1646 – Issue 2

Head of rowing Allan French (right) with former Assistant Coach and Boat House manager, Tim Liversage (left) Reading Blue Coat has a thriving rowing squad which sees both boys and girls rowing from the onsite Boat House on the banks of the River Thames. Girls, who are able to join Blue Coat for Sixth Form have the opportunity to further their rowing experience for those who have previously been part of another school or club programme, or as is often the case, take to the water for the first time. Breaking through the big three In September 2018 there was a significant focus on developing the girls programme and alongside Jess Rofe and Matilda Marcun who at the time were in Year 13, the girls squad saw a number of Year 12’s joining the group. Some with previous experience and others taking their first strokes during the rowing taster sessions on their Blue Coat induction days. The enthusiasm shown by the girls and hard work by girls coaches Chloe Willis and James Stephenson, alongside the support from new Head of Rowing Allan French, showed some exciting potential in the Autumn term. Girls squad captain Jess was influential in helping to guide the new girls through the early part of their rowing careers and support the ethos that the enjoyment of the sport was the most important factor especially when balancing sporting and school commitments. Through the winter months the Blue Coat Boat Club for the first time, saw a girls eight, the largest of the boat classes, starting to race in domestic competitions with the clear aim of competing at the Schools Head of the River in March. Schools Head is a time trial race held on the 4.25 mile long Boat Race Championship course from Mortlake to Putney and with over 300 crews it is one of the biggest races of its kind. When March came round, Schools Head proved to be a fantastic success for the girls Eight which not only saw Blue Coat boat a girls eight at the event for the first time, but also produced a superb result, finishing 10th out of 19 in the “Girls 1st Eights” category. A great achievement. Through the Spring and into the Summer the girls squad continued to work hard with the new aim to complete the hat-trick by racing in the “The Big Three” rowing races; Schools Head, National Schools Regatta and Henley Women’s Regatta. As the races went from long distance down to the traditional 2km Olympic style racing, the Blue Coat girls kept up their momentum and had a superb showing at both of the remaining two events, National Schools and Henley. It was a brilliant breakthrough season from the girls and showed that with minimal previous experience the squad can, through hard work, come together and achieve great things. As Blue Coat pushes well into the new season it is great to see continued strong results from the girls’ squad and with new Year 12’s joining the group this year, it is set to be another exciting season ahead for the rowers. Allan French 18