On Sunday 2 March, the provisional men’s and women’s Blue Boats, Blondie and Goldie faced top domestic and international competition. In sunny conditions, the women’s ‘Blue Boat’ kicked off the day, facing ‘Leander A.’ Blondie, the women’s provisional reserve crew, then took centre stage racing ‘Leader B.’ From there, Goldie, the men’s provisional reserve crew, raced ‘Leander A,’ and finally the men’s ‘Blue Boat’ took on the Dutch National Team.
It was a very productive set of races for Cambridge overall, who now return to Ely to fine tune their crews ahead of the next fixture, and the soon approaching Boat Race.
A recording of the ‘Blue Boat’ races can be viewed here.
Cambridge Women’s ‘Blue Boat’ v Leander A
Result: First piece to Leander by 2 lengths, second piece to Leander by 1 1/2 lengths
| Name | Seat | College |
| Jack Nicolas | Cox | Pembroke |
| Samantha Van Eybergen | Stroke | Hughes Hall |
| Natasha Morrice | 7 | Jesus |
| Claire Collins | 6 | Peterhouse |
| Carys-Anne Earl | 5 | Gonville & Caius |
| Annie Wertheimer | 4 | St Edmund’s |
| Sophia Hahn | 3 | Hughes Hall |
| Gemma King | 2 | St John’s |
| Katy Hempson | Bow | Christ’s |
Race report: Sophia Hahn, 3 seat
The sun was shining and the vibes in the boat were absolutely loose! On the start line our smokin’ stroke seat Samy Morton hit us with some jazz hands to get us going.
When the flag dropped Leander ‘A’ shot off of the start line, taking 5 seats. While one might think this would be an absolute vibe-killer, it got the girls fired up! We love a challenge. Our blade work sharpened and our noble steed ‘Filippi’ cut through the water like a hot knife through butter— Yee Haw! We stuck to Leander ‘A’ like glue until Hammersmith, where they took another 3 seats. We did not let up. The girls and Jack were locked in and flying. Jack called for more glutes, and more glutes is what we gave! Splits were dropping left and right! We maintained our margin of 1 1/4 lengths until the 3k. Leander then crept away another 3/4 lengths, but that is all they got. We finished the first piece down 2 lengths with our heads still high ready to fight again.
We took a quick gummy bear break, had a chat with Chief Women’s Coach Paddy Ryan, and let the legs recharge. Katy Hempson hit a couple of bicep curls in bow to psych out the competition.
For the second piece, Paddy started us 1/2 length up on Leander ‘A.’ The umpire called the start again and we got back to work. Eight sets of legs were pumping in unison, and we stayed neck and neck with Leander ‘A’ for the first 1k. They slowly took seats through the second 1k, getting up on us bow to stern. Jack, who is in the top 100 players in the world in E-racing, pulled out a couple of tricks from his sleeve to get us through the bridge in record time and into the final 800 meters. Leander ‘A’, however, could not break their 1 1/4 margin. We charged through the line hotter than a ghost pepper, but Leander ‘A’ maintained their lead. It was an excellent race, and three cheers were shared all round!
Thank you, Leander, for joining us on such a beautiful London day!
Cambridge ‘Blondie’ v Leander ‘B’
Result: First piece to Leander by 4 3/4 lengths, second piece to Leander by 2 1/4 lengths
| Name | Seat | College |
| Louis De Neve | Cox | Robinson |
| Carina Graf | Stroke | Emmanuel |
| Eloise Etherington | 7 | Gonville & Caius |
| Carrie Rijkse | 6 | Magdalene |
| Polly Shorrock | 5 | Trinity |
| Jessica ‘Beanie’ Spain | 4 | Queens’ |
| Lucy Havard | 3 | Gonville & Caius |
| Mia Freischem | 2 | Darwin |
| Ellie Sillar | Bow | Emmanuel |
Race report: Polly Shorrock, 5 seat
In beautifully sunny weather, ‘Blondie’ and Leander ‘B’ faced off in the second women’s fixture of 2025.
As ‘Blondie’ (on Surrey) and Leander ‘B’ (on Middlesex) aligned on the start line of the first piece, both crews rose to the unique challenges of tideway racing by having to start hastily as a passenger boat bore down towards the course. Despite this, both crews got off to a strong start, with Leander showing their dominance as one of the leading clubs in the country by breaking contact with the ‘Blondie’ crew by the black buoy. The Cambridge boat, however, remained steadfast and focused on their rhythm and, in the middle section of the piece, managed to halt the charge of the powerful Leander crew and maintain the distance between the crews. By the end of the Eyot, Leander took the win by a margin of 4 3/4 lengths.
CUBC started the second piece a length up on the Middlesex station, and capitalised on this advantage by pushing onto a punchy, racy rhythm past the bandstand. Despite this strong challenge posed by the Cambridge crew, Leander inched past CUBC round the last Middlesex bend, to finish ahead by a total margin of 2 1/4 lengths.
Our thanks to Leander for a great race, and to Ciarán Hayes for umpiring.
Cambridge ‘Goldie’ v Leander ‘A’
Result: First piece to Cambridge by 1 3/4 lengths, second piece to Cambridge by canvas
| Name | Seat | College |
| James Trotman | Cox | Sidney Sussex |
| Matt Edge | Stroke | St Catharine’s |
| Joe Travis | 7 | Jesus |
| Alex Myhill | 6 | Robinson |
| Tom Macky | 5 | St Edmund’s |
| Simon Nunayon | 4 | Emmanuel |
| Thomas Marsh | 3 | St John’s |
| Brett Taylor | 2 | Queens’ |
| Matt Morgan | Bow | Pembroke |
Race Report: James Trotman, Cox
In beautifully sunny early spring conditions, an embryonic Goldie line up matched up against an experienced Leander ‘A’ crew in the second fixture of the 2025 season. Winning the toss and selecting the Middlesex station, Goldie, stroked by returning Blue Matt Edge, got off to a strong start in the first of two pieces, drawing out a half length lead by the black buoy. Nullifying Leander’s advantage, Goldie drew well into clear water by Harrods and utilised the inside of the Surrey Bend to continue pulling away. With a strong rhythm on top of rough conditions, Goldie finished 1 1/4 length ahead at Chiswick steps.
Swapping stations for the second piece, Goldie faced the outside the Middlesex bend in a shorter sprint through Barnes. After another bright start, Goldie drew over a length clear by the Bandstand. A last ditch push from Leander allowed them to use their bend, and draw the crews back close to level under Barnes Bridge. Striking first, Goldie lifted the rate up and kept their nose ahead of Leander, with the two crews trading blows stroke for stroke in fantastic racing. Holding Leander level around the outside of their bend, the latter finally ran out of steam in the last 200m, allowing Goldie to push to a canvas lead.
Our thanks to Leander for great racing.
Cambridge Men’s ‘Blue Boat’ v The Dutch National Team
Result: First piece to Cambridge by 4 lengths, second piece to Cambridge by 2 lengths
| Name | Seat | College |
| Ollie Boyne | Cox | Downing |
| Tom Ford | Stroke | Peterhouse |
| Luca Ferraro | 7 | Peterhouse |
| Douwe de Graaf | 6 | St Edmund’s |
| George Bourne | 5 | Peterhouse |
| Gabriel Mahler | 4 | Peterhouse |
| Simon Hatcher | 3 | Peterhouse |
| Noam Mouelle | 2 | Hughes Hall |
| Luke Beever | Bow | Emmanuel |
Race Report: Ollie Boyne, cox
On Sunday, 2nd March, the Cambridge Men’s provisional Blue Boat faced up against a team of Dutch national team trialists, as the second of CUBC’s fixtures in preparation for the Boat Race.
Clear, sunny skies, and 2 mph winds set the stage for an uncharacteristically pleasant river as the crews headed to the Boat Race start line for the first of the two fixture pieces. With both crews off to an aggressive start, Cambridge gained a small early lead on the Surrey station in the first minute of the race. As the crews headed past the black buoy and into the first bend, the Dutch on the Middlesex station seized their advantage and drew the crews level. The Tideway found a way to bring its usual charm despite the nice weather – crashing waves took the speed out of both boats around the bend.
As the boats entered the Crabtree reach, Cambridge had a small lead. Cambridge were able to find a better rhythm and continued to move on the Dutch, finding clear water by Harrods. From there on out, Cambridge continued to open up the lead around the Surrey bend and into the Eyot, finishing the piece with a final reported margin 4 lengths.
The crews then lined up at the end of the Eyot for the start of their second piece. Knowing that Cambridge had the early advantage, the Dutch came firing off the blocks, putting a lot of pressure on Cambridge as the advantage quickly swung to Middlesex for the long bend to the finish. Undeterred, Cambridge kept the rate high and responded well to the challenge, holding a ¾ length lead on the Dutch into Barnes Bridge, where Cambridge were then able to find their strong rhythm and move away. Umpire Sarah Winckless navigated other crews that found their way onto the racing course, and the crews had a clear run out to the finish, where Cambridge finished 2 lengths ahead of the Dutch.
We’re very grateful to the Dutch crew for making the trip over to help us with our preparations, and wish them all the best with the rest of their season!
Please note: all crews are provisional until crew announcements take place from 26-28 March. The following crews may not represent the crews for the The Boat Race.