WYE rowers headed to the Thames in London at the weekend for three championship head of the river races over the reverse Boat Race course.

In Saturday's 432-boat Fours Head, Old Monmothian world medal cox Jack Tottem steered a Leander boat containing fellow Wales caps Katherine George and Georgie Robinson-Ranger to women's championship fours glory, crossing in 20mins 11.2 secs to beat Molesey into second by 4.6 seconds.

Fellow OM and world U23 gold medallist Robbie Prosser, fresh from winning the first 5k GB senior trials race at Boston in his pair, finishing just one second off third in men’s championship coxless fours with his Leander crew, placing fifth in 18.46.4.

Monmouth’s Evan Whittal-Williams and Oli Partridge rowing for Hereford RC also placed eighth out of 37 in the men’s club coxed fours, crossing in 19.51.9.

And George Knight, also racing for Hereford, was 15th out of 32 in the club quadruple sculls, in 19.56.0.

Monmouth RC's masters rowers were out in force in Sunday's Veteran Fours Head over the same 4.25-mile stretch, with three boats in action racing from Mortlake to Putney in challenging gusty conditions.

And the C (average age over-42) quadruple scull of Alex Butler, Athens Olympian Tim Male, Jamie Coombes, and former Monmouth School rowing master David Blackham roared home in the sixth fastest time to take their class, crossing in 20.14.7 to beat Cambridge University BC’s alumni club Crabtree into second by nine seconds.

Nick Hooton, Toby Harding, Alex Mitchell, Colin Lewis and cox Bonita Birkett also came home third in the MF (over-60) men’s coxed fours in the 260-boat time-trial, finishing 81st overall in 22.45.7 behind class winners Upper Thames (22.08.9) and second-placed Poole (22.39.9).

The Monmouth RC men's four in action on the Tideway
The Monmouth RC men's four in action on the Tideway (Ben Rodford Photography)

Not to be outdone, the ladies coxless ME (over-55) four of Louise Allison, Maggie Hickland, Sue Smith and Liz Lewis were third out of nine in their age-group despite a clash of blades costing them some vital seconds.

They finished 151st overall in 23.54.6 behind a Thames composite (23.15.9) and York City (23.35.1),

Monmouth RC's women came third in their age-group
Monmouth RC's women came third in their age-group (Ben Rodford Photography)

The weekend kicked off with the new Junior Fours Head over the same course on Friday.

Former Monmouth Comprehensive pupil Eleanor Lawrence=Preston, who won world U19 silver in the summer when still only 16 after winning at Henley Royal Regatta, was on board the Wycliffe boat starting first in the girls’ championship quads.

It was nip and tuck all the way with Marlow starting right behind them, but it was the Thames boat who sneaked it on the line by just 1.3 seconds, crossing in 20.45.9.

Haberdashers' Monmouth were 40th in the same category in 23.07.6, two-tenths of a second ahead of local rivals Hereford RC B.

Their boys' U16 A quad were 10th in 21.28, their B boat 16th in 22.32 and their girls' U16 quad 21st in 24.44.

Meanwhile, Monmouth RC are keeping fingers crossed that the Wye drops enough for their annual Winter Head race at the start of December.

The clubhouse gym was flooded in the weekend deluge, but members were out in force on Monday clearing up.