I am doing my gunwhale repair apprenticeship as we speak, so not fully qualified yet!

What are the screws doing? Maybe they are old fixing screws for the timber? If they are I'd remove & glass them over, but
If your docking style is anything like mine, your gonna want some nice soft timber there to take the brunt of the impact imho.
It is amazing what you can do with a grinder & epoxy filler tho' if you want the "Gucci" look .
There is some rule about toe rails if your racing that dkd put un the Toe Rail Repair Thread