Crew : bow James Houston, Matt Wordsworth, Tristan Saunders, Joel Jameson *, Henry Bailhache Webb, John Mildinhall, Rob Edwards, Str Alex Partridge, cox Jamie Cox. (* Nathan James up to Schools Head)

Despite losing a couple of experienced oarsmen from the start because of other commitments, the Senior Squad showed plenty of potential from early on. With Monday lunchtime circuits and a Tuesday evening weight session, we had most of the squad training on a regular basis throughout the Michaelmas Term. The determination of all potential 1st VIII athletes was impressive, and spurred on by their indomitable Captain you could almost see the muscles growing!

The first event of the Season was the infamous Boston Marathon in September. Thirty-one miles of pure physical enjoyment! To avoid losing the athletes for the rest of the term due to repetitive strain injuries or septic blisters, I decided that we would use a small squad of seven scullers (reduced to six after Caroline�s alarm did not go off!) and rotate positions in the boat. It was not a particularly popular decision, but we did have a laugh on the bank at the comical sight of Alex at 6' 5" and 14 stone, backed up by titans Dan Whiting, David Wiles and Jamie Cox!

For the second year in a row we raced a quad scull in the Fours� Head of the River Race on the Tideway. With Alex now sculling we had power even if we were lacking a little in technique! Training had been hampered by flooding on the Dundas reach, but a couple of long-distance outings at Gloucester had made a huge difference to the togetherness and sharpness of the crew. The boys enjoyed themselves during the race, overtaking at least six crews in the process. I was hopeful that they might even have achieved a valuable top 100 place out of the 450 starters. None of us however were prepared for the official result of 30th overall and the fastest school crew in the country! Despite an intense desire to believe in this achievement, I am certain that there was a helpful error in the timing somewhere along the line. A daunting prospect now awaits us in next year�s Fours Head however, when we start with crews from Leander and Cambridge University right on our tail!

In time for the Lent Term, we were delighted to take delivery of the new 1st VIII boat Adrian Gayner. Although it arrived well before Christmas, it was left in wrappers until late February as a carrot to be dangled in front of the squad, i.e. �who gets selected for the 1st VIII can row in this�! The crew were picked and the boat officially named just in time for the first major event of the season, the Schools� Head of the River. It was a good solid row, though perhaps not as dynamic as some of the other crews in the first half of the race. The final placing of 19th fulfilled the objective of a top 20 place and with it the highest ranking for Monkton in many years. It was tinged with slight disappointment however, when we realised how close we were to being four or five places higher up the order.

Nantes was the usual setting for our intensive Easter training camp, designed to metamorphosise crews from being long-distance plodders, to fast, explosive, regatta racers! With characteristic optimism we took out a whole multitude of boats and with superb rowing conditions for most of the week, we did actually use them to their fullest extent. We also managed to achieve a great balance between training, relaxation and academic work. I was amazed at how silent 16 students could be in a classroom, without even having to be asked!

After encouraging performances at Poplar Regatta soon after our return to England, including beating Kingston Grammar School in the eight and a silver medal in coxless fours, our sights were firmly set on National Schools Regatta. The Saturday prior to the big event we travelled to the upper reaches of the Thames to train with Pangbourne College, in what had by now become a regular fixture. So close to the main event of the season I suppose that had things not gone to plan, it could have been quite depressing, but as it was our tails were up and to beat Pangbourne in every single one of the pieces was a huge confidence boost at a very crucial time.

Although quietly confident that the eight was going well, the build-up to their first race at Nottingham was still a nail-biting time. Even as a coach it is easy for self-doubt to creep in. Were the results at Poplar as good as they seemed? Were Pangbourne holding back? Perhaps one of the more difficult tasks of a coach is trying to exude confidence to a crew prior to an important race when you are worried sick yourself! As Monkton faltered off from the start in last place, visions of disappointment loomed once again, but then as the crew quickly lengthened out and turned on the power to rapidly move through the field, I knew for sure that this was a crew of quality. First place in a difficult Eliminator; first place in their Semi-final; things were looking good. A possible medal had now become a possible gold medal! After some great racing earlier in the day, the Final was no exception. Monkton once again stuttering through the first 10 strokes were last at 250m and in 5th place by 500m. Bedford Modern meanwhile had gone flying off and were already half a length ahead of the field. Monkton now into cruise control were rapidly coming through the field. At just before 1000m (half way) they were in fourth place, ahead of King�s Chester and King�s Canterbury but with Bedford Modern now over a length in front. By 1500m they had passed Cheltenham to take third place and were quickly coming up on both Monmouth and Bedford Modern. The final build with the rate pushing to over 40, saw Monkton sweep past Monmouth, but with the finish line in sight Bedford managed to cling onto a 2/3 length advantage to win the event. Some initial disappointment at not winning the gold quickly gave way to the realisation that they had achieved something never done before by a Monkton 1st Eight. A silver medal at National Schools Regatta.

Between National Schools and Henley it was time to come back down to earth and to get back into the more mundane routine of training and of course revision for examinations! The sense of the unreal followed again quickly however when HTV came in to film the eight in its preparation for Henley Royal Regatta. The sight of the crew having to sit in the front row of Chapel with a TV camera directed at their faces certainly caused a certain amount of puzzlement and amusement for the rest of the School!

Henley also seemed to be going to plan. We were not required to qualify for the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup and JMB had managed to get us all accommodation in a nearby girls boarding school! Even the first round draw against Bedford Modern, though a touch ironic and rather daunting, did offer us the perfect opportunity for revenge. In the approach to Henley, the rowing had been getting better and better. We had really practised the start and first part of the race and some side-by-side bursts with Bath University had indicated good improvement. Despite a rather tense and incident-filled final outing the evening before the race, confidence was high and we were looking forward to the challenge.

It was a dream start! Everything was perfectly together and we were level to slightly up by about the 15th stroke. During the �pace� call we quickly moved to about ¾ length up by stroke 35. By the Barrier we had just about a length�s lead. I was convinced that not only were we actually performing better than hoped, but Bedford Modern were performing well below their best. I was sure at this point that the adverse psychological effect this would have on the Bedford rhythm would mean that we would continue to draw away from them during the rest of the race. Around Fawley however, Bedford put in a big push. I don�t think that they went significantly faster but that it was at a time when some, if not most, of the Monkton crew were feeling the effects of a hard early part of the race. Bedford came back at an unbelievable rate, despite Jamie calling first to contain the push and then put in one ourselves. Their confidence increased at the expense of ours and all within the space of two minutes, they had moved through to just over a one length lead. Our build through the enclosures helped to contain any further distance and in fact during the �go for home� both rate and speed picked up well and we pulled back to ¾ length during the last 250 metres or so of the race. I and the crew were obviously devastated but I knew that they had done all they could. Some of my immediate thoughts included - did they go too fast off blocks and then suffer as a consequence? -was it due to a lack of racing between National Schools and Henley? Whatever the reasons, it was a disappointing end to what had otherwise been a very good season. I know that in reality Bedford Modern had consistently proved that they were the faster crew, but I was convinced that the progress we had made in the final run up to Henley, and the fact that it was a longer race than Poplar or National Schools, would turn the tables in our favour. I really felt that the crew�s efforts and commitment throughout the year deserved a first round win. Perhaps the coach of Bedford Modern would also say the same about his crew however!

For me it was an amazing year. Yes, it contained some disappointments and times when I wondered whether it was all worth it, but for most of the time I enjoyed every little bit of it. The dedication, focus and crew spirit shown by all members of the eight throughout the year was something special and will be a long-lasting memory for me. Perhaps this is the end of an era, but I am hopeful that the experience of competing amongst top level performers will inspire those who follow.

I am certainly looking forward to next season to see if we can continue the roll, post Alex Partridge and co!

David Conington