ROWING: Twigg, Alexander spearhead Bay haul

The Hawke's Bay Rowing Club collected medals in 12 events at the national championships over the weekend.
Emma Twigg and Sarah Alexander spearheaded the haul. Twigg won national premier titles in the coxless four and eight as part of the Auckland Regional Performance Centre (RPC). She also finished second in the women's premier single scull behind Caroline Evers-Swindell.
Alexander joined Twigg in the premier women's eight to win her first red coat. It was a great reward for Alexander who only just missed the title last season.
The East Coast Rowing Association was well represented in the winning women's eight with a total of four women in the crew, Bess Bally and Darnelle Timms, from Gisborne, won the first red coats for the Gisborne Club in its 135-year history.
East Coast president Rohan Condon was elated at the performance of the East Coast members and said the result boded well for the interprovincials. The overall result for the East Coast clubs was the best he could remember. Another highlight of the regatta was the men's under-19 coxed four.
Hawke's Bay's Richard Harrison, Ben Bullock, Jason Kitchin, Todd Hale and Nic Mogford (coxswain) won the title after a race-long battle with Nelson (second) and Waikato (third) in a slick 6min 31sec.
Coach Cedric Bayly said the win was satisfying, given that the Waikato crew had three of last year's New Zealand juniors. Harrison, Bullock, Kitchen, Hale and Mogford joined Adam McElroy, Daniel Weeks, Brendan Lack and Maia Solomon to finish a close second in the Club Eight to cap an excellent regatta for the young crew.
In another incredibly close finish, the men's senior eight of Michael Harrison, Adam Garden, Matt McGovern, Campbell Lowe, Adam Tripp, Cameron Smith, Blair Harrison, Kevin Simpson and coxswain Hamish Trautvetter finished with a silver medal less than half a second behind Waikato in a fast 5min 59sec.
McGovern, Garden, Smith and Harrison combined to finish second in the men's senior coxless four. Finally, Harrison, Tripp and Lowe were joined by Matthew Glenn in the men's under-21 quadruple scull to pick up the bronze medal and complete an excellent regatta for the Chis Morgan-coached senior men's squad.
Simon Lack earned a silver medal in the men's premier eight as part of the Auckland RPC and Jamie Twigg a bronze medal in the premier eight as part of the Central RPC.
At the end of the regatta, Emma and Jamie Twigg and Alexander were named as trialists for the New Zealand team.