CAMBRIDGE TRIUMPH IN UNIVERSITY BOAT RACE.

A MEMORABLE

VICTORY.

Great surprise was created by the comparative ease with which Cambridge defeated Oxford in the Inter-’Varsity Boat Race, rowed on Saturday, from Putney to Mortlake. The Light Blues secured a lead in the first mile which was never seriously endangered, and they won by four and a half lengths in 18min 41sec. This is only 12sec slower than the record time for the race of 18min 29sec established by the Dark Blue crew, stroked by R. C. Bourne, in 1911. There are, in fact, only four occasions, including Saturday’s race, on which the course has been completed in under 19min. The other two instances were in 1893 and in 1900, when the winning crew finished in 18min 47sec.

Cambridge won the toss, and, after some lively discussion, chose the Surrey station. As a matter of fact, the wind was much too light to affect the surface of the river enough to give either station an advantage. The choice, in my opinion, was correct in the circumstances, as the Light Blues would be favoured by the Hammersmith corner and Chiswick bend, where victory in this contest is so often secured. After seeing the way the crews rowed and raced one might venture to state that Cambridge would have won just as easily from the other side. I do not think there has been a single critic at Putney who realised the extraordinary pace of the Light Blues, and how much they had come on during the last week. The only indication from the watch was a bit of fast rowing between Hammersmith and the Mile Post, when they equalled record time, but that was rather discounted by Oxford having done the same time a few days earlier. The other notable incident I remember was on Wednesday last, and that was the marvellous way in which Cambridge dropped two scratch crews while paddling, one during their morning’s work, and the other in the afternoon. The crew were beautifully together, and had a very fine swing, coming out to it better than any crew I have seen since the war. Even then one had to take the experience and weight of Oxford into account, and also the fast times they had demonstrated and the way they beat their scratch crews (as reliable a test as any).

The Cambridge victory is a feather in the cap of Mr. F. J. Escombe, who, I know, is a most painstaking coach, who does not let any detail as regards boat and oars, &c., escape him. He surprised the majority of critics in 1905 with an eight which has been known as the “midget crew.” The winners rowed superbly, Stobart hardly varied his stroke of a machine-like, thirty-a-minute, except for one perfectly-timed spurt at Hammersmith, which carried Cambridge right away. If the crew had known they were so near record time (they were only 10sec out at Barnes Bridge) I believe they might have equalled or beaten it. It was a wonderful performance on the tide, which though a fast one was not exceptionally so. The whole crew rowed well. Stroke would have been hard to beat, while No. 7 has as perfect form as one could wish. Among the others Collet, the president, always caught the eye for the work he was doing.

The Dark Blues must have had a relapse to their worst Marlow form. They never looked like the same crew we have seen recently practising at Putney. The real reason may have been that Cambridge took them out of their pace, but it was obvious that they never settled down. A minute and a half after the start I remarked to the man next to me on the launch that Cambridge were the winners, and the further they went the more obvious the result became.

ALMOST AN IDEAL CREW.

The victory of the Light Blues has once more confirmed the fact that the true English style, as set down by Dr. Warre and practised at Eton and elsewhere, is the correct way to row an eight. The Cambridge crew this year were very close to the ideal; much more so than Oxford, who were neither so quick into the water at the beginning of the stroke or so long in the swing. In uniformity Cambridge were infinitely superior, but they were giving away some six pounds per man in weight, generally regarded as a disadvantage over the long course. The winners also lacked the experience of their rivals, as Oxford had six old Blues to one in the Cambridge boat. I believe there was such confidence in the Oxford camp that they expected to row away from Cambridge in the first two minutes. The realisation of their inability to fulfil expectations no doubt contributed towards their downfall.