BROTHERS and sisters are forever getting into hot water with their parents. But two siblings from South Woodford have left their father behind and jumped into much colder seas together.

However, while most brothers and sisters are getting into trouble fighting over the TV remote, Max and Francesca Ingall are more likely to be seen quarrelling over the boon, as they have become one of the finest young sailing teams in the country.

The pair have sailed to the top of the national rankings in their cadet dinghy over the past year, and they have even won a place in the British team to compete at the Under 17 World Championships in Argentina, to be held on the River Plate.

At 15, Max is giving away two years to many of the other competitors. But it is Francesca who really catches the eye, as she is just nine years old.

After being given an old dinghy, father Mark and Max went off to Fisher’s Green sailing club to test it out. And Ingall Junior took to the sport like a duck to water, quickly joining a cadet squadron at the club where he could hone his skills. But, not content with looking on from the safety of the shore, young Francesca – who was just five at the time – was eager to join her big brother and get a taste of the action.

“Max sailed as part of a crew for four years but he wanted to be more involved, so I bought him his own boat,” said Mr Ingall. “We couldn’t find him a crew but his sister was desperate to get out there. She wanted to be a part of it all so she got in the dinghy with her brother.”

Inevitably there have been some choppy waters along the way, but the pair have sailed into calmer seas and developed a strong bond in their boat.

They combined to finish a respectable 40th place in last year’s national selector races. But since then it has been full speed ahead.

There were few expectations on the pair heading into this year’s selectors, but they went from strength to strength. After a gruelling series of races that dragged them all over the country the Ingalls had a sixth-place finish to their name, earning them a spot on the starting line in Argentina.

Dad Mark has been a dedicated follower of his children throughout their incredible journey, even driving them and their boat the 29 hours to Almeria, where they competed to finish 38th in the European Championships this year.

“I’m tremendously proud of them. It’s difficult to keep a dry eye,” he said. “They were told they were in the British team to go to Argentina at a posh yacht club and I was the embarrassing father who shouted in celebration. We just can’t wait to go now.”

Max, who attends Beal High School, and Francesca, who is a pupil at Churchfields Junior School, have both been granted the first few days of term off as the competition in South America runs through to the turn of the year.

They set sail for Argentina in December, with the first race beginning on Boxing Day.