It can always be tough to transition into a new partnership, but Wanganui rower Rebecca Scown's alliance with under-23 world champion Kayla Pratt is already reaping the rewards.
After the retirement last season of her Olympic bronze medal-winning partner Juliette Haigh, the end of the only successful New Zealand women'screw in London meant an uncertain future for Scown.
But back on the same water, Eton Dorney, for this year's second World Cup regatta, Scown and newcomer Pratt kicked off a magic day for the New Zealand crews with silver in the women's pair. They finished just over two seconds behind the British duo of Helen Glover and Polly Swann, clocking an excellent time of 7:00.41 minutes.
The pair had been sitting in fifth place after the first 500m but had worked their way to second by the time the field reached halfway and pushed the local team hard to the finish line.
The Wanganui connection was evident in their success as former New Zealand head coach Dick Tonks is now in charge of the women's programme.
