STRATFORD-upon-Avon Boat Club’s newly-formed masters 2x crew of Rebecca England and Lucy Scarlett won gold at the Birmingham Regatta.
England (stroke) and Scarlett (bow) earned promotion out of the lower category due to a lack of opposition to race against home favourites Birmingham on the Edgbaston Reservoir.
And the Stratford pair smoothly and powerfully worked their way down the 700m laned course following a delayed start due to an incident from a previous race.
The duo lengthened into their race pace and maintained a rate of 33 strokes per minute to pull clear of the Birmingham crew.
Scarlett steered an excellent line at bow as the Stratford double finished two lengths ahead to take the race win.
Elsewhere, the club’s junior rowers represented the West Midlands region in the prestigious Junior Inter-Regional Regatta at Nottingham’s National Water Sports Centre.
Stratford’s young scullers competed against regional crews from Scotland to Wessex and everywhere in-between at the national level event.
The club’s J14 boys quad of Reuben Stanford, Connor Birrell, Nathan Lebordais, Herbie Shickle and Tristan Hammick (cox) just missed out on a place in the A final by a fraction of a second.
However, the crew impressed to take a deserved victory in the B final following a battle with Thames London throughout.
Stratford’s J15 squad had two crews taking part in Nottingham as the composite WJ15 4+ of Orla Linforth, Maria Ntoukaki, Erin Appleton, Daisy Wilkes (Evesham Rowing Club) and Ed Appleton (cox) qualified for the B final.
The crew finished fourth in their 1,500m stake boat start final.
And in the OJ15 2x event, Seb Happel and Will Shaw qualified for the C final which they won ahead of WAGS/Wales.
Stratford’s J15 coach, Hugo Happel said: “The J15’s showed good technique on the water, gave 100 per cent, took the learning from the time trials into the finals and showed superb team spirit and collective off the water.
“Brilliant work and attitude, they should be very proud.”
The women’s J16 coxless four of Martha Cooke, Becca Smith, Martha Baines and Millie Smith also impressed in the time trial to secure a place in the B final.
And the crew finished in fourth place in the final following an explosive start only for the quad to lose ground in the closing stages of the race in a strong field.
