200 yards had a discouraging effect on the scores of the moderate and poorer shots, especially on those of the beginners. The general impression left by all this is that we were never really prepared for any matches and that the beginners, especially, did not make the progress hoped for.

As far as matches were concerned, results too were mixed. Summarized they were: 7th June—Northern Command C.C.F. Meeting. This was disastrous from our point of view, partly through our own mismanagement, partly for other reasons. In the end the "C" team beat both "A" and "B".

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