INTER-UNIVERSITY ROWING

Evening Star, Issue 20150, 15 April 1929, Page 8

INTER-UNIVERSITY ROWING

CANTERBURY BEATS OTAGO An effort is being made in the universities to put rowing on a sound footing, fn the three centres—AuckJand, Wellington, and Christchurch—university rowing clubs iiavc been formed, “and an endeavour is Ireing made to institute an annual interuniversity eight-oar race. This year at the Easter tournament in Christehnrcn Auckland, Victoria, and Canterbury University Colleges held a race at Coisair Bay, hut Otago University was unable to he represented. Canterbury College, eager to see rowing bora, volunteered to send down a crew of four to compete against an Otago lour. The Otago club is not yet properly constituted, but with the assistance or the Otago Rowing Club it was able to put a four on the water and get a little training done. The race was held on the harbour on Saturday afternoon last, from Castle Beacon to the Otago Club’s shed, a distance of just over a mile. The crews were:—Canterbury College; T. H. M'Comhs (stroke), H. C. Holland, .T. H. Gilhy, F. U. Wotxl (bow). Otago University: \. Blackburn (stroke), A. Hartnell, E. S. Thompson, T. A. Green (bow). Mr A. Perry acted as starter, and Mr C. Hook as judge, and the Otago Rowing Club provided coxswains. The water was fairly rough, and made rowing difficult. Both starts were bad, Otago perhaps having a slight advantage. Otago soon established a slight lead, being a lighter crew, but did not seem to be rowing as well as the Canterbury crew. About hallway Canterbury drew level, and began to go ahead slightly until the three-quarter mark was reached, when they were half a length ahead. The Otago crew quickened its stroke and drew level, and the boats were more or less level, with Otago having perhaps a slight advantage until about ,two strokes from the finishing line, when Canterbury came ahead to win a very close race by a canvas.

The Otago four deserve much credit for a determined race against a crew of men who have had considerable rowing experience. They had very little combined training, and no practice at all in racing. On the other hand, the Canterbury four had been rowing in fresh water, and no doubt found the choppy harbour a little difficult. It is to be hoped that the stimulation provided by this event will aid flic formation of a strong Otago University rowing club, and that an eight will be able to take its place with the three university colleges next year.