Invercargill Rowing Club crew grow from Academy experience

Coach Jack Allan looks at the successful Invercargill Rowing Club’s senior women’s quad and believes it's no coincidence that they have all been through the Academy Southland programme. 

Current Academy member Eilish McLeod was part of the crew that included Shakira Mirfin, Sarah Stewart and Liz Reid and won silver at the national championships at Lake Ruataniwha last month. 

All four have been involved in the two-year programme which supports promising Southland athletes, while Allan himself has been through the Academy’s Coach Performance programme. 

“They are pretty phenomenal and it’s pretty cool that all four have been through the Academy,” Allan said. 

“It’s a definite bonus. They all take a lot of ownership for their preparation, which from my perspective as a coach is great. They also know why they are doing what they are doing, and it’s about more than sport, they are doing it for some real specific reasons.” 

McLeod is a quiet acheiver in the group, an athlete Allan is immensely proud of. 

“She’s a real little grafter. She has a big responsibility steering the boat, which is a big thing for a 17-year-old. It was a whole new thing she had to learn and I’m really proud of her.” 

Allan said McLeod had overcome a number of challenges caused by a back injury which had proved difficult to diagnose. 

“She’s tough. When she’s on form, she’s on form. At the South Island secondary schools she did the under 17 single and got fifth or sixth and then we had a bit of a yarn and she went back down to the course to do the under 18s and she got second behind Shakira.” 

McLeod said the nationals were an interesting experience, particularly with Covid Alert Levels putting the event in doubt. 

“We got back from one of our training days and the lake had been close because of Alert levels.” 

McLeod was hoping to compete at the South Island secondary schools champs next weekend (subject to Alert Levels), before heading up to compete in the single at the New Zealand schools championships, otherwise known as the Maadi Cup, from March 22. 

“I’d like to medal there, but we’ll see how it goes.” 

With Allan unavailable for either regatta, former Southland rowing coach Paul Westbury, these days coaching at Epsom Girls’ Grammar, will provide support, a boat at oars at Maadi Cup. 

“He’s an ex-Olympic coach so she’s in good hands,” Allan said. “It’s Southlanders looking after Southlanders, even though he’s in Auckland now.”