“College offers a huge range of opportunities and the top rowing boys have to make conscious decisions about their priorities. However, they don’t see it as a sacrifice, rather as making decisions about what they want to do, which is a really good skill for later life.
pretty much done and dusted and it’s how they finally come through that matters. Often the winner is the best prepared and most relaxed crew on the day. Our job is to explain that it is just another sports race and the sun will still come up tomorrow no matter what happens.’’
the final races as he does feel nervous.
“I often position myself somewhere where I can see the big screen, but don’t have to interact with other supporters except maybe, co- coaches. I pace and I glance, pace and glance till it is over.’’
“We take every day as it comes, but when we get near to the regatta, it’s
However, Henry admits that as a coach, it is a real struggle to watch
Springbok Shield
The triumphant coxed four which won the Springbok Shield: Cameron Smith, Oscar Acland, Rowan Taylor, Angus Gray and coxswain Paddy Hone, repelled a powerful challenge from Hamilton Boys’ High School to secure College’s sixth ever success in the prestigious event which was first contested in 1965. Rowan Taylor says “We had the same four since 2014 and knew each other really well. We hadn’t performed as well as we could have throughout the season, but we all had a good understanding as a crew and knew we could do something special.’’
Henry Smith says “While the boys were ecstatic at their win, we did have to remind them that the job they had come to do was to win the Maadi. We had to close that file and get on with the next big task.”
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College Issue 31 2016
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