The Lent Term began in trial VIIIs when it was clear that there were many boys of similar standard. Throughout the term various 'A' crew combinations were tried out and tested using this coach's SATS formula (strength; attitude; technique; stamina) to decide upon 'A', 'B' and 'C' crews for the regatta season. J15 rowing has become far more competitive in recent years — one only has to look at the quality of equipment now used by these young oarsmen to see this — and so from the outset a rigorous programme of training both on and off the water was employed. For the first time regular use was made of both weights and the ergometer in land training and the benefits were quickly apparent. Valuable assistance was given by Patrick Bamber and Andy Maddocks in coaching the 'B' and 'C' crews alternately. Boy coaches are a tradition in the club and certainly this year Junior Colts rowing could not have functioned without their help. The 'B' crew did well in their first head race at Henley Schools', finishing 2nd out of five J15B VIIIs and beating Abingdon 'A'. The 'A' crew's first event, Worcester H.O.R. was cancelled owing to flood conditions on the Severn and so a private race was rowed on the canal against Wycliffe College 'A' which was convincingly won by Monkton. Conditions on the home reach worsened through March making training on the water impossible at times. Fortunately the 'A' crew was able to spend some time at Saltford and this contributed towards a fine row at Avon County H.O.R. where Monkton won the J15 pennant finishing 10 seconds ahead of the next crew, Radley 'A'. Bristol Ariel and the Schools' Head races did not produce such good results but further crew experimentation and an inability to get afloat at Monkton were largely to blame. The 'B' and 'C' crews maintained good morale despite changes forced on them from above, but they did not cope well with conditions on the Tideway. A coxed IV from the 'A' crew put up a good performance at the City of Bristol H.O.R., winning tankards as the only J15 crew.

A final 'A' crew was settled at the end of a Lent Term which had given cause for optimism for the regatta season ahead. The acquisition of a new Monkton-built VIII 'The Reverend H.Carpenter' was a tremendous boost to morale even though each of the three coxes chosen to steer the boat came near to disaster. The organisation of an Easter training camp was another 'first' for the Junior Colts and indicated a good level of keenness.

After nearly four weeks off the water the 'A' crew gathered at Worcester to face a gruelling weekend of training and racing comprising over 20 miles of paddling and races of 5000, 500 and 2500 metres respectively. In the event we turned out to be the only J15 crew participating but the experience of rowing against more senior crews was invaluable at this early stage. Thanks to the hospitality of the Williams and Mumford families; R.G.S. Worcester B.C. and Worcester R.C., the whole camp was enjoyed by everyone. The difference in the crew over three days was enormous and the value of these intensive training camps was obvious.

In the Summer term, WOH stepped in to take over the 'B' crew and PHB/APOM continued to help with both 'B' and 'C' crews, so this coach was able to concentrate upon developing racing technique and speed in a rapidly improving 'A' crew. Lack of J15 entries at Evesham meant that the first event was Avon County on the Coate Water Park 800m course. J15 VIIIs saw the largest entry (29 crews) and produced a fine tussle between Monkton and Eton 'B' which we finally won by a canvas to reach the Grand Final of the fastest four crews where unfortunately Winchester, Pangbourne and Shrewsbury proved a little too fast for us. This was an encouraging first performance, but it was noticeable that the crew needed to gain more racing experience and fitness to do really well.

During the next fortnight the crew worked hard and developed a much better spring on the catch with more solid finishes so that the boat began to run smoothly. Then, on the eve of Wimbleball, calamity struck as the bow man crashed his bicycle and broke both arms. David White was brought in from the 'B' crew to row at 3 and Justin Mumford moved to bow to replace the injured Alex Keene who was unable to row for the rest of the season. It was to the credit of everyone that despite no pre-regatta practice in this re-shuffled order a convincing win over Monmouth and Canford resulted in the crew's first J15 success at Wimbleball.

By this stage the crew was training intensively for the National Schools' Regatta and so when the new crew member fell ill it seemed that the chances of reaching the national final at Nottingham were minimal. At this stage, Bradley Salisbury volunteered to re-join the Boat Club 'on loan' from cricket and miraculously the crew assimilated another dramatic change whilst continuing to move the boat ever faster. However, fate was to deal another blow on the eve of National Schools' when one member of the crew infringed discipline with the result that the crew was unable to race at Nottingham. This was a major challenge to crew morale but it was to the credit of the boy concerned and of the rest of the crew that the right lessons were learned from this unfortunate incident so that ultimately a more united and committed crew emerged. In the wake of disaster the crew borrowed a J14 oarsman and proceeded via a training session at Evesham to row at Monmouth where they produced the most purposeful and technically perfect row of the whole season, beating Monmouth School (runners up in the 'B' division at National Schools') easily in the final. This performance proved to the crew the importance of 'hype' in rowing as total determination to win overcame all the odds against such a 'scratch' crew achieving anything. In the following week, the crew regrouped and determined to try and compensate for the disappointment of Nottingham by challenging the national champions, Hampton, against whom we were drawn at Reading Amateur Regatta. It was most unfortunate that the umpire at Reading failed to note that Monkton were not ready when he said 'Go!' and this oversight certainly cost us the race, for Monkton held Hampton for the whole length of the course, only losing by just under a length to a crew which had just won nationally. This was undoubtedly the climax of an excellent season and a result which gave much cause for reflection and hope for the future.

A number of regattas followed Reading but the same form was never quite managed again. At Tewkesbury the crew, handicapped by illness, rowed valiantly to come from a length down to beat Bryanston by 1/2 length in the semi-final but were unable to overcome a supercharged Cheltenham crew in the final. Reading Town produced a disappointing row against St. Edward's and Pangbourne which left only Bedford Regatta after a two-week lay-off. Despite the fatigue of members after the Corps camps we managed to beat Bedford School in the semi- final and row a solid final against national runners-up King's Chester to produce a fitting end to a season of varied fortunes but overall success.

The 'A' crew's results show that they were certainly in the 'top ten' nationally within their age group and arguably, at their best, in the top five. The crew learned to put the crew before the individual and by doing so produced its best results at Monmouth and Reading Amateur.

These results will mean far more to the boys concerned than anyone else and I am hopeful that next year's Colts crew will be an outstanding one. A final word of congratulation to the 'C' crew who, deprived of a regular coach and purpose-built boat, never failed to give of their best despite not winning and showed that the sport can be enjoyed at all levels. On a personal note I was happy to have my first taste of coaching at Monkton with such a cooperative and supportive Junior Colts Squad.