THE TROLLS ARE MAKING WAVES
THEY hang out under Wexford Bridge.
They wear the Number 13 on their backs.
And few short months after being set up, the Troll Rowing Club is already making waves.
‘Number 13 is said to be unlucky for some, but not for us,’ said club chair Marguerite Carley.
‘If you see 13 that means you’re behind us, it’s psychology really,’ she said.
The Troll club is the new kid on the block in Wexford rowing, joining long-established institutions – Killurin, Edermine, St Kieran’s, Ferrycarrig and Maudlintown, the last of which lent the newcomers a boat for the recent Killurin Regatta, only to see the Trolls take two firsts and a second amongst others.
Marguerite said it was great to win two races in what was the club’s first regatta, which gave the fledgling club a real boost.
‘It made everybody’s day,’ she said. Marguerite said that the club would be staging fund raisers over the winter and by the time the 2018 season began, it would have its own boat, which would cost in the region of €2,000 to build.
All the boats are based around the traditional cot design, which dates back more than 100 years to when the cot fishermen would stage races when they weren’t busy fishing of course.
‘The new boats are lighter than the old ones, but basically they are the same, and normally carry four oars and a cox,’ she said. ‘A couple of years back myself and friend came up with the idea of creating a new rowing club in Wexford and this is it. We have been training since May,’ said Marguerite.
While the Trolls’ 30 members are all adults, a mix of men and women aged from in their 20s upwards, Marguerite said the club wanted to recruit young people looking for some excitement and fulfillment
‘It’s a great sport to be involved with and is very family oriented. We have great fun,’ she said.
Shirkers need not apply, however, as the Trolls take their training very seriously, with stamina being key to creating competitive rowers. ‘There’s lots of hard training and work- outs to build up stamina and the races are hard work too,’ said Marguerite, who has the all-Ireland’s in the club’s sights for next year, with Wexford Harbour and its strong tides providing an ideal training ground for the fledgling rowers.
Asked how the club had come to be called the Trolls, she said the venue under Wexford Bridge at Ferrybank had come first and so the name Troll was an obvious leap. Anyone interested in joining the club can contact Marguerite on 086 3934062.