Chairman’s Crew Review: 2024 Shore First VIII
Bit of a preface here; as a Shore man myself I was very proud of how the lads went about it. Hopes werent high but they delivered.
Bow - Oliver Edwards
Moving from the First IV to the First VIII is no mean feat in one season. Edwards accomplished this, and he should be proud of it. Obviously rowing in the Four would’ve had an impact on his technique, especially towards the start of his stint. He is a compact rower, and has crisp bladework, and is able to connect with the water quickly and efficiency. However, he could improve to become an absolutely premier rower in the AAGPS if he draws up more at the finish, and is quicker with the legs upon entry of the blade. A very naturally talented rower and hard worker is within Shore’s midst it seems.
2 - Alex Smith
Smith has one of the best height-to-power ratio’s in the AAGPS. He stands at less than 6 foot, but has a very good erg time, and a sound technique. Having to make the transition from the Stroke seat earlier in the season would’ve been challenging, but it seems that he did well to adjust to life in the bow pair. Boat seemed set, if i’m being a bit picky it may be a bit down on Stroke side, but nonetheless a job well done in the bow pair. He has a very good body position off the front of the stroke, and his length of the outside arm through the front of the stroke is noticable. However, he can be prone to tapping down too much especially at high rate pieces, making himself work too hard to put the blade in and get connected with the water.
3 - Rory Hall
One of the most powerful rowers in the AAGPS, there is no doubt that Hall was critical to Shore’s success at HOTR. He has one of the best amounts of power in the competition, and was one of the chief boat movers of the Shore eight. He could further this with a more stable body position especially towards the front of the stroke, and either extending the outside arm to lock it out (which the rest of stroke side seems to do) or hold a bent position, not jolting the inside arm throughout the stroke. That being said, when you are as powerful as Hall it may not matter.
4 - Ben Muffet
The 2nd best sculler in the AAGPS, Muffet is no doubt the best rower in the Shore boat this year. He has a phenomenal sequence off the recovery and maintains his length when he comes to the front of the stroke. His leg speed is very good, with a good spring like drive at the catch. Most notably is his body rock, in which he maintains the correct angle of the body but adds about another half a foot of length with his outside arm being set admirably. The only point of contention I could find is that in high-rate pieces he can be prone to harbour bridging and drawing too low.
5 - Charlie Galligan
Brother of former First VIII member Tom, Charlie is another rower that has made significant strides technically this year. He has very good length and knows how to use it, with good bladework allowing him to use the most of his height through the drive phase and then the length of his arms towards the back end of the stroke. He’s well sequenced off the back, and has a nice arm extension coming into the front. One thing I could see him needing to work on is making sure that his shoulders remain a little bit more level, allowing for more balance of the boat in the middle.
6 - Liam Macfarlane
Macfarlane is a very talented rower, having one of the best erg times in the AAGPS. I like his patience off the back, he is one of the best in the competition at controlling his slide and being patient with the Stern pair. That being said, he could transform into one of the better on-water rowers if he was quicker with his catch. It seems that he may be lagging behind with the entry, which ultimately costs him some leg drive, which would be his greatest asset being in the 6 seat. Don’t get me wrong he is a fantastic rower, he just needs to ensure a more speedy entry of the blade and connection with the water more efficiently.
7 - Preston Scott
Having experienced very unfortunate circumstances last year, Scott came back to the 1st VIII this year and was one of the most critical rowers in the boat. He has a very good rhythm and is competent at following the Strokeman Harvey off the back. He also is one of the cleaner rowers with his bladework, with a very nice entry and connection allowing him to transfer the tempo back very nicely. He can however be prone to slouching into the catch, which tells me he would most likely experience problems with his back, and sometimes his knees do split off the line of centre, which is not ideal for the balance of the boat.
Stroke - Oliver Harvey
Its quite rare you see a Year 11 Stroke in the AAGPS, let alone at Shore. But Harvey went above and beyond with his development as a rower this season. It is clear he will be one of the premiere rowers in the AAGPS next year, and I am especially impressed by his bravery to go off that cliff at what seemed like 600 left. Technically, he has a very good body position with the back staying at a very nice angle, as well as good control of the seat. He’s efficient through the recovery phase and draws up to a good height. The one thing that I see that may need tweaking is how quickly he sets the hands (especially the straightening of the outside arm) off the finish. An exciting talent no doubt for Shore in their title charge next year.