Rowing: Two golds for Bay in Twizel

GLORIOUS GOLD: All of these Hawke's Bay rowers won gold as rowers or coaches at the national championships in Twizel. PHOTO/FILE

Hawke's Bay rower Jessica Norris shook off a bout of the shingles and won gold in the women's club single at the national championships in Twizel on Saturday.

"Jess wasn't well earlier in the week and her coach Michael Harrison withdrew her from her senior single event. She was a lot better towards the end of the week and when she won gold we were extremely proud of her," Hawke's Bay Rowing Club club captain Ross Webb said after returning from the Lake Ruataniwha-hosted nationals last night.

Norris, 18, who is heading off to Waikato University, had won golds in the senior and club single sculls at the North Island championships in January. Rowers from Taranaki and Wellington finished second and third respectively behind her on Saturday.

Hawke's Bay's senior men's eight of former New Zealand junior rep Ed Laver, Jack Stone, Joel Engelke, Fergus Ritchie, Pat Nichol, Morgan Davies, James Brott, Ben McPherson and cox Connor Molloy also won gold to give Hawke's Bay-based rowers who rowed for the club a haul of two golds, three silver and two bronze medals. This eight, which is coached by former New Zealand rep Jock Mackintosh and Doc McDonald, finished ahead of three crews from Canterbury's Avon club and another Bay crew.

Members of the fifth placed Hawke's Bay crew, which is also coached by McDonald and Mackintosh, were Adam Vanderpeet, Duncan MacErlich, Duncan McCrory, Stephen Vanderpeet, Angus Lindsay, Issac Andrews, Tom Moffett, Jasper Blokker and cox Toby Aspden.

Laver and Hawke's Bay club members Hannah Bailey and Tom Mackintosh, who rowed for the Central and Southern Regional Performance Centres respectively, were selected for New Zealand under-23 team trials to be held in April.

Former New Zealand junior rep Tom Jenkins won the club's second red coat of the regatta. There are awarded to rowers who win their first premier titles and Jenkins and Bay clubmate Paddy McInnes, who has won a red coat in the past, were members of the Waikato premier eight which won gold.

Fellow former New Zealand junior rep, Giacomo Thomas, won a red coat earlier in the regatta as a member of the Auckland Regional Performance Centre's premier men's coxless quad crew.

Thomas, McInnes and Jenkins were selected for New Zealand elite team trials. Another of the Bay's former New Zealand junior reps, Jessica Turfrey, won silver and bronze medals with Waikato Regional Performance Centre crews.