So your club's A group rolls on carbon wheels when not racing?
Forget carbon and go with Zipp 101s. Much better all around wheelset and if you get dropped, hey, at least you weren't rolling on carbon wheels!
If you're stuck on carbon, you might as well take the plunge go full carbon tubular with some cork pads. But like others said, if you can't keep up, you just can't keep up. A flashy wheelset isn't going to help enough. And high aero profile rims are a nightmare in crosswinds.