Britain's Olympic rowers and would-be rowers converge on the London 2012 venue of Eton Dorney this weekend for the final trials – a last chance to establish themselves in a pecking order which will soon be picked over by head coach Jürgen Grobler and his team.

Graded grains have certainly made finer flour for Britain since Grobler arrived to oversee the coaching in 1992. Under his direct charge, the lead boat – either a pair or a four – has won gold at five consecutive Games. Steve Redgrave and Matt Pinsent won the first of those two as a pair in 1992 and 1996 before combining with James Cracknell and Tim Foster to win the four in the Sydney 2000 Games.

Two further victories were earned in the four, which looks like being the lead crew once again this year given the frustration Andy Triggs Hodge and Pete Reed – two of the Beijing 2008 four gold medallists – have encountered in trying to better the New Zealanders Eric Murray and Hamish Bond.

As the rowers set out in pairs onto the Olympic course this weekend, Triggs Hodge will have a seventh successive trials victory in his sights. But it will not necessarily guarantee him and Reed a crack at the Olympic pairs title this year against the Kiwis who have beaten them 14 consecutive times. Which in turn means Britain's world champion four of Alex Gregory, Tom James, Ric Egington and Matt Langridge will be under pressure to show they deserve the chance to seek Olympic glory without having to accommodate Triggs Hodge or Reed.


Meanwhile, as Britain's women look ahead to a Games on home water which they believe can yield their first Olympic gold, the world double sculls duo of Katherine Grainger and Anna Watkins (pictured) will once again be pitted against each other as scullers will take part in the single at these trials. At the winter trials held at Boston in December it was the younger rower, Watkins, who came out on top. It would take a lot to undermine the Grainger-Watkins team given their outstanding record, but even Grainger, who can claim to be Britain's most distinguished female rower of all time, will know she cannot afford to relax or underperform.

As Grobler likes to say on such occasions: "There are no names under seats." All, or much, is still to play for. It's an exciting, nervy time for international exponents in a sport which has become something of an Olympic banker for Britain in recent years.

But while the internationals have been preparing themselves for Trial by Grobler, those just a little further down the rankings have been busying themselves with one of the most taxing of staging posts in the rowing season, the Head of the River Races on the Tideway course.

A week after the British trials have finished, the men's Head of the River race will take place on the stretch of Thames from Mortlake to Putney – the Boat Race course in reverse.


And last weekend, at the 72nd running of the Women's Eights Head of the River Race, top quality club rowers had the chance to contest the Head of the River title minus the usual international contingent.

Having covered the women's event on the day, I can bear witness to the fact that British Rowing has massive and growing strength in depth. And if you want a stirring reminder of the quality of British club rowing, I suggest you look at this video which has been put up on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRc3EnJtGAA&feature=youtu.be

This is the eight which claimed the Head of the River title for Thames Rowing Club for the first time since 2011. According to their cox Hannah Burke, from whose head cam we view the race – with the attention for much of the time on the lean, strong facing figure of Sophie Slaney at stroke – when the crew crossed the finish line several members were in tears because they felt they had not had a good row.

For this crew on this day – and in particular for the number seven, Emma Windham, who had twice been in crews which had finished runners-up – having a good row meant only one thing: winning.

But despite carving through the field – the Head of River Races are effectively time trials with crews going off singly at intervals – the Thames crew could not seem to make any impression upon the crew in front of them from the Zurich club in Switzerland.

When news came through that they had earned the Head title, having gained almost five seconds on Zurich, who were the second fastest crew on the day, champagne was already being drunk. But as Burke was happy to admit, drinking the rest of it "felt more worthy".


The video – put together with artful words and sound track by Thames vice-president Guin Batten (pictured left), who won Olympic silver in the quadruple scull with Grainger, sister Miriam and Gillian Lindsay in 2000 and is, among many other things, chair of the Head race committee – offers a stirring sense of what it takes, not just to win the women's Head of the River race, but what it takes to achieve in sport.

As the crew pass under the popular viewing position of Hammersmith Bridge, just over a mile and a half from the end of the 4 miles 374 yards course, the voice of the cox can be heard quite clearly.

"You've got to make a choice now whether we want to win this club pennant, whether we win the Head, and it's happening...right...NOW..."

Watch this. You will find your heart beating. It is what sport is about.

Mike Rowbottom, one of Britain's most talented sportswriters, has covered the past five Summer and four Winter Olympics for The Independent. Previously he has worked for the Daily Mail, The Times, The Observer, the Sunday Correspondent and The Guardian. He is now chief feature writer for insidethegames. Rowbottom's Twitter feed can be accessed here.