Southampton Senior Ladies pair suffered a disastrous disqualification in the Itchen Imperial Regatta.

Lisa McGregor-Ritchie and Chrisie Potter sat in stunned disbelief on the finish line after being punished for turning the wrong numbered buoy in their final against Itchen Imperial's Sue Foad and Katie Green.

With both crews needing the win to become Hants and Dorset champions, Southampton, in lane two, who led from just after the start, seemed to have the title in the bag. Two lengths up as they approached the turning line they should have taken number two buoy but inexplicably turned at number three leaving the umpire no alternative but to disqualify them according to the rules.

It was a bitter end to their season and a disappointing way to become champions for Sue and Katie who seemed almost as upset themselves when they came ashore.

BTC enjoyed another field day, winning both the Senior events. Their ladies Claire Worley, Hanah Walford, Zoe Harper, Kaye Hume(stk) Sarah Wardell (cox) won a thrilling race against the in-form Coalporters crew by three quarters of a length. The victorious senior men were Mike Neale, Mark Weaver, Matt Bailey, Simon Bailey (stk) Sarah Wardell(cox)

Their junior/seniors men, Lee Galton, Steve Watts, James Spake, Geoff Wardell(stk) and Andria Richardson (cox) were Sunday morning row-off winners against Ryde, as Hants and Dorset representatives in the South Coast Rowing Championshipa at Torbay on Saturday September 14.

They will be there along with Coalporters junior ladies, Gemma Heath, Rachel Anthoney - Roberts, Olivia Power, Olivia Power, Penny Glazzard (stk) and Claire Chmarny (cox) who clinched their place with a 3-length win over Ryde, and the Ryde men's junior four of Stuart Johnson, Nick Christopher, Olly Bottrell, Steve Hunns (stk), Kim Salter (cox).

They will be joined by Association senior ladies champions Poole represented by Julie Maskell, Emma Hill, Alison Houlton, Sarah Pethen (stk) Matt Jacobs(cox), the senior men's champions Lymington with Dave Mans, Rupert Davies, Mark Treman, Peter Lock(stk), Kerry Lane(cox), the junior/senior champions Christchurch (T Hammond, D Martin, J Foster, C Kennedy- Burn (stk), J Van- Deventer (cox); junior ladies champions Westover ( Holly Pickering, Ion Aitkin, Lisa Stapley, Netty Hutchinson (stk) Paul Johnson (cox)) and their own junior champions Dave Larkin, Simon Collis, Dean Harrison, Ben Larkin (stk) Andria Richardson (cox).

Itchen Imperial senior men's pair Steve Taylor and Matt Joyce followed up last weeks success with a comfortable win over BTC and there was some consolation for Southampton in the junior pairs with champions Roger Slaymaker and Chris Bennett, back after a six-week break, holding off their B crew to win by a canvas. BTC veterans Ray Green, Norman Harper, Dave Wyath, Colin Harrison (stk) Sophie Hutchinson (cox) continued their build up to the Master Championship in Prague with a covincing win over Southsea and Ryde Cadets again proved to be too strong for the compition.

RESULTS:

Men

Senior Fours 1 BTC A, 2 Ryde A, 3 Itchen Imperial.

Junior Senior Fours 1 Christchurch, 2 BTC, 3 Ryde.

Junior Fours 1 BTC A, 2 Ryde A, 3 Itchen Imperial.

Novice Fours 1 BTC C, 2 BTC A.

Senior Pairs 1 Itchen Imperial, 2 BTC.

Junior Pairs 1 Southampton A, 2 Southampton B.

Senior Sculls 1 Coalporters (Pearce), 2 BTC B (Wardell)

Junior Sculls 1 Lymington (Keir), 2 Ryde (Jenner), 3 Coalporters (Mace)

Ladies

Senior Fours 1 BTC A, 2 Coalporters.

Junior Fours 1 Coalporters, 2 Ryde.

Novice Fours 1 Christchurch, 2 Poole.

Senior Pairs 1 Itchen Imperial.

Senior Sculls 1 Christchurch (Hauxwell), 2 Lymington ( Lane).

Veteran Fours 1 BTC A, 2 Southsea.

Cadet Fours 1 Ryde.