D-day +4 will live long in the memory of several crews in the club, for it was a day that saw scenes of both jubilation and tragedy.
M3 started the day keen for an early bump owing to the headwind on the reach and for the first time this week set off in glorious sunshine. The previous night the boys had decided to have a quiet one in the bar, knowing what rested on this final day’s row. A fantastic start meant that only two power tens were needed before the first whistles echoed down the river. Then as the lengthen came, the bank party started to get more and more excited, but there had been some discussion in the crew about the merits of holding off the bump until the Plough to maximise camera coverage so Whiston refused to increase the rate for the kill. At this point the mighty bow 4 lead by Dickinson and “Guns” Taylor took it upon themselves to get the bump, which rapidly came. Game over.
M2 were facing down the barrel of a spoon-loaded gun, but rather than chicken-out and try for the row-over like a bunch of pansies they instead set themselves the target of bumping Jesus IV. The lads were so confident that they allowed Jesus to get out to over 2 ½ lengths before deciding to make their move. On came the push and the gap rapidly closed to under 1 length by the entrance to the gut. However, the old codgers in Christ’s III had not read the script and by this point had overlap. The bumps was conceded and Baker tried to take his frustration out on the bank by ramming it with the bows.
W1 had an absolutely heroic race of magnificent proportions. A steaming start saw them fly straight at Trinity Hall II, the sight of which would have lead many a seasoned oarswoman to clench slightly. The gap shortened to ½ length at Ditton corner, but the girls have an evil streak in them. They decided to punish Boyd for not being on the river all week for them by making him blow two whistles continually for the next kilometre and in doing so fulfilled their constitutional aim.
M1 were chasing glory for the first time in many a long season. Blades were within their grasp and the mere mention of the word was enough to send the more superstitious members of the crew scurrying for a bit of wood to touch. The row down was calculated to exude raw arrogance, and when the Darwin camera was spotted at the exit of First Post Reach, the boys knew where the bump had to come: they would deny Darwin the chance to be filmed, that perk belongs only to Corpus. This evil deed was carried out to perfection, earning the crew the right to fly their flag past every major camera on the river. Boom.