Written by OC Jonathan Martin C98:

Nearly 30 years after leaving Canford, 14 Old Canfordians from the Class of 1998 reunited in Poole to settle a long-standing sporting dispute: were the rowers really just failed ball players?

Throughout their schooldays, the Rowers had endured relentless abuse from their ball-playing contemporaries, despite being part of some of Canford’s most successful crews. Under the legendary Derek Drury, the 1997 crew reached the final of the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup at Henley, eventually losing to a formidable St Paul’s School crew featuring several future Great Britain oarsmen. It remains Canford’s finest Henley performance.

It was decided that, almost three decades later, the argument should finally be settled on the padel court.

The ball players, led by James Epps, Mark Haysom , Mike Sturdy, Chris Northey and James Bennett, took on the rowers: Andrew Allan, Oliver Collier, Bob Langley-Smith, Jonny Martin, Sam Martin and Tom Floyd.

After a fiercely contested tournament, the rowers emerged victorious by a considerable margin, perhaps aided by their enthusiastic adoption of that most middle-class of modern sports, padel. Either way, nearly 30 years of ridicule had finally been put to bed.

The competition was followed by a splendid dinner and a few beers in Poole, with plenty of reminiscing, old stories and familiar banter.

A fantastic reunion and a reminder that, despite the passing years, little has changed. Plans are already underway to make this a regular fixture, with the ball players no doubt hoping for redemption.

For now, the rowers have the bragging rights!