Lightweight four look to push on

ROWING: Harald Jahrling has been a new broom in Irish rowing in the half-year he has spent here. But when Ireland's lightweight four take to the water in the second World Cup regatta in a week's time it will have the familiar look of one of our most successful international teams.

Paul Griffin, Tim Harnedy, Eugene Coakley and Richard Archibald qualified this boat for the Athens Olympics at the 2003 World Championships. Last year, with Niall O'Toole in for Harnedy, they made the Olympic final, having finished fourth in Lucerne and taken a silver medal at this regatta.

The crew, whose ages range from 22 to 27, must now have every reason to feel they can push on and establish themselves as one of the very best in the world. The outstanding lightweight four of the last decade, Denmark, have broken up, and the other possible contenders have yet to establish themselves.

For Griffin the chance to compete at his favourite course is doubly sweet, because he almost did not make the squad because of a stress fracture of a rib. Jahrling said yesterday he was happy the Kerryman had fully recovered. "Paul is one of our best people. His form has come up quite dramatically and we feel it was time he was tested."

Griffin, who will probably stroke the crew, said they will have to feel their way back. "It's good to get the four up and going again," he said. They would hope to get a good result in Munich. "Making the final would be a very basic minimum."

Ireland's heavyweight four, which reached the final at the World Cup in Eton, will also be measuring their progress, while the lightweight women's double will hope to make a new start. Sinead Jennings in the lightweight single, free of exam pressures this time, and the men's pair complete the entry.

The crews for the World Under-23 Championships were pencilled in to compete at Munich, but exams have affected their training.

Trinity and Queen's senior eights compete in the University Boat Race on the Lagan tomorrow. The novice men and the senior women of the two colleges also race each other. Trinity's women will be glad of the race as they move on to Women's Henley next weekend. In a big Irish entry, they join Neptune and UCD in the senior eights.