SOME 90 junior Wye rowers headed to the Gloucester-Sharpness Canal for the annual Wycliffe Small Boats Head race.

Going against the clock over 2.5km, more than 270 fours, quadruple sculls, doubles, pairs and singles launched out at the event.

Fifty five of them came from Monmouth Comprehensive School, including Year 9 students experiencing their first ever race day.

Elliot Lynch-Warden, Tom Coates, Ffyn Parry and Tom McNally impressed in the U18 quad sculls, taking silver in a 10-strong field just eight seconds behind RGS Worcester in 8mins 45secs, ahead of the likes of King’s School Worcester, The Grange School and Magdalen College School.

Kate Rogers, Seren van der Horst, Hannah Rogers and Maddie Dickens took bronze in the girls’ U18 quads in 9.34.8 behind two Wycliffe boats and ahead of school mates Halle Unsworth, Harriet Morgan, Nanci Edwards and Ella Miles in fourth.

The boys’ U16 quad scull of Lewis Jones, Hector Futhcer, Sam Chilton and Archie Barrell were fourth in 9.35.0, while U14s Bartek Skrzypink, Barnaby Shaw, Marley Bee, Sam Willis and cox Maggie Addams were fifth out of 11 in 10.53.

The boys’ U18 double scull came 11th in 10.01, the U15 double 11th out of 19 in 10.36, Archie Cowton 6th out of 16 in U16 singles in 10.40, the boys’ U15 quad 14th in 11.10, the U14 B quad ninth in 11.05, the girls’ U15 quad 14th in 11.47, the girls’ U14 quad eighth in 11.57, and the girls’ U15 double 10th in 14.56.

Monmouth School for Girls’ top boat came second in U18 girls’ fours, just 13 seconds back on Stratford-upon-Avon, in 10.02, while Tabby Prosser Wrench, Maddie Bailey, Sophie Morrison, Elina Wright and Abbie Morgan won women’s fours in 10.32.

The school had four boats in the women’s rookies fours event, with Grace Jones, Freya Berglund, Ailsa Whitehead, Lily Ebsworth and Lily Shilcock storming to victory in 10.20.

Meanwhile, Monmouth RC members had a shock on Saturday when they discovered water pouring into their clubhouse hallway thanks to a burst pipe, meaning it couldn’t be used for several days.

The club also had to cancel Sunday’s Xmas Puds races owing to freezing cold river temperatures.