Over the years of my research into rowing and specifically Ballarat City Rowing Club, I have found some fairly extraordinary crews and races they have been involved in. Scoring a treble of any sort in rowing is difficult and rare so I ‘m starting this series of posts with a treble that is unique. So unique that it also scored a mention in John Lang’s, Victorian Oarsman, which was dedicated to all the oarsmen who served in WW 1 and covers the history of rowing in Victoria from the beginning. To my knowledge this Ballarat City eight is the only recorded crew to have rowed and won the same race three times before being awarded the prize!
Probably one of the most outstanding and unique races in the club’s history and certainly the history of Australian rowing occurred at the Barwon Regatta in 1885. At this regatta over 4000 spectators watched on as Ballarat City Rowing Club eight, take out the Senior eight-oared race by the slimmest of margins-two feet from Williamstown.
That in itself was quite an achievement, as Williamstown were the pre-eminent eight of the time, but what makes it truly remarkable, is that we only won that race after TWO dead heats against the same crew! This is possibly the only time in the history of eight rowing in the world, that the same race was re-rowed three times and on the third and final time the smallest of margins was enough to win. Indeed it was so amazing that it is afforded a special footnote in the ‘Victorian Oarsmen’ by John Lang noting its uniqueness.
At the Ballarat City Rowing Club Annual Meeting the president Mr. Daniel Brophy stated the club’s congratulations:
“Also to our senior oarsmen, Messrs J. E. Byrne J. Dobson; Arthur J Gibbs, A. Tapper, A. McNaughtan, W. Trahar, John Barnes and J. Kitchen, in performing the feat of winning the Senior Eight-oared Race on the Barwon, after a dead-heat with the well-known and redoubtable Williamstown crew, which performance was commented upon by the whole of the aquatic press and oarsmen generally as the grandest display of rowing, pluck, and stamina-ever witnessed on any water in Victoria and more than maintained the prestige of your club………..”
But perhaps the greatest acclaim came from the description of the race in the Williamstown Advertiser, March 7th 1885.
“ SENIOR EIGHTS(CLINKERS)
This race causes immense excitement and results in a dead-heat. Ballarat City is true grit. Again the doughty sixteen stir might and main in their respective eight and again the admiring crowd applauds to the echo. Again a dead-heat. A rest of half an hour and again to the fight. Never was there such a boat race pulled in Australia under such circumstances. Two dead-heats and each side eager for the fray. The pace is tremendous, Williamstown leads to the Mills but their opponents close up and eventually win by twenty-four inches.”
American rowing historian Bill Miller also noted the performance entitling his piece –
Double dead-heat down-under.
“Probably one of the most outstanding and unique races in [Ballarat City Rowing Club’s] history and certainly the history of Australian rowing occurred at the Barwon Regatta [1885]. At this regatta Ballarat City won the Senior Eight by the slimmest of margins – two feet from Williamstown. That in itself was quite an achievement but what makes it truly amazing is that Ballarat won that race after TWO dead heats against the same crew. This is possibly the only time in history of eight-oared rowing that the same crews rowed three times and on the third and final time the smallest of margins was enough to win.”
Submitted by Bill Miller/ from “The Boys from the Rush Beds” by Kate Elliott also mentioned in Victorian Oarsmen by John Lang
Geelong Advertiser 5 March 1885 also stated that “The president of the South Barwon Shire Council (Mr. W Higgins) was so delighted with the contest for this event that he at once decided to give the Williamstown crew a prize equal in value to that won by the Ballarat City club. Walter Higgins was a solicitor in Yarra Street Geelong, and pictured is the gold Maltese cross presented to Williamstown oarsman H.Currie who was bowman in that crew.The Williamstown crew were A. White (stroke), M.Hackett (7),E.Morriner (6), W.Wood (5), C. Currie (4),T.Bell (3),W.Ogden (2) and H.Currie (bow). The coxswain was A. Jones.
Ballarat City Rowing Club History Blog 