Whangarei rowing pair bring home gold from nationals

TRIUMPHANT: Shannon Cox, left, and Maddi Brooke show of their gold medals from the 2017 New Zealand Rowing Championships. Photo/Photosport.nz

Whangarei Rowing Club showed that numbers doesn't always equal strength as the crew walked away from the 2017 New Zealand Rowing Nationals with gold and silver.

Maddi Brooke and Shannon Cox snatched gold in the women's club double event, while the women's club coxless quadruple sculls crew of Brooke, Cox, Tyler Nicholas, Sarah White and Sophia Wetzel to secure a silver in their A final.

With just six rowers on deck in Twizel, Whangarei weren't in any danger of being seen as a powerhouse team.

But the fewer numbers did not hurt the team, rather it galvanised them.

The odds were firmly stacked against the women's club quad crew as they drew lane eight, the widest one in the field. Then Wetzel went down with a chest infection and was unable to race in the final.

Coach Grant Clearwater said he knew the crew could do well, but Wetzel's illness was a bit of a worry.

"We knew the girls could potentially medal, but with Sophia's illness the crew raced slower and slower until she was too sick to race," he said.

"She did well to get through the week but we brought in Sarah and she did really well for us."

Where some teams would have failed, Whangarei rose to the challenge as 15-year-old White was brought in for the final.

The crew then surprised everyone when they found themselves in the medal hunt while racing from the toughest lane.

Maddi Brooke, left, and Shannon Cox ecstatic following their win in the Women's Club Double Sculls. Photo/Photosport.nz

In an intense finish, Whangarei crossed the line in 7:16:78, just over a second behind the winners from Timaru Rowing Club.

Following that race, Brooke and Cox were back on the water for their club double sculls final.

The pair hadn't lost throughout the regatta, giving them the middle lane.

Brooke and Cox showed just how formidable they were by coming home almost three seconds ahead of Timaru Rowing Club to clinch the gold.

Clearwater said the pair learned a lot from their earlier performances.

"They came third at the North Island Championships and learnt some valuable lessons. They gave it 110 per cent and managed to scrape through for the win, he said."

Clearwater was rewarded for his coaching prowess by being named Coach of the Day at the regatta, an award he was not expecting.

"We were elated with how the crews went but that was a surprise," he said.

"We just do the best we can. We've been training twice a day for the last five to six weeks and as a coach, all you can do is train and prepare them.

"It's nice to be recognised for a bit of hard work and effort though."

The next major regatta is the Maadi Cup, where White will be racing.

Cox and Brooke will be undergoing winter training with the Auckland Rowing Performance Centre.

Meanwhile Clearwater will be taking a well-earned break after four years of tough coaching.