THE Women's Boat Race will share equal billing with the men's version when 100 million television viewers tune in round the world next March - and one Penarth rower is hoping to be on board.

Former Ysgol Stanwell pupil Rebecca Te Water Naude only took up the sport just over a year ago, but was fast-tracked by the Welsh Rowing Academy in Cardiff Bay when they saw her sporting ability.

In her first year studying medicine at Oxford, she was picked for the official Dark Blues trial race over the classic 4.25-mile Putney to Mortlake course.

It turned into an epic clash between the two evenly matched eights chosen from the squad, before the Vale rower's crew finally had to give second best in the rough conditions.

With Te Water Naude in the four seat of her Scylla boat, they shot off into an early lead taking full advantage of the first Middlesex bend, and had a length's lead on the Charybidis boat at Fulham football ground after three minutes racing, rowing with a long and powerful rhythm.

Going under Hammersmith Bridge and seven minutes in, the Penarth rower looked home and hosed with a two-length advantage.

But with conditions getting rougher by the stroke after the two-mile mark, Scylla drifted right out towards Chiswick Eyot, prompting a disapproving shake of the head from on-looking Oxford chief coach Christine Wilson following in the race launch.

Looking more composed at a lower rate of striking, and driven on by triple world Under-23 medal cox Morgan Baynham-Williams, Charybidis suddenly had the momentum, first overlapping and then taking a length in just 25 strokes to move in front on the inside of the giant Surrey bend.

Try as she might, the Penarth rower's boat couldn't get back on terms, finally going down by three lengths. There's still everything for Te Water Naude to race for though, with some tough seat racing coming up after Christmas at the Oxford squad's New Year camp in Italy ahead of the 71st Women's Boat Race on March 27.