JAMES CRACKNELL, the Leander captain, enjoyed a new experience on Saturday in the Fullers Fours Head of the River race when he stroked his club’s coxed four to victory in their class.

Cracknell usually follows the stroking of his pairs’ partner, Matthew Pinsent, but on this occasion Pinsent, with Ed Coode and Richard Egington, his fellow international rowers, followed Cracknell’s rhythm to finish ninth overall in the 503-boat flotilla of quadruple sculls, coxless fours and coxed fours. “At least it kept him quiet,” Pinsent said.

Leander stole the show as their top quadruple scull, manned by Great Britain scullers and stroked by Matthew Langridge, retained the title as fastest crew of the day. They were chased home by Tideway Scullers, who were stroked by Alan Campbell, winner of the Henley Royal Regatta sculls. The Tideway Scullers’ performance was impressive, although subject to some trepidation at first, having mistakenly been disqualified for a “traffic violation”.

The Leander coxed four were faster than all the coxless fours on show bar one — that of Steve Williams, Josh West, Toby Garbett and Rick Dunn, their clubmates and world championship silver medallists. The coxless four won their class by 30 seconds over Oxford’s top crew.

Questions about Cracknell and Pinsent being considered for a boat other than their pair were parried by David Tanner, the team manager, who insisted that the Fours Head was a non-selection event, something echoed by Jurgen Grobler, the coach for Pinsent and Cracknell.

The issue was clouded because Dunn, the coxless four’s stroke, was suffering a heavy cold and had said: “I really shouldn’t have done it.”