On Saturday 7 December, in cold but calm conditions, Aberdeen Schools Rowing Association (ASRA) crews took first place in two of the three categories entered at the Rutherford Head. This 4500m time trial, on the River Tyne through Newcastle, attracts a strong contingent of crews from some of the country's top rowing universities who are wanting an early indication of their levels of performance.

In the first division the ASRA coxed eight of Oscar Forbes, Ashley Geddes, Alexander Beeson, Euan Fowler, Gregor Charles, Jakub Zbikowski, Archie Innes and Matthew Hughson, ably coxed by Skye Ballance, comfortably won the Open Junior Eights with the second placed juniors from Durham School /Tyne ARC 75 seconds behind. ASRA came thirteenth overall in a total field of 133.

In the second division the ASRA crew of Harris MacDonald, Ashley Geddes, Gregor Charles and William Penny, coxed by Skye Ballance, racing up in Senior Coxed Fours due to limited junior opposition, came fourth in their category and ASRA’s coxless quad of Matthew Hughson, Oscar Forbes, Alexander Beeson and Jakub Zbikowski won the Open Junior Quadruple Sculls after a tough fight with their opponents in a Chester-le-Street/George Watson’s College composite, the winning margin just 2.6 seconds!

At the Inverness Fours and Small Boats Heads on the 9th and 10th November on the Caledonian Canal with over 550 crews representing clubs, schools and universities from all over Scotland taking part, ASRA crews fought their way against stiff opposition to winners’ medals in the following 9 categories:

Saturday

Division 1:

• Men’s Restricted 1 Coxless Quads: Mathew Hughson, Oscar Forbes, Xander Beeson & Jakub Zbikowski
• Men’s Junior 18 Coxed Fours: Gregor Charles, Ashley Geddes, Archie Innes & Michel Dearsley, coxed by Dom Rogerson

Division 2:

• Men’s Restricted 2 Coxed Quads: Alex Fowler, Joe Ritchie, William Lawson & Christy Probart, coxed by Harris Pearce
• Men’s Junior 18 Coxless Fours: Oscar Forbes, Ashley Geddes, Archie Innes & William Penny
• Men’s Novice Double Sculls: Harris MacDonald & Michel Dearsley

Sunday

Division 1:

• Men’s Restricted 1 Coxed Fours: Gregor Charles, Michel Dearsley, Harris MacDonald & William Penny, coxed by Dom Rogerson

Division 2:

• Men’s Restricted 2 Single Sculls: Matthew Hughson
• Women’s Junior 16 Coxed Fours: Maisie Aspinall, Zoe Beeson, Stefani Panova & Sophia Brew, coxed by Ziah Vixamar
• Men’s Novice Coxed Quads: Harris Pearce, Gregor Charles, William Penny & Dom Rogerson, coxed by Joe Ritchie

At the 2019 Aberdeen Fours Head Races on the Dee on Saturday 26. October, ASRA’s top boys put in strong performances to record the fastest time over the course in both divisions for the second year in succession. In most other categories, University Rowing Aberdeen (URA) composites dominated, but ASRA’s girls did well to pull off a win against the odds in Women’s Novice Coxed Quadruple Sculls.

Open Men’s Coxless Fours & Fastest Crew in Division 1

Oscar Forbes, Gregor Charles, Ashley Geddes and Matthew Hughson

Open Men’s Coxless Quadruple Sculls & Fastest Time in Division 2

Matthew Hughson, Ashley Geddes, Jakub Zbikowski and Oscar Forbes

Women’s Novice Coxed Quadruple Sculls

Freya Hughson, Emma Atkinson, Ella Johnston and Sophie Sinclair, coxed Zoe Beeson

Unfortunately Sunday’s scheduled Small Boats Heads had to be cancelled due to gusting 40 mph winds causing dangerously rough water conditions especially on the upper reaches of the course.

At the inaugural self-styled “Scottish Junior Sculling Head”, held over a 1900 metre (!) course at the Scottish National Rowing Centre, Strathclyde Park, Motherwell, ASRA scullers won an impressive total of 3 gold, 7 silver and 8 bronze medals in a field involving most of Scotland’s top rowing clubs and came second to George Watson’s College in the overall Victor Ludorum ranking, pushing their normal nemeses Glasgow Schools into third place.

Gold

• Men’s Junior 18 Coxless Quads : Scott Lewis, Xander Beeson, Oscar Forbes & Matthew Hughson
• Women’s Junior 16 Double Sculls: Maisie Aspinall & Zoe Beeson
• Women’s Junior 16 Single Sculls: Maisie Aspinall

Silver

• Men’s Junior 18 Double Sculls: Oscar Forbes & Matthew Hughson
• Men’s Junior 16 Coxless Quads: Alex Fowler, Joe Ritchie, Will Cooper & William Lawson
• Men’s Junior 14 Double Sculls: Harris Pearce & Magnus Heidenreich
• Men’s Junior 14 Sculls (B); Harris Pearce
• Women’s Junior 16 Coxless Quads: Maisie Aspinall, Zoe Beeson, Freya Hughson & Sophia Brew
• Women’s Junior 14 Coxed Quads: Emily Simpson, Charlotte Arthur, Ella Johnston & Phoebe McCraith, coxed by Christy Probart
• Women’s Junior 14 Double Sculls: Emily Simpson & Charlotte Arthur

Bronze

• Men’s Junior 18 Coxless Quads: Michel Dearsley, Ashley Geddes, William penny & Harris Macdonald
• Men’s Junior 18 Double Sculls (equal third) : Michel Dearsley & Harris Macdonald/Alex Beeson & Scott Lewis
• Men’s Junior 18 Single Sculls; Matthew Hughson
• Men’s Junior 18 Single Sculls (B): Euan Fowler
• Men’s Junior 16 Double Sculls: Alex Fowler & Will Cooper
• Women’s Junior 14 Double Sculls; Ella Johnston & Erin Gibson
• Women’s Junior 14 Single Sculls: Emily Simpson

On Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th September, Aberdeen Schools Rowing Association played host for the second year running to the Bob Neill Scottish Schools’ Head of the River Races held on the Dee over a timed 3 kilometre course from the Victoria Bridge to the Ruthrieston Burn. On Saturday morning, ASRA won the Scottish Junior Club Fours Championship Cup in commanding fashion for the 10th year in succession, but over the three sculling races on Saturday afternoon and Sunday, despite collecting 6 category winners’ pennants and recording the fastest time of any sculling boat on either day over the course, ASRA had to concede defeat in the end – and the Scottish Junior Club Champions’ Sculling Trophy - to an extremely powerful squad from George Watson’s College , Edinburgh.

Category winners’ pennants went to the following ASRA crews:

Fours’ Head

• Men’s Junior 18 Coxed Fours: Xander Beeson (Albyn School), Chris Bardas (Harlaw Academy), Scott Lewis (Mearns Academy) & Jakub Zbikowski (Harlaw Academy) coxed by Skye Balance (Cults Academy)
• Men’s Junior 16 Coxed Fours: Alex Fowler (Albyn School), Joe Ritchie (Aberdeen Grammar School), William Lawson & Will Cooper coxed by Harris Macdonald (All of Albyn School)
• Women’s Junior 18 Coxed Fours: Abigail Topp (Kemnay Academy), Zoe Beeson (Albyn School), Maisie Aspinall & Sophia Brew (both of Cults Academy), coxed by Julia Zbikowska (Harlaw Academy)
• Women’s Junior 14 Coxed Quadruple Sculls: Charlotte Arthur (Aberdeen Grammar School), Emily Simpson (Hazlehead Academy), Ella Johnston (Robert Gordon’s College) & Phoebe McCraith (St. Margaret’s School), coxed by Gabrielle Topp (Kemnay Academy)

Sculling Heads

• Men’s Junior 18 Doubles: Oscar Forbes (Albyn School) & Matthew Hughson (Aberdeen Grammar School)
• Women’s Junior 16 Doubles : Maisie Aspinall (Cults Academy) & Zoe Beeson (Albyn School)
• Men’s Junior 18 Coxless Quadruple Sculls : Xander Beeson (Albyn School), Chris Bardas ( Harlaw Academy), Euan Fowler (Albyn School) & Jakub Zbikowski (Harlaw Academy)
• Men’s J18 Single Sculls: Jakub Zbikowski (Harlaw Academy)
• Women’s J18 Single Sculls: Abigail Topp (Kemnay Academy)
• Women’s J14 Single Sculls: Emily Simpson (Hazlehead Academy)

At the annual Aberdeen Sprint Regatta on Saturday 31st August on the Dee, ASRA was the most successful of the six clubs taking part, amassing a total of 80 points over the day’s racing. Runners up were Stirling Rowing Club with 72 points. ASRA’s 14 category winners were:

• Men’s Restricted 1 Coxed Fours: Michel Dearsley, Scott Lewis, Euan Fowler & Alex Beeson, coxed by Skye Ballance
• Men’s Novice Double Sculls: William Penny & Gregor Charles
• Men’s J16 Double Sculls: Will Cooper & William Lawson
• Men’s Open Single Sculls: Jakub Zbikowski
• Men’s Restricted 2 Single Sculls: Euan Fowler
• Men’s Novice Single Sculls: Michel Dearsley
• Men’s J16 Single Sculls: William Lawson
• Women’s Restricted 2 Coxless Pairs: Zoe Beeson & Maisie Aspinall
• Women’s J15 Coxed Quadruple Sculls: Erin Gibson, Phoebe McCraith, Gabrielle Topp & Emily Simpson, coxed by Skye Ballance
• Women’s J16 Double Sculls: Zoe Beeson & Maisie Aspinall
• Women’s J14 Double Sculls: Charlotte Reynolds & Freya Hughson
• Women’s J16 Single Sculls: Maisie Aspinall
• Women’s Duathlon (Run + 1x) : Maisie Aspinall
• Men’s Duathlon (Run + 1x) : Alex Beeson

ASRA members Abigail Topp and Megan Hewison were selected to race the Women’s Junior Pair at the championships held in Tokyo, Japan from August 7th-11th 2019. The girls had a hard heat but placed 5th heading into the repechage where they then only missed out on the A final by 5 seconds to Italy. At the 1000m mark and 3 lengths down to the Lithuanian and American pair the girls then made a fantastic effort and raced to the finish winning the B final by clear water of 3.85 seconds and an amazing time of 7 minutes 34 seconds. The girls finished their last race together winning in ASRA style.

Abigail and Megan once again did ASRA and Scotland proud and they carry our best wishes with them as they leave us now to head off to university.

We also should mention ex ASRA member Miles Beeson who won an outstanding Silver in the Junior Men’s coxless four. This was also a phenomenal race for spectators to watch.

On the 17th July at the 2019 Home Countries International Regatta, held this year at the Scottish National Rowing Centre, Strathclyde Park, Motherwell, 8 ASRA athletes swapped their customary black and white all-in-ones for Scottish blue and made an outstanding contribution towards Scotland’s victory in the Junior Men’s section of the HIR for only the second time in the 57 years history of this event.

Valuable points were added to the junior men’s total by ASRA’s Xander Beeson, Chris Bardas, Aidan Graham & Robert Davis of St Andrew Boat Club Davis in the men’s junior coxless four and by ASRA’s J16 quartet – Gregor Charles, Ashley Geddes, Scott Lewis & Matthew Hughson, coxed by Skye Ballance – in the coxed fours event, but after the penultimate junior men’s race, Scotland and England stood equal in the points table and final victory depended on the outcome of the eights race.

After a disappointing start which left them trailing the pack at 500 metres, the Scots eight - Mathew Hughson (ASRA), Rhuari Stuart (Heriot’s), Aidan Graham (ASRA/St Andrew’s Uni), Ashley Geddes (ASRA), Scott Lewis (ASRA), Chris Bardas (ASRA), Xander Beeson (ASRA), Gregor Charles (ASRA) and Robert Davis (St Andrew BC), coxed by Yousef Djoudi (Glasgow Academy) - looked to have thrown the game away but stroke by stroke they gradually pulled themselves back through Wales and England to be just beaten by the Irish on the line in one of the most exciting races of the day. This second position was however enough to place the Scotland’s junior men one point ahead of England and 2 points ahead of Ireland in the final points tally and made them deserved 2019 Home Countries Champions.

At the 2019 British Rowing Junior Championships held from the 19th to the 21st July at the English National Water Sports Centre, Holme Pierrepont, Nottingham, ASRA athletes won a record three gold and two silvers against strong opposition from all over the United Kingdom.

Our J16 boys – Oscar Forbes, Archie Innes, Ashley Geddes and Matthew Hughson, coxed by Skye Ballance - fresh from their famous victory in the GB versus France Match - simply outclassed most of their opposition in the A-Final of the J16 Coxed Fours event and were understandably delighted to force their ASRA club mates, Scott Lewis and Michel Dearsley - rowing in a composite with Etonians, Harry Geffen, Cal Gorvy, and cox Jasper Parish - into the silver medal position.

In the final of the J16 Coxless Pairs event, Lewis & Dearsley had no compunction about beating their erstwhile shipmates from Eton into the bronze position, while they themselves had to be content with silver in the race for the line against a strong pairing from King’s Canterbury.

In the J18 Coxless Fours event, ASRA’s senior boys – Xander Beeson, Chris Bardas, Jakub Zbikowski & Aiden Graham – made up for their disappointment at Nat Schools, where they were beaten into silver by fractions of a second – by trouncing their nearest opposition from Walton and Henley to win gold by a clear 6 seconds.

In the final event of the day, a ding-dong battle ensued between ASRA (Archie Innes, Ashley Geddes, Michel Dearsley, Scott Lewis, Gregor Charles, Aidan Graham, Christos Bardas, Xander Beeson and coxed by Skye Balance) and a Walton/Tideway Scullers composite with ASRA down by a second at the 1000 metre mark. At 1500 both crews drew level and in the last 500 metres ASRA put in an incredible burst of speed to beat their opposition by a clear 2 seconds on the line. ASRA is the only non-composite Scottish crew to have won the Eights event at this regatta and has the distinction of having done it twice, on the previous occasion back in 2016.

Elsewhere our girls continue to show improvement with Maisie Aspinall coming 5th in a field of 55 in WJ15 Single Sculls and later winning the B Final of WJ15 Double Sculls in grand style with her partner Zoe Beeson.

A wonderful achievement for the J16 boys in securing a place on the J16 GB team and then winning their coxless four race against France.

At the GB vs France J16 Team Trials held on Sunday 30^th June at Dorney Lake, Eton,  ASRA’s J16 boys – Oscar Forbes (Albyn), Ashley Geddes (Grammar), Archie Innes (Harlaw) & Matthew Hughson (Grammar) - put in a magnificent performance to come first in the coxless four trial and so secure their place on the GB J16 Team to face the French at Holme Pierrepont, Nottingham on Thursday 11^th July. 

ASRA’s other J16 hopefuls, Scott Lewis (Mearns) and Michel Dearsley (Cults), in what was virtually a scratch pairing, came an impressive second in the coxless pairs trial and were duly teamed up with two Etonians to race-off in a coxed four for places in the second half of the GB eight. There they dead-heated for first place against the Eton A crew but sadly just lost out on selection after an exciting re-row. Three near misses in one day but a fantastic  series of races nevertheless!

At Henley Women’s Regatta held on the Thames from the 21^st to the 23^rd June , Abigail Topp and Megan Hewison, as GB final triallists, were unfortunately ineligible to compete in the event normally entered by ASRA’s J17/18 girls - the Girls’ Champion Coxed Fours event for the Groton Cup.

Instead, at the behest of Scottish Rowing, they teamed up once more with Heather Gordon of Inverness Rowing Club and Laura McKenzie of Loch Lomond Rowing Club, with whom they had struck HIR gold in 2018, and were entered in the Aspirational Club Coxless Fours event, essentially an event for adult club crews. That said, having come an impressive second fastest in Friday’s time trials, they put in strong performances the following day to defeat crews from Cantabrigian Rowing Club and Vesta Rowing Club, before finally losing out on Sunday to an experienced crew from Thames Rowing Club in the semi-final of their event.

At the 2019 Scottish Rowing Championships held over 3 days from the 7th to the 9th of June at the Scottish National Rowing Centre, Strathclyde Park, Motherwell, ASRA athletes won a total of 12 gold medals, 5 silver and 1 bronze.

Gold:

• Women’s Junior 18 Coxless Pairs: Abigail Topp & Megan Hewison
• Women’s Junior Coxed Fours: Abigail Topp, Megan Hewison, Megan Lewis & Frances Sealy, coxed by Emily Simpson
• Women’s Junior 15 Double Sculls: Maisie Aspinall & Zoe Beeson
• Men’s Junior 18 Coxless Pairs: Chris Bardas & Xander Beeson
• Men’s Junior 16 Coxless pairs: Archie Innes & Michel Dearsley
• Men’s Junior 18 Eights: Seth Turner, Chris Bardas, Xander Beeson, Scott Lewis, Ashley Geddes, Matthew Hughson, Gregor Charles & Jakub Zbikowski, coxed by Skye Ballance
• Men’s Junior 16 Eights: Oscar Forbes, Archie Innes, William Penny, Harris Macdonald, Alex Fowler, Michel Dearsley, Joe Ritchie & Will Cooper, coxed by Erin Gibson
• Men’s Junior 18 Coxless Fours: Seth Turner, Chris Bardas, Xander Beeson & Jakub Zbikowski
• Men’s Junior 16 Coxless Fours: Oscar Forbes, Ashley Geddes, Archie Innes, & Matthew Hughson
• Men’s Junior 18 Coxed Fours: Seth Turner, Chris Bardas, Xander Beeson & Jakub Zbikowski, coxed by Skye Ballance
• Men’s Junior 16 Coxless Quadruple Sculls: Oscar Forbes, Ashley Geddes Archie Innes & Matthew Hughson
• Men’s Junior 16 Coxed Fours: Gregor Charles, William Penny, Scott Lewis & Michel Dearsley, coxed by Erin Gibson

Silver:

• Women’s J18 Single Sculls: Megan Hewison
• Men’s Senior Coxed Fours: Seth Turner, Chris Bardas, Xander beeson & Jakub Zbikowski, coxed by Skye Ballance
• Men’s Junior 16 Coxless Pairs: Oscar Forbes & Matthew Hughson
• Men’s Junior15 Coxed Quadruple Sculls: Alex Fowler, Joe Ritchie, Harris Pearce & Will Cooper, coxed by Skye Ballance
• Men’s Junior 15 Double Sculls: Alex Fowler & Joe Ritchie

Bronze:

• Men’s Junior 15 Single Sculls: Will Cooper

Our gratitude as always to the coaches, drivers, parent helpers and supporters, without whom these outstanding results would simply not be possible.

From the 24th to the 26th May, at the prestigious National Schools Regatta, held annually on the Olympic course at Dorney Lake, Eton, 20 athletes from the Aberdeen Schools Rowing Association took a break from their SQA commitments to join 5000 of Great Britain’s best young rowers to compete for national titles.

Of the seven race categories entered, our athletes succeeded in fighting their way through time-trials and semi-finals to reach the “A” Finals (last six) in five of them and the podium in one.

ASRA’s star J17 Four - Seth Turner, Chris Bardas, Xander Beeson & Jakub Zbikowski - who took gold in 2016, 2017 and 2018 at this regatta, had to be odds-on favourites in the Schools Fours Cup, but on this occasion just lost out in their characteristic charge for the line to the boys from Westminster School Boat Club by 0.6 of a second... nevertheless a brilliant silver for them and their cox Skye Ballance in a field of 17 crews, where all the home countries were represented.

Disappointment too for ASRA’s J18 girls who just a fortnight ago took gold for Great Britain at the Munich Junior International Regatta. Abigail Topp and Megan Hewison looked to have coped successfully with the double pressure of a punishing GB training schedule and school exams as they powered their way to a thrilling second position in a field of 27 crews in the time trial and all set to podium in the Girls’ Championship Coxless Pairs event, but sadly finally ran out of steam, as they ended up an untypically jaded fifth in the hotly contended final of the event.

A great deal of credit has to go also to our younger J15 and J16 athletes for reaching the “A” finals in....

• J15 Coxed Fours (5th) Alex Fowler, Will Cooper, Joe Ritchie & Christy Probart, coxed by Skye Ballance
• J16 Eights (6th) Harris Macdonald, Ashley Geddes, Scott Lewis, Oscar Forbes, Gregor Charles, Michel Dearsley, Archie Innes & Matthew Hughson, coxed by Skye Ballance
• J16 Quadruple Sculls (6th) Oscar Forbes, Ashley Geddes, Archie Innes & Matthew Hughson

At the Castle Semple Regatta, Lochwinnoch, on Saturday 18th May, ASRA’s athletes won 8 gold medals and came second in 5 further events in their last multi-lane regatta in Scotland before they move on this coming weekend to challenge the cream of English rowing at the National Schools’ Regatta on Dorney Lake, Eton.

Gold medals were won in...

• Women’s Open Single Sculls: Megan Hewison
• Women’s Junior 18 Single Sculls: Megan Hewison
• Men’s Open Coxed Fours: Seth Turner, Chris Bardas, Xander Beeson & Jakub Zbikowski, coxed by Skye Balance
• Men’s Open Coxless Pairs: Chris Bardas & Xander Beeson
• Men’s J18 Coxless Pairs: Chris Bardas & Xander Beeson
• Men’s Novice Fours: Alex Fowler, Joe Ritchie, Euan Fowler & Will Cooper, coxed by Steph Lowe
• Men’s Junior 15 Fours: Alex Fowler, Joe Ritchie, Maisie Aspinall & Will Cooper, coxed by Julia Zbikowska
• Men’s Novice Single Sculls: Euan Fowler

Congratulations also go to our rowers who came so close to gold in Women’s Junior 15 Quadruple Sculls, Men’s Junior 15 Double Sculls, Women’s Junior 15 Single Sculls, Women’s J14 Double Sculls & Women’s Junior 13 Double Sculls.

Gold for the GB Women’s Junior 18 Coxless Fours.

ASRA’s Abigail Topp & Megan Hewison – together with Alexandra Riddell-Webster from Godolphin & Latymer and Phoebe Snowden from Henley 

At the prestigious DRV (German Rowing Federation) Junior International Regatta on Saturday 4^thand Sunday 5^thMay in Munich, ASRA’s Abigail Topp & Megan Hewison – together with Alexandra Riddell-Webster from Godolphin & Latymer and Phoebe Snowden from Henley - were selected to row for Great Britain in the Women’s Junior 18 Coxless Fours event. On Saturday the GB Four came a creditable first in the “B” Final, but on Sunday they really came into their own and overcame stout opposition from Poland, Austria and Germany to win a magnificent gold in the first of two “A” finals in the event, bettering the winning time in the other “A”  final by a clear 1.5 seconds.

The Munich International Regatta, in which over 1000 rowers from 15 countries annually take part, is an important milestone in the GB team selection process for the World Junior Rowing Championships, which are to be held this year from the 7^th– 11^thAugust in Tokyo, Japan. 

On Saturday, 4th May at Aberdeen’s own North East Regatta, ASRA’s younger members were taking what might be for them the first steps on the long road to GB selection, by recording impressive wins in three adult events:

• Women’s Novice Double Sculls: Maisie Aspinall & Zoe Beeson
• Open Novice Double Sculls: Alex Fowler & Joe Ritchie
• Open Novice Coxed Fours: Alex Fowler, Will Cooper, Joe Ritchie & Christy Probart, coxed by Erin Gibson

On Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th April, having just returned from their annual training camp in Regensburg on the Danube, athletes from the Aberdeen Schools Rowing Association put in a series of strong performances at Scotland’s National Rowing Centre in Motherwell, to win a total of 8 gold medals and three silvers in this, the first multi- lane event of the 2019 rowing season.

Gold

• Scottish Universities “B” Eights Challenge Winners (and a brilliant second in Men’s Open Eights): - ASRA’s J16 Eight - Harris Macdonald, Ashley Geddes, Scott Lewis, Oscar Forbes, Gregor Charles, Michel Dearsley, Archie Innes & Matthew Hughson, coxed by Skye Ballance

• Men’s Open Restricted 1 Coxed Fours & Men’s Junior 18 Coxless Fours: Seth Turner, Chris Bardas, Xander Beeson & Jakub Zbikowski, coxed by Skye Ballance

• Women’s Junior 18 Coxless Pairs: Abigail Topp & Megan Hewison
• Men’s Open Junior 15 Coxed Quadruple Sculls: Alex Fowler, Joe Ritchie, Jayros James & Will Cooper, coxed by Erin Gibson

• Women’s Junior 15 Double Sculls: Maisie Aspinall & Zoe Beeson

• Women’s Junior 14 Double Sculls: Zoe Beeson & Freya Hughson

• Women’s Junior 13 Doubles: Erin Gibson & Phoebe McCraith

Silver

• Women’s Restricted 1 Single Sculls: Abigail Topp

• Women’s Junior 15 Coxed Quadruple Sculls: Maisie Aspinall, Zoe Beeson Freya Hughson & Phoebe McCraith, coxed by Erin Gibson

• Women’s Junior 14 Coxed Quadruple Sculls: Freya Hughson, Charlotte Arthur, Ella Johnston & Charlotte Reynolds, coxed by Erin Gibson

Last week, as Storm Gareth subsided and Storm Hannah approached the UK, organisers of the prestigious Schools' Head of the River Race, which takes place annually over a 6.8 kilometre stretch of the Thames from Mortlake to Putney, were faced with a dilemma. Should the race, scheduled for 15 March, go ahead? Their final decision was to reduce risk by removing events for coxed fours and quadruple sculls, leaving the majority of the coxed eights events running, despite the forecast winds.

For the Aberdeen Schools Rowing Association this decision meant the crew of Oscar Forbes, Ashley Geddes, Scott Lewis, Harris MacDonald, Gregor Charles, Michel Dearsley, Archie Innes and Matthew Hughson, coxed by Skye Ballance competed in the Men's Junior Championship J16 Eights. They rowed a strong race, overtaking two crews in the time trial format as they progressed down the river. Their final time (17mins, 33.4s) was the third fastest in their category, just 3.2s behind the category winner, Eton College, and the 21st fastest time of the day across all categories. Winning the bronze medal at this highly competitive national race is an encouraging result for the boys, showing they have continued to strengthen their performance from the great season they had last year.

Disappointingly, the crew of Seth Turner, Chris Bardas, Alexander Beeson and Jakub Zbikowski, coxed by Will Cooper, were left to support from the river bank due to the cancellation of their category – Schools’ Coxed Fours – in which they were also predicted to medal.

The focus of the club now turns to the summer regatta season and in the Easter holidays they will travel to Regensburg – Aberdeen’s twin city – for a one-week training camp to prepare.

On Saturday 9th March at the annual Aberdeen Eights Head on the Dee, Aberdeen Schools Rowing Association’s J16 Eight beat all comers - including staunch opposition from an Aberdeen /Robert Gordon Universities’ composite, Glasgow and Dundee universities - to win both the first and second divisions outright.

It was a great warm up for this crew – Matthew Hughson, Archie Innes, Ashley Geddes, Gregor Charles, Harris Macdonald, Michel Dearsley, Scott Lewis & Oscar Forbes, coxed by Skye Ballance – who, next Friday ( March 15th) are off to the Thames to do battle at the Schools’ Head against what sounds like a Who’s Who of the best in Junior British Rowing, including Eton College, St Paul’s , Radley, Hampton and Westminster Schools. This ASRA crew in fact won the J15 Eights division in this race last year, but the step-up to J16 is a considerable one.

They will be joined on the Thames by ASRA’s J17 Four – Seth Turner, Chris Bardas, Xander Beeson & Jakub Zbikowski – who won the J16 division pennant in this event last year.