City are the Star attraction with a perfect 10 wins

It was pots and medals galore for Peterborough City Rowing Club members at the Bedford Star New Year’s Head of the River event on Sunday.
Peterborough City Rowing Clubs winning coxed four of  Ericha Knowles-Pardoe (cox), Sarah Sheldrick, Kate Read, Caroline Calver and Tina Allen.Peterborough City Rowing Clubs winning coxed four of  Ericha Knowles-Pardoe (cox), Sarah Sheldrick, Kate Read, Caroline Calver and Tina Allen.
Peterborough City Rowing Clubs winning coxed four of Ericha Knowles-Pardoe (cox), Sarah Sheldrick, Kate Read, Caroline Calver and Tina Allen.

They were in dominant form over the two-kilometre course on the Great Ouse and returned with an impressive 10 wins.

Junior scullers Thomas Bodily and Alex Leverage led the way with double victories.

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Bodily finished first out of 10 rowers in the J16 singles and he was 14 seconds clear of the field. Clubmates Thomas Jackson and Callum Gilbey finished in third and fourth position.

Tom Jackson and Tom Bodily won the J16 doubles.Tom Jackson and Tom Bodily won the J16 doubles.
Tom Jackson and Tom Bodily won the J16 doubles.

Bodily then joined forces with Jackson to claim a second win in the doubles.

Leverage had a similar result, claiming singles and pairs wins. He finished first by eight seconds out of six competitors in the J17 singles and then joined Henry Barnett to land the Open coxless pairs (Band 1) prize, winning by five seconds from Abingdon Rowing Club.

In the Women’s coxed fours, Sarah Sheldrick, Kate Read, Caroline Calver, Tina Allen and Ericha Knowles-Pardoe (cox) were the club’s most emphatic winners, finishing 40 seconds ahead of runners-up Northampton Rowing Club.

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Peterborough City girls dominated the Women’s J15 doubles event. Nell Papworth claimed the top spot rowing with Lucy Ralfs and then teamed up with Freya Woodall to finish second as well, just two seconds slower.

Ross Lamont and George Woodall with their pots.Ross Lamont and George Woodall with their pots.
Ross Lamont and George Woodall with their pots.

Finlay Ribbons and Ross Lamont came first out of 10 in the J15 doubles, beating Sudbury Rowing Club by 12 seconds and team-mates Brandon Ingle and Tom Calveley took third place.

Ribbons, Lamont, Ingle, Calveley and cox George Woodall joined forces to compete in the J16 coxed quads and despite racing up an age group, they still managed to win, beating a King’s School Ely, crew by four seconds.

Grace Niklasson and Lydia Hilton won the Women’s J14 double sculls by over 20 seconds relegating a Star crew to second spot on their home water.

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The last win came from Ian Palmer and Steve Cranfield. They were in a composite crew with Dave Smith (Leicester) and Chris Callow (Star) which won the Masters B coxless quads by eight seconds from another Star boat.

Second places for Peterborough City Rowing Club came from: Hannah Bassett, Olivia Hutchinson, Jenna Taylor and Georgina Parker (Women’s J18 coxless quads); Nia Griffiths and Lily Mace (Women’s J17 doubles); Daniel Armstrong (J14 single); Lucy Ralfs (Women’s J15 singles); Ted Smith and George Woodall (J16 doubles).