Hall of Fame

Waterford Boat Club - The victorious Coxed Four of 1903

Waterford Boat Club - The victorious Coxed Four of 1903, including the three Parle brothers.

© Waterford Boat Club.

Waterford Boat Club - The victorious Coxed Four of 1903
© Waterford Boat Club.

Waterford Boat Club - The victorious Coxed Four of 1903

Waterford Boat Club - The victorious Coxed Four of 1903, including the three Parle brothers.

© Waterford Boat Club.

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Waterford Boat Club - Group of oarsmen and members in 1952.

Waterford Boat Club - Group of oarsmen and members in 1952, including N. Parle on the far right.

© Waterford Boat Club.

Waterford Boat Club - Group of oarsmen and members in 1952.
© Waterford Boat Club.

Waterford Boat Club - Group of oarsmen and members in 1952.

Waterford Boat Club - Group of oarsmen and members in 1952, including N. Parle on the far right.

© Waterford Boat Club.

Enlarge image

Waterford has had many great oarsmen and oarswomen over the years. There are also great tales to be told. One such story concerns the Parle brothers. They were part of a team, who competed as a coxed four in 1903. The Parle brother's claim to fame is that they were never beaten, even though they dead heated a few times.



At a regatta in Drogheda, County Louth, they dead heated with the local crew and each crew was presented with half medals. The Club still has in it's possession some of these medals.



In the early years the boats were in one piece and had to be transported by train. It took a great effort for the Boat Club to travel to regattas and win so many races. Today boats can be separated and assembled at regattas.



L. P. Ridgeway was part of a winning Junior Fours crew in 1901. The team won many trophies and on one occasion each crew member was presented with a rose bowl. Nothing more was heard of this story until 2003, when a Reverent Ridgeway from South Africa contacted the club. This man was the son of L. P. Ridgeway and had in his possession the rose bowl, which was now 103 years old. The Reverent Ridgeway is now in the process of presenting the rose bowl to the Waterford Boat Club.



Waterford Boat Club has a magnificent collection of trophies. In 2004 the rose bowl and all the other trophies from the Boat Club will be on display in the Waterford Treasures at the Granary. Sir William Goff presented a former cycling trophy to the club in the early 1900s, which became known as the Goff Shield. This Shield was won many times by Waterford crews, including a crew from 1984.