ROWING:THE GODS of the weather and the fickleness of men may be laying waste to the Irish domestic season, but hundreds of rowers head for Athlone, Belfast and Galway this weekend with unquenched ambition.
The abandonment of Metropolitan Regatta last weekend followed the cancellation of Cork Regatta has left the season in tatters for many competitors. Crews will head for the National Championships next month having never faced their rivals over a 2,000-metre course. And this has not been unusual in recent years.
It places in stark relief the need for a longer season, and the weight of decision will rest on the shoulders of the board of Rowing Ireland, who meet tomorrow week to consider proposals for a revamped structure.
That structure might, we hope, avoid the kind of clash which occurs tomorrow. Athlone celebrates 40 years of staging regattas with a big programme in both senses of the word – organisers will include pages from the 1970 programme in this year’s guide.
The entry, however, leans heavily towards juniors. And the men’s senior eight final will be a straight clash between NUIG and Galway Rowing club, as Commercial’s veteran crew has pulled out.
Two of the top eights in the country, Trinity and Queen’s, will be engaged in their own battle on the Lagan in the University Boat Race.
As promotion for the sport in Northern Ireland this has hit the mark, Sky Sports are reportedly planning to put together a programme on the event to be broadcast in the coming weeks.
The four races – novice and senior men and women – are scheduled from 1.45pm to 4pm, with the senior men’s race promising a good battle.
Trinity will have Ali Floyd in the number six seat – the big man is part of the international programme, but is making a “guest appearance” as Trinity coach Mark Pattison puts it.
Trinity have won four of the five stagings of this event, but Queen’s will be determined to alter the balance in their favour. They will be at full strength, and their coach, Mark Fangen-Hall, has another reason to desire victory – the event will be attended by Ireland performance director Martin McElroy and under-23 coach Rob Baker. All three are good friends, and all have strong links to Cambridge University Boat Club.
McElroy’s programme is facing into a “busy couple of weeks” on the trialling front, with lightweight women being looked at this weekend at the National Rowing Centre in Cork.
The under-23s get their chance on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the lightweight men then taking up the challenge.
However, our best prospects on the international front will be on show earlier than this, with junior scullers Lisa Dilleen and Laura D’Urso set to race each other at Galway Regatta on Sunday – at senior and junior level.
The programme’s other interesting clashes may be home-grown, but could be interesting for all that. The men’s senior four and eight features NUIG and Galway Rowing Club and the junior 18 A eights final will pit two Coláiste Iognáid crews against great rivals St Joseph’s.
Adaptive rowing in Ireland crosses a new boundary next weekend with the entry of two boats for the World Cup in Munich – but for one athlete it will be familiar territory. Karen Cromie from Co Fermanagh has been a regular on British teams and competed at the Paralympic Games in Beijing last year, finishing fifth in the Trunks and Arms mixed double scull with partner James Roberts.
Cromie will compete in the same boat for Ireland, but this time she partners Vincent Culhane, a former London-based rugby player who suffered a spinal injury.
