Back in 1988 when I did my then HGV class 1 (now CE) I was doing 2 to 1 over 7 days with test on day 7 with a guy about my age called Rob
Rob had no previous experience of lorries
I had been night yard shunting for a year and been driving 7.5s for a few years
Rob had virtually all the reversing time because I did not need it
I passed first time and Rob … failed on the reverse 
We used a ford unit with straight 6 speed box and a 30 foot flatbed trailer