"Sure it was professionals against students," said a Neptune man, teasing his own club eight, which had just outclassed Trinity in the college's regatta at Islandbridge on Saturday.

Trinity, on the north station, started well and had an edge going into the first corner - then Neptune's eight powered into the lead, and with over a thousand metres to go it was no longer a race.

Trinity's regatta, all bright jazz and blaring sunshine, was a success. The marquees buzzed with life, the riverbank boasted the well-dressed in high spirits, the public address announcements were amusing and irreverent.

The contrast with Spartan Blessington, where the Irish trials, watched over by taciturn national coach Thor Nilsen, continued over the weekend could not have been more marked.

A good illustration of this was the women's senior one four final at Saturday's regatta: the result states "Trinity beat Commercial one and a quarter lengths". But Commercial were beaten primarily by their own success. With places for lightweight and senior scullers at the first World Cup regatta in Hazewinkel, Belgium, being sought, Debbie Stack, Vanessa Lawrenson, Siobhan Foreman and Susan O'Brien had all opted for the trials.

Of course there were some good races at Trinity, none more closely contested than the novice single sculls final where, after a tremendously exciting last 50 metres, Cork's Denis McSweeney beat Peter Scully of Commercial by two foot.

Back at the trials, the decision as to who will go to Hazewinkel has still to be made: however, heavyweight single sculler Albert Maher beat Niall O'Toole on the Friday, although the Commercial man was troubled by a cold and did not row on Saturday.

Most emphatic winners of all were the men's lightweight four on Friday. They went on to backbone the Neptune eight at Trinity, but with a testing schedule of regattas as a four ahead their participation in the eight will now be in abeyance - even for Henley. But they must concentrate, as a four, on taking on world class crews.