Tag Archives: Alexandra Francis

Stratford’s Juniors Score at Hampton!

Posted on by

Stratford upon Avon Boat Club Junior Squad spent Saturday competing at Hampton Small Boats Head which served up classic winter racing on the twisty 3000m stretch of Thames between Sunbury and Hampton. Across multiple divisions, singles, doubles and quads from schools and clubs tested their speed in cold, blustery conditions that punished messy steering and rewarded tidy, aggressive racing. For some it was a first serious outing in small boats this year: for others, a clear checkpoint on winter training and a marker for the season ahead.

Stratford’s J17/J18 squad took to the water in single and double sculls. In the single sculls, Alexandra Francis delivered a strong performance to achieve second place in a high quality field with Poppy Baines in the mix lower in the ranking. In the WJ17 double sculls the two crews of Martha Cooke and Martha Baines and Millie Smith and Maeve Dunn came home fourth and fifth respectively. In the next age band up, Martha Cook and Poppy Baines stepped up to the big league coming eighth in a packed field of twenty crews. Alexandra Francis and Tessa Parkin went quicker still to come fourth, narrowly behind Peterborough City Rowing Club and with both crews besting some high end outfits such as Molesey Boat Club and Putney High School Boat Club.

Fresh from their outing on the Tideway for Junior Fours head (6.8k), Stratford’s five J16 Performance boys put on another great showing, this time on the non-tidal part of the Thames at Hampton Small Boat Head 3,000m downstream. In Division One, Seb Happel, Will Shaw, Ed Appleton and Rory Rowan came eleventh overall in the OJ16 4x- event (out fifteen crews competing) in 09:57.2 beating crews from St Georges College, Staines, Molesey and Royal Grammar School High Wycombe.

In Division Two, Will Shaw and Euan Richter came nineth overall in the OJ16 2x event (out of twenty four crews competing) in 10:11.1 beating crews from Molesey, Wallingford, Kingston Grammar, Claires Court, St Peter’s School, Marlow, Wallingford, Tideway Scullers and Tiffin. In the O16 1x event, Ed Appleton came sixth overall (out of twenty three crews competing) in 11:02.6, beating crews from Claires Court, Rob Roy, City of Bristol, Henley, Walbrook and Kings School Canterbury and Euan Richter came thirteenth.

Lead J16 Coach Hugo Happel said, “The athletes showed great discipline and attitude, good technique and achieved great results on this maiden event for them. The Thames got very narrow at times with plenty of overtaking but they steered and sculled well. Well done to all athletes!”

For media coverage, please see Stratford Herald page thirty seven and online https://www.stratford-herald.com/sport/stratford-boat-club-s-juniors-impress-at-hampton-small-boats-9444491 and Stratford Observer online https://stratfordobserver.co.uk/sport/rowing-stratford-boat-clubs-junior-scullers-impress-on-the-river-thames and back sports page https://stratfordobserver.co.uk/editions/view/?/Stratford/2025/12/05&pages=24

For more pictures of Hampton Small Boats Head, see Stuart Baines’ great selection https://onedrive.live.com/?redeem=aHR0cHM6Ly8xZHJ2Lm1zL2YvYy8zZGQ4ZjZhNzBjMGNiNjI1L0VnN256czk1YWVSRXNHenByd2FoYk5VQmV2c0p2Y2cySXhxMmxTNUNrU19QV3c%5FZT11S09Gb2o&id=3DD8F6A70C0CB625%21scfcee70e697944e4b06ce9af06a16cd5&cid=3DD8F6A70C0CB625

Stratford’s Juniors Conquer The Tideway and Storm Claudia!

Posted on by

The inaugural Junior Fours Head was held on Friday under dark, damp autumn skies on the Tideway, the river lying relatively flat as junior crews assembled between Chiswick and Putney. The subdued murmur of final instructions underscored the significance of the occasion: months of training, early starts and technical refinement were about to be tested over a demanding championship course against many of the strongest school and club crews from across the country.

This year, Stratford upon Avon Boat Club’s J18 squad fielded two crews. The mixed coxless quadruple scull of Martha Baines, Xavier Sissins-Roffey, Seth Vondrak and Maeve Dunn was first down the course, finishing an impressive seventh place. They were followed shortly after by the women’s J18 coxless quadruple scull of Martha Cooke, Alexandra Francis, Tessa Parkin and Poppy Baines who crossed the line in thirty fifth place, leaving a number of quality crews behind them.

Racing in the OJ16 4+ event, Stratford’s five J16 Performance squad boys of Seb Happel (stroke), Will Shaw, Euan Richter, Rory Rowan (bow) and Ed Appleton took the inaugural Junior Fours Head in their stride and rowed well from Mortlake to Putney, 6.8km, with Ed steering a great line. The one minute forty second average split time over the distance wasn’t enough for silverware but nonetheless all five got to experience this very special event on a relatively calm Tideway. J16 Coach Hugo Happel said, ” A great experience for the boys on this most special of waterways in relatively mild, if wet, conditions. Key take-out was to rate slightly higher next time. All in all, an amazing learning experience and fantastic to connect the dots between training on our river Avon and the Tideway requirements!”

Commenting further, Paul Stanton, Club President said, “Not only was this a great performance by the athletes but credit should also go to the coaches, helpers and supporters for getting the athletes to this dominant position and for towing the boats from Stratford to The Tideway and back again during Storm Claudia!”

Following the juniors down to London to compete at Veterans Fours head on Sunday 16 November, the mixed master’s C quad of Rebecca England at stroke, Thomas Doherty, Lucy Scarlett and Pete Spivey at bow, produced a solid performance, tackling the challenging, choppy conditions on the tideway well. Despite a punishing headwind, the Stratford crew were able to execute a couple of early overtakes, maintaining pressure well with long, patient strokes and a consistent rate throughout. An improvement in conditions past Hammersmith allowed the crew to settle into calmer water; they relaxed into a good rhythm which they held to the end. “It was a tough but rewarding row against some very strong opposition,” commented Doherty. The crew are now looking to build on this third place performance as they continue their training throughout the winter.

For media coverage, please see Stratford Herald online https://www.stratford-herald.com/sport/stratford-juniors-impress-at-inaugural-junior-fours-head-9442084 and page thirty seven and also Stratford Observer online https://stratfordobserver.co.uk/sport/rowing-stratford-boat-clubs-young-scullers-impress-at-inaugural-junior-fours-head and back sports page https://stratfordobserver.co.uk/editions/view/?/Stratford/2025/11/28&pages=24

Stratford’s Juniors Make Good Start to New Rowing Season

Posted on by

The new rowing season began last weekend with the opening event for Stratford upon Avon Boat Club’s junior squad. A bumper entry saw Stratford’s juniors travel to Wallingford for the 2025 edition of Wallingford Long Distance Sculls. Due to the cancellation of last year’s race, the J15s took on the 4000m long course for the first time. The J15 coxed quadruple scull of Stratford upon Avon Boat Club’s junior squad (coxswain) came home in fourth place whilst the WJ15 coxed quadruple scull of Abi Dunn, Meredith Paul, Lillian Parsons, Scarlett Wheeler and Raya Hothi (coxswain) complete the course in seventh place. Over the shorter 1800m course, the WJ15 double scull of Martina Bruce and Raya Hothi delivered a solid third place. Meanwhile in the J15 single scull event, Stratford’s Reuben Stanford spiced up the competition with a win over Henley Rowing Club and Thames Scullers.

All J16s competing the long course in Division Three at Wallingford. Erin Appleton and Orla Linforth sculled a savvy 4.25km and came fourth in their WJ16 2x event, in a time of 20:14.8 (Henley won the event). Maria Ntoukaki had a terrific WJ16 1x race over the long distance, came 10th in her event, out of 30, in 20:20.1 (Headington won the event). Finally, Seb Happel (stroke), Will Shaw, Euan Richter and Ed Appleton (bow) had a brilliant race against top shelf competition from Henley, Lea, Wallingford and St Paul’s, finishing fifth in 16:16.3. Commenting, Hugo Happel J16 Coach said, “An excellent result for their very first coxless OJ16 4x event even though Henley finally won the event.”

Stratford J17/J18 squad had the pleasure of racing twice in both morning and afternoon events. In the WJ18 coxless quadruple sculls, Stratford fielded two crews with Martha Baines, Alexandra Francis, Tessa Parkin and Poppy Baines in fourth place and Martha Cooke, Millie Smith, Sophie Evans and Isla Dunn in sixth place amongst a twelve crew strong field. The OpJ18 double scull of Xavier Sissins-Roffey and Seth Vondrak overcame stiff competition to record a second place finish, dueling with Lea Rowing Club for the duration of the race. Maeve Dunn in the WJ17 single scull came home twenty seventh in the event, a position which belied her speed after being caught in river traffic. For their second row, the squad split into different crews with Alexandra Francis coming home fourth of twenty eight entrants in the WJ18 single scull. Also in single sculls, the boys rowed up to the senior event with Xavier Sissins-Roffey in tenth and Seth Vondrak in thirteenth. Stratford fielded two crews in the WJ18 double sculls with Alexandra Francis and Isla Dunn in eleventh places overall, creditable placings against such rowing powerhouses such as Headington School and Surbiton High School. The final crew on the water was the coxless quadruple scull of Poppy Baines, Maeve Dunn, Martha Baines and Tessa Parkin who also rowed up to senior level which meant taking on three crews of aspiring Team GB athletes from Leander Club. The Stratford crews spent most of the race in the slower stream as the Leander crews came through the field and after being forced into the bank by an errant Upper Thames crew restarted their race to finish seventh place.

Steve Wellstead, J17/18 Coach and Junior Co-ordinator commented, “All in all an excellent first head race of the season at a top class event!”

The J14s shone on their inaugural outing of the new season. With both a boys’ and girls’ quad racing in quick succession over Division 2’s shorter 2km course, the youngest members of Stratford Boat Club displayed real grit and no little finesse in Club colours for their first time.

Leading the charge was Archie Mansfield driving the WJ14 quad of Charlotte Franklin, Eva Cruise, Islay Milles, Mary Heenan to a commendable fourth place amongst a field of nine: just six seconds split those four top finishers, a sign of a really promising crew to watch. Not to be outdone, the OJ14 quad of Archie Eaton, Christopher Durance, Arthur Burt and Ethan Siwakowski with Eli Ford as cox were the undisputed fastest crew in their event and recorded the fastest time of all quads in the age group that day coming away with well deserved medals to show for their efforts.

For media coverage, please see Stratford Herald page forty four and online https://www.stratford-herald.com/sport/bumper-entry-of-juniors-to-start-new-rowing-season-9435893 and also Stratford Observer back sports page https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/editions/view/?/Stratford/2025/10/03&pages=24 and also online https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/sport/rowing-stratford-boat-club-juniors-make-strong-start-to-new-season

For more pictures of Wallingford Long Distance Sculls, see Stuart Baines’ great selection https://onedrive.live.com/?redeem=aHR0cHM6Ly8xZHJ2Lm1zL2YvYy8zZGQ4ZjZhNzBjMGNiNjI1L0VuRmc4TmFUOUVSRnNyUGYtSVNZOEdjQk9LZnZrclZ3NlB3QzdoUzRad2dFRXc%5FZT1KdWJ0WkM&id=3DD8F6A70C0CB625%21sd6f06071f4934544b2b3dff88498f067&cid=3DD8F6A70C0CB625

Stratford Excel at Ross

Posted on by

The traditional end of season event for Stratford upon Avon Boat Club arrived over the Bank Holiday weekend with thirty one crews travelling to Ross Regatta. The event is considered a classic on the club racing calendar with two days of racing on the beautiful River Wye. This year, low rivers levels demanded a change in the course and prior experience at the event was no longer an advantage.

For Stratford’s Masters, Rebecca England and Lucy Scarlett enjoyed racing the short 550m sprint course in the Women’s Masters A/B double on Sunday. They started well at a lively rate of thirty eight strokes per minute and quickly moved up on Evesham, their opposition, who benefitted from the staggered start. Settling at thirty six strokes a minute, Stratford powered through to take the lead which they held to the end, winning by a comfortable four lengths.

Whilst the J13 and J14 squads were not at full strength, they made their mark on Sunday’s sprint regatta. Racing over 500m of sun-drenched River Wye the youngest members of the Club chalked up some commendable displays of composed sculling with several victories in qualifying heats. The J13 boys will have doubtless absorbed some technical lessons that will prove vital as they look to develop throughout the coming season, whilst the J14 boys (Reuben Stanford and Connor Birrell) sculled beautifully but were finally outmatched by strong opposition from local clubs in their finals. However, the day truly belonged to the girls with Charlotte Franklin (WJ13.1x), Abi Dunn (WJ14.1x) and the WJ14 double scull of Martina Bruce-Bonilla with Bethany Hammond working their way through their heats to claim deserved victories in respective finals.

Coach of the J13/14 squads Jon Francis was impressed by their performance. “Ross is our traditional end to the summer regatta season and a great place for our athletes to shine. They all gave it everything they had and I’m delighted with the results”.

In the J15 events, Rory Rowan and Euan Richter took on home favourites from Ross Rowing Club in the double sculls event but were unable to overturn the Ross combination who were lifted to new heights by the home crowd support.

Stratford’s J16 squad competed in a mix of J16 and senior events as they sought to make a mark on the Regatta.  Fielding no fewer than five crews in the senior double sculls event the crews raced each other plus visitors from Exeter Rowing Club, City of Bristol RC and Stourport Boat Club. Lily and Poppy Warren succumbed to Exeter however then went on to win over Poppy and Martha Baines. Martha Cooke and Millie Smith pushed Bristol hard to the line whilst Alexandra and Bryony Francis saw off Stourport Boat Club. The Francis combination then met Sophie Evans and, fresh out of retirement, Imogen North. North and Evans pipped the Francis crew and then went on to avenge the other Stratford crews by beating Exeter in the final to take the winners pots.

Elsewhere in the draw, the WJ16 coxless quadruple sculls event was an all too familiar showdown between Stratford and Evesham.  The Stratford crew came out on top with a solid win and a place on the top step of the podium.

The day continued with another J16 athlete rowing up to senior in the women’s single sculls event.  A plucky row from Martha Baines saw here come close to causing upset in the event however narrowly missed out to a handy sculler and eventual finalist from Stourport.

In the WJ16 double sculls event, the combination of Maeve Dunn and Isla Dunn overhauled Queen’s Park Chester Boat Club to secure a final versus Stratford’s own Poppy Warren and Bryony Francis.  A race to the line saw Maeve and Isla take the win getting the job Dunn in style!

In the morning division, the J17/18 squad fielded two mixed doubles, with V Vondrak and Xavier Sissins-Roffey first down the course. They started strong, winning their first race against Ross by a length to move onto the semi-final. Hoping to meet the other Stratford mixed double in the final, in the next race they faced a strong crew from City of Bristol who ultimately beat them by a quarter of a length. Meanwhile the crew of Seth Vondrak and Lucy Sartain put in a strong performance in the other semi-final of the event against scullers from home club Ross, racing with composure to win by a length over the senior crew. They then faced a strong Bristol crew in the final where they sculled well, executing their race plan but eventually losing out by just half a length.

Also in the morning, the multiple Women’s doubles crews, including three pairs of sisters made up of J16 & J17s! First up were sisters Lily and Poppy Warren, who started off strong and persevered through a tough race but unfortunately lost out to their opposition. Up next were sisters Poppy and Martha Baines: in a well executed race, the pair had a strong finish but ultimately fell short against strong opposition from Exeter. Also racing in the W2x event was J17 athlete Sophie Evans and her coach Imogen North. They raced against Exeter successfully in their first race and went on to win against another Stratford double in their semi-final. This resulted in a close race against another Exeter crew in the final where they took the win for the event.

In the afternoon, the mixed four crew of Alexandra Francis, Xavier Sissins-Roffey, Ollie Rowlands, Poppy Baines and cox Will Dalrymple-Baker raced up into the open fours category. Opposed by a strong and experienced crew from Bristol, they narrowly missed out on a final after a well executed sprint race. In the Op2- event, two scratched crews meant that the Stratford pair made up of siblings Seth and V Vondrak were in a straight final, coming up against a composite Hereford/City of Bristol crew. Although they rowed an excellent race, they lost to the opposing crew who had a couple years more experience than them, as frequently happens when racing up in the Open category. Finally, in the mixed quads event Nick, Amélie, Toby and Lucy Sartain came together as a family. They rowed well, overcoming the challenges that come with rowing with crew mates of varying sizes (!) to finish just short of the eventual winners of the event, Ross.

For media coverage, see Stratford Observer online https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/sport/rowing-stratford-boat-club-triumph-at-end-of-season-ross-regatta and also back sports page https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/editions/view/?/Stratford/2025/08/29&pages=24

Stratford Make Their Mark at National Schools Regatta

Posted on by

The Stratford upon Avon Boat Club J14 squad sent a boys quad and a girls quad to the National Schools Regatta 2025 at the Nottingham Watersports Centre on Friday. This was the return of the event to the Nottinghamshire venue after a gap of several years and the competition was tough. The weather was glorious and both boats showed strong determination. The girls reached the D final and despite injuries in the team, managed to hold their own. They had a strong start, coming out of the first 100m in second position but were outpaced in the reminder of the race. The boys reached the B final and also had a great start, they were second at the halfway mark but lost ground in the second half, coming fifth overall. Commenting, Rebecca Paul, the J14 Coach said, “Both crews had a great day out, learnt a lot from the experience and are looking forward to the next event.”

On Friday, Day One of the National Schools Regatta, saw Stratford upon Avon Boat Club WJ15 4+ crew of Orla Linforth, Maria Ntoukaki, Naomi Sime and Erin Appleton (coxed by Ed Appleton) take to the Holme Pierrepoint water in the 1900m time trial, in relatively calm and temperate conditions. They set the fifteenth fastest time (out of twenty four crews) and secured their place in the C Final. In the 2000m Final, side by side with other fine crews, they were superb in their race execution: they rowed through a few crews including Royal Shrewsbury and looked to be heading for a second place finish but Kingston Grammar were wise to the challenge and finished 0.17 seconds ahead of Stratford in dramatic fashion. Where other crews seemed to be imploding, Stratford were totally steady over the 2k distance, in a solid 2:13 minutes for each 500m. J15 Coach Hugo Happel said, ” The WJ15 4+ crew did incredibly well against tough competitors from Great Britain and Republic of Ireland, sticking to their game plan and delivering a very memorable row. Both on and off the water they were terrific!”

Conditions on the second day of the regatta started to become less favourable with gusty headwinds on offer. Stratford’s WJ16 coxed four of Martha Cooke, Tessa Parkin, Martha Baines, Becca Smith and Poppy Warren (coxswain) embarked on their time trial and battled hard to achieve twelfth position and a spot in the B Final. With increasing winds, the crew again took the lake for their final in the afternoon but were unable to improve their position after a plucky row. With the cancellation of racing on the third day of the regatta, sadly the WJ16 coxless quadruple scull of Sophie Franklin, Millie Smith, Maeve Dunn and Isla Dunn did not get the opportunity to show the result of their training. Musing, said Steve Wellstead J16 Coach said, “However, they will be back!”

Stratford’s WJ18 4x- and WJ18 1x also raced at National Schools Regatta: this is one of the biggest races in the rowing calendar, where over five thousand junior competitors attended.

In the first event of the day on Saturday, Poppy Baines took on the windy conditions in the Women’s Championship Singles event. Sculling with great technical focus, she claimed twenty third out of fifty three scullers in a highly competitive field. After a long ten hour gap, Baines’ D final arrived where she had a rocketing start to maintain her position from the time trial.

The girls’ quad of Alexandra Francis, Scarlett Richardson , V Vondrak and Lucy Sartain executed their race plan perfectly in the 2000m time trial putting them in twelfth place and therefore gaining them a place in the B final against competitive crews such as Henley, Headington, Hartpury and Shrewsbury. The wind picked up over the day making conditions challenging for the final but the girls still battled through the choppy water finishing respectively in fifth position beating competitive crews.

Meanwhile at the other end of the country at Monmouth Rowing Club’s regatta, Stratford upon Avon Boat Club’s masters were represented at the weekend by Tim Lunel who reported that the regatta was efficiently run regatta and also very enjoyable.

Commenting, Lunel said, “I had to sit on the start for six seconds as a handicap in the semi final but managed to catch my opponent by half way and then win by a couple of lengths. In the final, it was a handicap of twelve seconds against an opponent nicknamed ‘The Pocket Rocket from Totnes and Dartmouth’! The starter and I tried to persuade him he didn’t need the twelve second handicap but unfortunately we didn’t convince him so he pretty much sat on the lead all the way down the course. At least he said that it was hard work when we got to the finish!”

Also out at the weekend were Stratford masters’ rowers who headed to the west for a day out at Hereford regatta. Held in the beautiful surroundings of the River Wye in mixed overcast and windy conditions, Stratford was represented firstly by Rebecca England and Tom Doherty in mixed masters C/D double sculls.

With Stratford having an age advantage (being younger!), they had to give their opponents the highly rated Drinkwater couple from Bridgnorth, a seven second head start resulting a tough ask to reduce the deficit.

With Rebecca taking the crew off at 39/40 strokes per minute, the chase was on but despite holding a high tempo of 38 strokes a minute for the whole 850 metre course, Stratford were unable to close the deficit finishing exactly seven seconds behind at the finish!

Afternoon racing saw the Stratford women’s double of Lucy Scarlett and Rebecca England racing in their double scull in women’s senior sculls against Minerva Bath. With Rebecca again taking Stratford off at a good tempo, the crews were neck and neck approaching the halfway point with both crews rowing hard. Minerva Bath’s experience began to tell and they edged ahead over the last 250 metres to win.

Said Rebecca England, “Hats off to Lucy who steered a great course in tricky windy conditions against tough opposition. We were pleased with our row and look forward to the next event.”

For media coverage, see Stratford Herald online https://www.stratford-herald.com/sport/stratford-club-make-their-mark-at-national-schools-regatta-9419727 and page thirty seven and Stratford Observer online https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/sport/rowing-stratford-boat-club-make-their-mark-at-national-schools-regatta

For pictures of National Schools Regatta, see Stuart Baines’ excellent selection at https://onedrive.live.com/?redeem=aHR0cHM6Ly8xZHJ2Lm1zL2YvYy8zZGQ4ZjZhNzBjMGNiNjI1L0V1TEhQQmd4NmJGSHR0QWZmRUVGYzhBQkZxZmpNLVJhUnBYeU0taWNXM3gycHc%5FZT1hZTB2d2w&id=3DD8F6A70C0CB625%21s183cc7e2e93147b1b6d01f7c410573c0&cid=3DD8F6A70C0CB625

Stratford’s Juniors and Masters Score at Evesham and Dorney Lake

Posted on by

Stratford upon Avon Boat Club’s younger squads enjoyed their trip downstream to Evesham’s Sprint Regatta on Saturday and acquitted themselves admirably in the season’s first side-by-side racing. The J13 girls’ quad of Mary Heenan, Islay Milles, Isobel Jackson, Charlotte Franklin and Lilly Parsons (cox) overwhelmed their early opponents but narrowly missed out to the home side in the final. The J13s then displayed great character by racing the unfamiliar stretch of the Avon in small boats with all maximising their opportunity to explore almost every inch of the river and in one case, large parts of the riverbank too! The J13 boys’ quad of Archie Mansfield, Christopher Durance, Ethan Siwakowski, Arthur Burt and Archie Eaton (cox) rounded off the event in a hotly contested pursuit of the Evesham winners.

The J14s were in imperious form, sweeping aside their opponents in respective blue riband (coxed quads) events. Tristan Hammick, Nathan Lebordais, Connor Birrell, Reuben Stanford and Herbie Shickle (cox) eased to victory over successive Monmouth crews whilst the girls’ boat of Scarlet Wheeler, Lilly Parsons, Meredith Paul, Abi Dunn and Martina Bruce-Bonilla (cox) expertly managed their races to win them all by ‘just enough’ to nullify the boys’ bragging rights! Later small boat outings gave all athletes valuable experience and some points for development.

J13/14 coach Jon Francis commented, “I was delighted with the display from both squads and was particularly impressed with the calm demeanour of the J13s in their first ever regatta!

Stratford’s J15 squad started this season’s side by side racing at Evesham also on Saturday, over 1000m upstream course. In the morning Euan Richter and Will Shaw saw off their Cheltenham College Boat Club opposition in the OJ15 2x SF by five lengths and were successful too in the final against Worcester Royal Grammar, winning by one and a quarter lengths and claiming their navy blue pots. Also racing in the morning, Orla Linforth and Erin Appleton sculled in the WJ15 2x SF with really lovely technique but lost against the strong Evesham duo.

In the afternoon division, the OJ15 4x+ crew of Seb Happel, Euan Richter, Will Shaw, Ed Appleton and Rory Jones won their first race against Ross Rowing Club, won their semifinal against Magdalen College (easily) but lost in the final against Cheltenham College.

Also in division two, Rory Rowan sculled well in the OJ15 1x event but lost out to a stronger sculler from Worcester. In the WJ15 1x event, Naomi Sime showed lovely technique but lost to a powerful sculler from Ross Rowing Club and Maria Ntoukaki won her semifinal against a good sculler from Warwick Boat Club. In the final, Maria lost out to the Ross sculler by a small margin with both showing great sportsmanship after the staggered finish line.

Commenting, J15 coach Hugo Happel said, “The J15 squad again showed lovely technique, attitude and desire both on and off the water with some good learning to carry forward into the next regatta events. Well done to the athletes!”

Stratford’s Masters squad s had five crews racing at Evesham Regatta. The conditions were good and the racing started with the OpMI2x of Paul Collins and Mike Adkins. It was great to see this double competing again.

The OpC/D4+ also raced in the morning division in glorious sunshine. Victory can come in many forms: Jack Ingleby, Mark Kelly, David Vazquez and Phil Marshall came together as a crew for only the third time, using a borrowed bow loader boat, with a borrowed cox and a swap of crew position. They managed to row as a crew quite effectively along the 1,000 metre course. The foursome had some fun as well! Further outings are already planned, seating positions are selected and the future holds great hope!

The tail wind picked up over the course of the afternoon division, Stratford Women’s Masters DVIII crew had a handicapped race with the Evesham opposition being given a head start of eight seconds. Winning the semi-final against home crew of Evesham EVIII, saw Stratford rapidly closing on Evesham’s advantage of a head start. The crew held a strong rate of thirty strokes per minute over the one kilometre course until the final push and the crew were thrilled to take the win in a close finish.

After a quick turnaround, the final was a race between Stratford and the Ross DVIII who took the win for the day.

Crew Captain Katie Burman said, “I’m very proud of this terrific crew of tremendous ladies who have trained hard, showed great team spirit, resulting in a really strong performance!”

Commenting further, Amanda Bowden, Stratford’s Masters’ Vice Captain said, “Special thanks to Phil Marshall from Stratford Boat Club for his assistance with boat checks, to Evesham Rowing Club for the loan of a boat, to our very capable race cox Jess Salmon from Evesham Rowing Club and to all the Stratford supporters who came to cheer us on!”

The other Masters’ crews had mixed results: the senior men’s 4x faced tough opposition from a performance Evesham crew. The WE4x had a straight final, racing hard they just missed out on a win.

Meanwhile on Sunday, the J18 girls of Alexandra Francis, Scarlett Richardson, V Vondrak and Lucy Sartain took on Wallingford Regatta held at Dorney Lake’s two kilometres Olympic course in the WJ18 coxless quads category. They put out a strong performance executing their race plan perfectly with a time of 7:13 minutes in the heats gaining them second place and therefore a place in the final. In the final, the wind picked up making conditions more challenging but the girls still pushed on finishing strong in sixth position against Tideway Scullers, Marlow, Shrewsbury and more competitive schools and clubs.

For media coverage see Stratford Herald page thirty six and Stratford Observer online https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/sport/rowing-success-for-stratford-boat-clubs-scullers-at-evesham-sprint-regattam and back sports page https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/editions/view/?/Stratford/2025/05/09&pages=24

Stratford Out In Force at Bedford and Henley

Posted on by

At Bedford Spring Head on Sunday, Stratford upon Avon Boat Club’s youngest squads were out in force and able to display their skills on a stretch of river that was perfect for all to witness how far they have progressed. The J13’s, racing up a category as J14’s, put out two quads in consecutive divisions who both recorded solid times and impressed with intelligent race plans that saw them cross the line just seconds apart. The combination of Burt, Franklin, Heenan and Siwakowski ultimately claiming bragging rights on this occasion over Durance, Cruise, Jackson and Ford. The coxswains of those boats, Lilly Parsons and Islay Milles respectively, then raced-up again in the J14 double sculls and showcased some real promise with a composed performance and a highly creditable time.

The J14 squad were similarly well represented. Hothi and Mansfield competed early in the double sculls but were beaten into second by a strong Walbrook Rowing Club pairing. A mixed quad of Stanford, Lebordais, Birrell and Dunn, coxed by Mansfield, enjoyed the strong challenge from local clubs and also managed to record the second fastest time in that event. Tiring of second place finishes, Birrell and Lebordais took to the water again in a double scull and blew the competition away, recording the event’s fastest time and taking the gold whilst being chased all the way to the line by their squad mates Hammick and Shickle whose performance was no less commanding.

Both Stratford Boat Club J15 coxed fours were racing: first up were Seb Happel, Will Shaw, Euan Richter and Ed Appleton, coxed by Rory Jones, rowing neatly in the OJ16 4+ against three home crews from Bedford School in seven minutes and thirty seconds, beating all crews coming in as one out three. Next up were Orla Linforth, Maria Ntoukaki, Naomi Sime and Erin Appleton, coxed by Ed Appleton, rowing nicely in the W4+ and setting a great time of eight minutes and seventeen seconds, matching the Stratford WJ18 crew!

Finally, in the OJ15 2x event, Euan Richter and Rory Rowan sculled well over the 2k distance, in eight minutes and seven seconds which wasn’t enough for a medal. Commenting, Hugo Happel, J15 Coach said. “Credit to all three J15 crews, they all did a great job!”

A glorious spring day saw a total of thirty five crews from Stratford upon Avon Boat Club travel to Bedford for the Spring Head. Held over 2000m on the Great Ouse, the course runs through Bedford’s town centre making a theatre of rowing for the day. Stratford’s J16 squad competed in four events throughout the day. First to go was the women’s coxless quadruple scull of Martha Cooke, Tessa Parkin, Martha Baines and Bryony Francis who competed in the J17 event for the day and delivered a superb row scoring a second place against Walbrook Rowing Club. Next off was the women’s coxed four crew of Isla Dunn, Becca Smith, Tessa Parkin, Maeve Dunn and Bryony Francis (coxswain) who again rowed up a category to race against senior women and again demonstrated their quality to come home second against the Loughborough Rowing Club women. The racing continued thick and fast with the WJ16 double sculls of Martha Cooke and Isla Dunn sprinting home to fifth whilst Martha Baines and Bryony Francis took the win in style. Hungry for more, the J16’s then took to the water in the single sculls event.  Racing for a third time in the day Tessa Parkin came home a creditable sixth in a seventeen strong field, Becca Smith in fourth and Maeve Dunn took the win with a confident row in the late afternoon sunshine.

Racing first down the course for the Stratford crews were the boys J18 quads. Xavier Sissins-Rofey, Theo Richter, Jamie Wilcox and Seth Vondrak set off at a blistering pace, executing a solid race plan to put them in second place, although the fifth fastest overall crew of the day. Later in the day they returned to the water in Open Coxless Fours’ event, where they put down another strong performance against their older competitors to finish fourth.

In their first race of the day, Poppy Baines and Lucy Sartain paired up to race the WJ18 doubles in dominant style. They powered down the course taking an expert line through the bridges to claim a distinct win over the rest of the field. Also racing in the WJ18 doubles were Lily Warren and Aimee Appleton. They executed a strong race plan and raced tidily to come out third in their field. In the WJ18 1x event, both crews from Stratford put in good races to come second and third, chasing each other down the course. Later the WJ18 quad rowed an excellent race, brilliantly steered by Lucy Sartain, to win their event by over ten seconds. In Division Six, the crew of Alexandra Francis, Aimee Appleton, Scarlett Richardson and Poppy Baines took to the course in the Women’s Coxless Fours’ event: competing against older and more experienced crews, the four completed a powerful race to claim a win of over twenty seconds to claim silver.

The Bedford Course is a testing row over 2km, with the river becoming narrow in places and requiring crews to navigate numerous bridges. Commenting, Amanda Bowden, Masters’ Vice Captain said, “This was the first race for several of Stratford’s Masters’ crews and the first time steering a race for a couple of the bow steers persons. A huge co granulations for all who raced today! It was wonderful to see so many masters rowers competing in the sunshine today!”

The MxD4x of Suzie Radley, Dan Simkins, Patrick Taylor and Amanda Bowden won the category with an adjusted time of six minutes and forty eight seconds. The crew raced hard and were consistent throughout the race, despite steering challenges and very choppy water conditions in places. The MD2- of Dan Simkins and Patrick Taylor stuck to their race plan and were delighted to complete the 2k race in an adjusted time of seven minutes and twenty four seconds, under rating the winners, coming in second place. There is definitely more to come from this crew!

The single scullers of Tom Doherty in the Masters’ E category and Nick Sartain in the Masters’ D category both rowed strong rhythms and completed the course in times of eight minutes and twenty one seconds and seven minutes and forty dix seconds respectively. Tom was nip and tuck with the Leicester sculler for the whole course, with choppy waters in the mid section adding to an eventful race. The Stratford sculler just prevailed by five seconds to finish in second place in a field of five competitors with local sculler Bedford using his local knowledge to run out the winner by nine seconds. The Mx2x of Tom Doherty and Rebecca England came fourth in their category.

The WMD2x of Suzie Radley and Amanda Bowden had a great start then as they overtook another double, this competitors lost control and steered into the Stratford double. This resulted in a stop, resulting in a considerable time loss of thirty seconds. The result was second place for the Stratford double. The OpME4- of David Noyes, Rich Shepherd, Nev Hands and John Charlesworth raced hard gaining valuable experience on a challenging course. Unfortunately the WME4x including Christine Goodwin, Gina Fusco was hampered by injury and sickness, thankfully they had two subs of Rebecca England and Imogen North and were able to enjoy a row over the course for time only in seven minutes and fifty seconds. Thanks again go to Hugo Happel and Steve Wellstead for towing the trailers and to all the support from the bank.

Meanwhile, Stratford’s adaptive squad attended the annual Adaptive Phyllis Court Time Trial on the Henley Regatta course. The squad was largely made up of established competitors, the event coming a little too soon for a number of recent recruits. The best Club time of the day was achieved by the mother and son combination of Ian and Paola Ward. Best newcomer went to Ricky Clutterbuck. Gillian Middleton, competing for the first time in a single scull, won the Club Most Improved category. Commenting, Mark Dewdney, Stratford’s Head Adaptive Coach said, “Phyllis Court is a useful precursor to the main regatta season. It was attended by the Henley MP, Mayor and Stratford Boat Club’s President, Paul Stanton. The next outing for the adaptive squad is Marlow Spring Regatta in early May.”

For great pictures from Bedford Spring Head, see Stuart Baines’ selection https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=%21AAnHz3nIhATIuP8&id=3DD8F6A70C0CB625%21269548&cid=3DD8F6A70C0CB625

Stratford & K.E.S. Score on the Thames & River Soar

Posted on by

On Tuesday 25th March 2025, nine Stratford junior women from Stratford upon Avon Boat Club’s J17/18 squad took to the Thames in the annual Schools’ Head of the River Race. With over three hundred boats on the water at once, racing the Boat Race course in reverse, this head attracts the top crews in the country who are ready to fight for the top spots. Stratford’s girls VIII was composed of Poppy Baines, Lucy Sartain, Molly Vondrak, Scarlett Richardson, Lily Warren, Aimee Appleton, Alexandra Francis, Eloise Cooper and Poppy Warren (cox): the crew was a mixture of sixth form aged athletes who had only been training together in the boat for a month in the lead up to the event.

Setting off first in the Girls’ Championship Eight event, the girls started off strong, settling into a solid rhythm under Chiswick Bridge. Unfortunately, only just over 1k in, another crew mis-judged their line and caused a clash with our crew. Stratford were forced to come to a stop before valiantly re-starting and taking back control of their own race. Undeterred, Stratford continued to lay down their power for the remaining 6k with Poppy Warren steering an excellent course. Commenting, Imogen North, J17/18 Coach said, “The crew delivered a strong performance against the top crews in the country, representing the Club in the girls’ eights category for the first time in over a decade.”

Also at Schools’ Head of the River Race was Stratford’s sister Club, King Edward V1 School Boat Club. Entering in their staple mixed eight event, the squad were looking to reclaim a position on the podium which they just missed out on the year before. As expected, due to the short rowing length of the Avon, the crew began with slightly too much care towards pacing themselves, losing time on the other boats on the 6.8km course. After the first quarter, speed and confidence began to climb as the K.E.S. mixed eight managed a successful overtake on one of the competition as well as several boats from earlier divisions. Cox Hannah Wright notably completed a clean pass through the middle of two competing boats, especially impressive as this had been her first major race as a cox.

Shoulders heavy, legs numb and with resounding motivation from the cox, the final quarter of the race was when K.E.S. showed their best efforts, keeping a neck and neck pace with the favourites to win, explosively blasting through the finish line.

Ultimately, the crew’s efforts were enough to land themselves on the podium once again with a prestigious bronze, just 20 seconds off gold and over a minute faster than the crew behind them. Having raced to their fullest, the 2025 mixed eight returned proudly to their boating area, setting their sights towards medal collection in the upcoming season.

Meanwhile on Sunday, following on from Stratford Boat Club’s successful trips to London for the national head racing season, Stratford rowers Rebecca England and Tom Doherty headed to the more sedate climes of Loughborough for the annual river Soar Head race. The event 3.1km long is probably the most challenging head race of the season for steering, taking place on a fairly narrow extremely windy course guaranteed to test every crew.

First off in division two was Tom Doherty in a masters single category taking on amongst others former Stratford team mate Gary Clay now of Loughborough in what were extremely gusty conditions. Rowing upriver in a strong tail wind resulted in choppy but fast racing with difficult steering resulting in a number of crews hitting the bank and struggling to overtake resulting in a number of clashes.

Starting towards the rear of the division meant less interference and allowed some good sculling which saw Tom and Gary battling it out down the course neck and neck for the whole way. In the end, Gary pipped Tom into second place winning by six seconds in a time of thirteen minutes and twenty six seconds.

Division Three provided better conditions with the wind dropping as Tom and Rebecca raced their mixed double. With steering again proving a problem for crews and crashes and clashes continuing, the crew held a lively pace whilst trying to negotiate very tight bends and, in one instance, a capsized crew.

Unfortunately one bend got the better of the crew resulting in a time loss of about ten seconds. Getting underway again saw a good fight with following crews and good speed resulting in the Stratford crew catching a coxed quad junior crew which on the narrow course held them up until they could safely squeeze past.

In the end the much faster tail wind in the earlier divisions proved decisive with their opposition racing in division one gaining a good forty seconds advantage due to the strong tailwind.

Said Tom Doherty, “Loughborough lived up to its reputation and the ultimate steering challenge meant that this very well organised and run event also provided entertaining racing!”

For media coverage see Stratford Herald online https://www.stratford-herald.com/sport/juniors-impress-as-they-take-on-boat-race-course-9411279 and page forty four and Stratford Observer https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/sport/rowing-stratford-boat-clubs-junior-crews-take-part-in-prestigious-events and back sports page https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/editions/view/?/Stratford/2025/04/04&pages=24

For more great pictures of the Schools’ Head, see Stuart Baines’ excellent selection https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=%21ANzH42mIDOdmjjU&id=3DD8F6A70C0CB625%21269353&cid=3DD8F6A70C0CB625

Stratford Scores at Boston and Bedford

Posted on by

The weekend saw over one hundred and twenty of the fastest female U19 athletes in the country take to the water up in Boston for the first round of Junior GB trials. One Stratford upon Avon Boat Club WJ17 athlete Alexandra Francis met the threshold to attend the 5k water trial. Alexandra set off strong, showing off her technical prowess as she settled into the race, maintaining her composure to finish in seventy sixth place. Commenting, Imogen North, J17 Coach said, “In a very competitive field with small margins between the athletes, this is a solid start for Alexandra!”

Meanwhile over the weekend Stratford’s Masters’ athlete Tom Doherty raced at Star Head on the Great Ouse in Bedfordshire coming second (on handicap adjustments) to Yare Rowing Club in a time of eight minutes and thirty two seconds for the 1850m course. Amanda Bowden, Stratford’s Masters’ Vice Captain said, “The course can prove challenging to navigate, as the river passes under several bridges. Tom sculled a strong consistent race in windy conditions and even he commented, ‘not bad for my first ever single sculls race!’ “.

For media coverage, see Stratford Herald page forty seven and Stratford Observer online https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/sport/rowing-stratford-boat-club-junior-sculler-competes-at-gb-trials and also back sports page https://www.stratfordobserver.co.uk/editions/view/?/Stratford/2024/11/22&pages=32

Stratford’s Juniors and Adaptives Score at Nottingham!

Posted on by

Competing for the first time in the Junior Inter-Regional Regatta (JIRR) at the Holme Pierrepoint National Water Sports Centre, Stratford upon Avon Boat Club’s J14 Open double of James Greenwood and Rory Rowan sculled well in the 1000m time trial and made it into the C Final (1500m), which they subsequently won. The coxed quad of Seb Happel, Euan Richter, Will Shaw and Ed Appleton, coxed by Orla Linforth, sculled well in the time trial and made into the B Final, in which they finished fifth. Said J14 coach Hugo Happel, “Fantastic work ethic from the J14s here, in their first event at this venue. They are taking away lots of fine learning points as well as new connections with the boys from George Watson College!”

Having qualified two boats at the recent West Midlands trials, Stratford’s J15 squad also headed to Nottingham’s National Water Sports Centre to represent the region at the Junior Inter-Regional Regatta. A national level event, the athletes competed against regional teams from Scotland to Wessex and everywhere between. The women’s J15 coxed quadruple scull of Tessa Parkin, Martha Baines, Maeve Dunn, Sophie Franklin and Martha Cooke (coxswain) powered down the course in the time trial to firmly secure a place in the A Final. Lining up in the lane beside the eventual winners from Great Marlow School, the crew exploded from the stake boat and set about attempting to ruin their competitors’ day. Sadly, it wasn’t to be and the girls came home in sixth place after a mighty row. The women’s J15 coxed four of Isla Dunn, Becca Smith, Millie Smith, Bryony Francis and Josephine Cooper (coxswain) performed equally well in their time trial to cement their place in the A Final. The plucky crew treated the Nottingham crowd to a fabulous display of sweep rowing with not a small amount of grit thrown in. Storming down the course, the Stratford outfit found themselves engaged in a ding dong battle for bronze with the East Midlands as the advantage with each stroke. The battle continued to the line where, on the surge, the East Midlands clinched the medal by just 7/100ths of a second! The battle may have been lost but this crew will be back to race again.

The Junior Inter-Regional Regatta once again showcased the remarkable talent and determination of Britain’s young rowers. The West Midlands’ trio from Stratford’s junior 16 squad made their mark on the event. Xavier Sissins-Rofey missed the bronze by a whisper of time, finishing just four seconds shy of third place. Poppy Baines battled through to a commendable sixth place. Alexandra Francis clinched the silver medal in a finish that had spectators on the edge of their seats, a mere two seconds from gold. Commenting Colin Bell J16 Coach, “Their performances have certainly raised the bar for the regattas to come!”

Also competing at JIRR for the adaptive squad was Isaac Clarkson racing at his second JIRR. Just past his fourteenth birthday, Isaac is still two years younger than all of his opponents in the adaptive event. Expending minimum possible effort in the opening Time Trial, Isaac focused on the Final: Isaac rowed superbly over the 1000m course and pushed the race leaders all the way to the line. Mark Dewdney, Stratford’s Head Adaptive Coach said, “Isaac kept to the plan and has worked hard in recent months: the Bronze is a just reward!”

The next day at The National Water Sports Centre, Stratford’s Pararower Curtis Dickens attended his second GB Squad development camp of the year: two plus days of hard work culminating in a 2000m race against his rival from Scotland. Curtis impressed the GB coaches with his development over the winter. The race proved to be his first win over his more experienced Scottish opponent: it was also the first time that Curtis has beaten ten minutes for the distance and a forty four second improvement since GB Trials in November. Commenting further, Mark said, “We are more than satisfied with how things are going: Curtis’ next big target is to represent England at the Home International Regatta in July!”

For media coverage, please see Stratford Herald page sixty one and Stratford Observer online https://stratfordobserver.co.uk/sport/rowing-stratford-boat-clubs-junior-and-adaptive-squads-win-medals-in-nottingham

For great pictures of JIRR, see Stuart Baines’ excellent selection https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=%21AO9bx%2DvFRmRxCMg&id=3DD8F6A70C0CB625%21259269&cid=3DD8F6A70C0CB625