This must be just like living in paradise

I think this post sums up how a lot of us felt at this point

No time for self pity tho – it’s Base X breakfast (continental L ) and the 1^st proper KANGAROO COURT!!!

Obviously Slave is now well established  but other appointments are now made: Flag bearers, Gestapo (public & private) and once we wrestle our mascot Dragon (“Tarakona”) from Tom Hall (who can’t even say Tarakona) who has gripped it tightly since we bought it at Magor and only damaged it a little bit, we reallocate that as well.

The ladies hats to breakfast tour rule is well observed and to the bemusement of other residents, we set out the usual punishments.  One master stroke is to rename Fish, who to this point has slept more than he’s led singing to “Kipper” (geddit).  From now on the tour will be randomly punctuated by people doing 10 press ups for getting this wrong.  “The King in the North” also becomes a tour catchphrase.

AA coaches surprise us by turning up and transporting us to paradise – or THE NARROWS LANDING as it’s officially known.  Gappa’s own hotel obviously impresses everyone and we have the whole place to ourselves.  Cue people running round excitedly, Jamie and Ben EVEN HAD A BATH!  We all lord it about the place and tell everyone at home how lush it all is!  Tour management is given the apartment and I have the privilege of sharing with Roy, we have an extra balcony!

The boys are impressed:

We then have a hand out of our brand new sparkly Castell Howell/RDH sponsored kit

and head of in the Gappa’s own bus (even more like a school bus than Abs) to Fairfield RFC – home of the Yellowbellies.  We have to change on the bus ready to go.  Enthusiasum is such that almost all the tour have donned kit and the game will see Warrior debuts for Kipper, Dan John, Gordon Lyons, and Roy the Boy Davies with rare appearance for Gary Shed and Jamal. 27 players out of a party of 32!  Mark is gloved up for 1^st aid, Ieu has the camera out and Smithy is carrying a hangover.  John Lewis and Justin Hall are left to look pretty and cheerlead.

FairField YellowBellies RFC

The venue is actually a football club - West Hamilton RFC.  The history of Fairfield RFC is that they sold up their ground and now they concentrate on touring far and wide (their trophy cabinet was a fantastic collection of souvenirs from around the world).  They don’t affiliate to any leagues but play a few home friendlies to keep their hand in whilst organising the next trip.  The emphasis is on social and each player has his age on the back of the jersey.

The order of the day is that we play a round robin with Fairfield and the South Auckland Kiwis.  The Kiwis are an integrated team who at one point were playing in a league but players have drifted off and so this match is some of a reunion.  The Warriors played them in 2005, the review for that one is HERE.

Everyone is very friendly and it’s no surprise that Gary and I can source some hot rub – they are a vets side after all.

The 1^st match is thankfully the YBs Vs the SAK so we get to warm up (!)  The Yellowbellies win (I think) and so we prepare to take on the Kiwis in our 1^st match of tour…

It goes well! 3 tries to nil is a good return in a half hour game, everyone features and there are good performances from Simon Day (1^st scorer on tour), Sideshow and Bambi.  Day, Jordan ‘Gringo’ Jones and Lee Rowlands score tries.  There are no kicks for goal/penalties.

Report/pics: HERE 

With everyone having had a run, no one feels they have played enough and look forward to the 2^nd match.  The Yellowbellies may look ancient in the photos, and they may well be, but they can play rugby and they want to win.  Bambi does well in the lineouts but generally we are under the cosh.  When we do break out little mistakes put pay to anything developing.  The YBs have a strong game plan which suits their narrow pitch.  In defense the pitch is narrow enough that cover can get across.  In attack they have two strong running centers and some big forwards.  The game is played around the Warriors 22, with both sides making breaks but tackles are made and nothing is conceded.  The home side shout at the ref about the ball being played in rucks, the away team shout at the ref for holding on so he must have been about right.  Rich Evans and Tom Hall put in big shifts and the game ends nil – nil.  The YB’s are keen for a scalp and suggest extra time, Jamie Evans finally doesn’t mess up his break and scampers up the field to score the deciding try.

Report/pics: HERE 

Once we all manage to get changed in the overcrowded changing room it’s a BBQ and relaxing.  It's NZ winter but it's like a late summer evening - easily warm enough for shorts.  There is football to watch (weirdos) and a few free cold beers from the belly boys.  It's a nice chance to wind down and share tour stories with the yellowbellies who are very proud of their tour history and the Kiwis, some of whom we met 12 years ago.

Yellowbellies tour history, this year they intend to pop down to the South Island.

More food turns up, and once it's been blessed we eat (and eat and eat).  The trail of food snakes past a kitchen hatch and right around a very large table.  I remember there was two or three big pans, one of which had a seafood soup in, a selection of chip shop classics (battered sausage, pie, fish bites), various sandwiches, rice dishes, various cakes....(and we'd already had some bbq bits ptichside).  It's an amazing spread - you can see most of it in the background of this pic of some random Fish/Kipper pressups...

Speaking of Kipper, our choir master finally wakes up long enough to get the singing started.  To be fair it's pretty good showing with most of the standards bashed out, tho we struggle a bit with the request for Green Green Grass of Home.  Before that there are the usual post match presentations with some nice speeches about the spirit of rugby being worldwide (from 2 clubs who would know) and the standard Man of the Match/Dick of the Day (in awesome appropriate glass).

PRESENTATIONS:

CANU:

 

Our hosts obviously liked it (from the website):

We head off into the darkness but the Yellowbellies haven't finished and come and give us a last minute send of, a rendition of their club song... 

...and our 1st Haka of the tour, featuring a slightly drunk, very happy and not at all intimidating Rich Hapus

Bloody hell, knackered but - it's off to Gappa's bar to watch the Lions v Maori match on the box.  An impressive win for the Lions 32-10 REVIEW


We meet some of the boys who came down to Wellington with us in 2005, Gappa, obviously worried that we are wasting away puts on bowls of steaks, eggs and sausages.  Lethally casinos/bookies are legal in bars here but apart from one Warriors putting money on a game already been played (!) no one loses anything significant.  The chat with the locals is that they are becoming a bit wary of the Lions now and that the test will be..."interesting".

So after a llloonnggg day we head back  (stopping off at the off licence and Rich Hapus nips of to the McDonalds!!!) to the Narrows landing.................and discover the games room/man cave, queue wiling away the early hours with darts, pool, snooker and er... card based drinking games (6! - GECKO!!!!).  Luckily Burry Port elders have just about enough beer to see us through.

SO...that was another day done, all the rest of the photos from the day click... MORE pictures...