New Zealand's rowers ready for World Cup regatta in Munich

New Zealand's rowers are back in action this weekend in the second FISA World Cup regatta in Munich, Germany, and it should be an exciting weekend with many new young blades cutting their international teeth for the first time alongside the established winners in the team.

After coming of age in Bled, New Zealand's top female sculler Emma Twigg will be looking to maintain, if not improve on, an impressive turn of speed that saw her lead sculling legend Ekaterina Karsten most of the way down the Bled course. It might be too early this season to expect a win from Twigg, but even in an expanded field she will be looking to be at the sharp end throughout the regatta - especially as she will now be fully acclimatised after arriving in Europe in the first group of athletes.

Also in that first group were the men's pair World Champions Eric Murray and Hamish Bond. Racers through and through, they will once again take on the best that British rowing has to offer in the form of Andrew Triggs Hodge and Peter Reed. It's hard to see beyond these two combinations for the regatta win, but they have had some very close races and this is likely to be another. Even so, the Brits will have to row out of their skins before they can start to eat into the 7-0 lead the Kiwis have in races between the two boats.

There is a change to the only other boat to race in Bled - the women's quad – as Fi Paterson steps in from the double scull while Anna Reymer is recovering from injury in that boat to replace Harriet Austin in the quad, who is also recovering from an injury. Paterson is strong and experienced and will add to the boat, so a better performance than Bled could well be on the cards, despite the crew’s limited time together.

Injuries have been somewhat of a rarity in the New Zealand team in recent years, but the successful group is carrying more than its fair share at the moment, not least the niggling one that has affected Mahé Drysdale's preparations. He is in Europe, training and improving with every outing but has yet to decide whether he will compete this weekend. Drysdale though is a class act and whether he is on or off the water, he will be a positive influence on the team.

If Mahé ends up on the sidelines in Munich, the sculling spotlight in the men’s group will fall on Duncan Grant, lightweight double Storm Uru and Peter Taylor and a new combination in the heavy double scull of Nathan Cohen and multiple Under-23 world champion Joseph Sullivan. The lightweights are in fine form and will be looking to pick up from their ultra successful 2009 season. This is a fickle discipline in rowing and the margins between success and failure are very tight. The two New Zealand lightweight boats, however, are not World Champions by chance and should be there or thereabouts at the sharp end in the ‘A’ finals. Uru and Taylor will face a returning GB combination of Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter, back together for the first time since winning the Olympic gold medal.

Nathan Cohen and Joseph Sullivan put in some electrifying performances in final preparations before they left for Europe and will be optimistic of a good run in Munich. It is a combination which the aficionados of the rowing community in New Zealand have been looking forward to seeing racing over a full season together since they made a promising one-off appearance together in Amsterdam in 2007. Not a big crew by any means, they find their speed through the symmetry of their individual styles. As single scullers, they have both excelled in the past with blistering early pace followed by good base speed, and that same style is blooming nicely now they are doubled up. It would not be amiss to say that in many ways, Sullivan is the most matched partner for Cohen so far, and he has raced with top international athletes Rob Waddell and Matthew Trott successfully. Definitely one to watch.

There will also be a men's quad to watch containing vastly experienced Olympic bronze medallist Nathan Twaddle, young guns John Storey and Paul Gerritsen and crew boat specialist Trott. This will also be their debut on the international stage, and their progress will be fascinating to follow. Michael Arms, the spare man in the young rowing squad, goes straight into elite international racing at the deep end in the men's heavyweight single scull.

Completing the line up of male athletes are two New Zealand straight fours. The New Zealand team were world champions in this boat class as recently as 2007 and the two boats represent the best of the up and coming talent in men's ‘sweep’ oar in New Zealand. Both boats are coached by Dave Thompson and have been pretty close in training runs so there will be plenty of blood and guts as each tries to be the top Kiwi boat. The A Boat includes Sean O'Neill, a Kiwi who has also rowed for Ireland in the Rowing World Cups, World Championships and Olympic Games. His experience could prove very useful but again, neither boat has any elite international form at this stage. Despite this, coach Thompson believes they are ready to put on a good showing in a field of more than 20 entries.

"The guys are really looking forward to racing this weekend,” he said. “It’s a new experience for all but one of my squad. These are the days you think are never going to come around so when they do it’s about making the most of the opportunity."

Last but by no means least - an exciting new combination in the women's rowing pair also makes its first international appearance this weekend. Another boat to have impressed in pre-season preparations, Rebecca Scown and Juliette Haigh will definitely be on the radar of their opposition. Scown won two races in last year's World Cup series with Emma Feathery, amassing enough points to become the FISA World cup champions. In the World Championships themselves, they took an excellent bronze medal. With the return of Haigh - the 2005 world champion in the pair - Feathery moved to the women's quad. Scown has continued to improve and Haigh is clearly a class act in a pair and this quality has been reflected in training. They 'clicked' early and were effectively one of the very first boats to be selected this year such was their initial pace.

New Zealand crews for World Cup Regatta 2, Munich, Germany

Men's Coxless Four 'A'

David Eade
Jade Uru
Hamish Burson
Sean O'Neill

Men's Coxless Four 'B'

Ben Hammond
Chris Harris
Ian Seymour
Tyson Williams

Men's lightweight single scull

Duncan Grant (World Champion)

Men's heavyweight single scull

Mahe Drysdale
Michael Arms

Women's heavyweight single scull

Emma Twigg

Men's double scull

Nathan Cohen
Joseph Sullivan

Men's lightweight double scull

Storm Uru (World Champion)
Peter Taylor (World Champion)

Men's pair

Eric Murray (World Champion)
Hamish Bond (World Champion)

Women's pair

Rebecca Scown
Juliette Haigh

Men's quadruple scull

John Storey
Paul Gerritsen
Nathan Twaddle
Matthew Trott

Women's quadruple scull

Paula Twining
Fi Paterson
Emma Feathery
Louise Trappit