Skip to main content

Ruggers Galore

Last weekend was just cool. My first time at the Singapore Sevens and had the wonderful opportunity to meet with handsome, burly and simply gorgeous ruggers from various nations like New Zealand, Australia, Japan, Fiji, South Africa etc. Of course, it was a total feast for the eyes! ahhaha....okok..I'm not all that superficial. RIGHT!

I was attached to Ponsonby - New Zealand team. Heard that most of the All Blacks players hail from this team and I was excited to meet them. Even though this year's team consists of mostly amateurs, yet they displayed such finess in their game. The way they spin the ball, dodge, tackle etc just blew my mind away. But of course, they are soon-to-be professionals so they had better show some standard! Hehe..but they truly lived up to their reputation.



Don't mess with these big boys when they mean business!





One of the many light hearted moments Coach had with his boys

Above and beyond their skills, what actually impressed me most was their gentlemenliness (if there's such a word). Beneath those bulging biceps/triceps/quadraceps and other ceps actually lie a very alluring and gentle spirit. Got to interact with them to know what I'm saying. Even in a game, there's hardly dirty & rough play although I witnessed moments whereby a few players actually lost their cool but generally, the team was just cool from the start to the end. I had the privilege to watch them play upclose and personal at the sideline together with the coach and team manager and they were just like a close-knitted family. The Daddy with his boys! Haha..whether they won or lose, they knew how to take things in their strides.


Kipps (nickname) - one of the gentle giants in the team.


This team showed me that rugby is really a game for gentlemen.

Then of course, there were other noteworthy teams around too but since I spent most of my time tagging along with Ponsonby, I didn't get to see how the other teams performed. Nonetheless, I thought all teams put up a strong fight especially the Japanese team (Kumuri). What this team lack in younger players, they made it all up in their tenacious and gusty spirit! They went onto the field and was all ready to CHIONG! They hardly won any of their matches but the enjoyment and satisfaction they had were evident. There was no pressure whatsoever to live up to any expectations and they just played to the best of their abilities and that to me is just inspiring and commendable. KUDOS KUMURI!

Then I had a few moments of comic relief from the 2 jokers below!

Oddball #1 : Guy with the 'best' sense of fashion

for Singapore Sevens 2008

Oddball #2 - The Queen made her grand entrance!

I look forward to the next Sevens and I do hope I can be with Ponsonby again! Hopefully next year, they will put up a greater fight and regain their reign over the Albitt Cup from the Vipers! :)







Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Breather

Back from a Sec 3 level camp in JB, Tanjung Piai. Thought I could have the week's off to clear my brain's cache and prepare my lesson plans but alas...I'm down for ODAC camp and sec 4s' oral exam mock practice! When can I have my breather???? Sometimes I wonder whether returning to a familiar place is good for me after all. I'm like on the 'Wanted' list for this committee, that committee, this event, that event etc. Not that I'm popular or high-in-demand, its just that I'm nicely available. I'm not usually mindful of taking on responsibilities. Its just that during these 10 weeks, I reckon is a crucial component of my NIE understudy and I am not wanting to settle for something less in my planning (although i really hate lesson plannings!). But I'm so stretched! I feel like screaming: " GIVE ME MY SPACE!" To say the least, I'm feeling stressed. Most unfortunately, I'm not given the option to say 'No'. Not until I get ...
1 comment
Read more

ACTION 100%

I finally can take a breather and bloggie! I just can't believe that my 2 weeks of the 10weeks practicum have just passed! But of course, its just ACTION this entire week since I started teaching. My gosh....if anyone desires for time to pass quickly JOIN TEACHING! Having not taught for the last 1.5years, getting back to the routine sure took some adjustment. Physically, I crashed by 10pm every night. Last night, 8.45pm! Record set. Just last week I was thinking its ultra boring to just shadow my CTs and not teach....I basically didn't know what I was asking for then. Mornings start with the mad rush of preparing for PE lessons and its just been taxing on my brain! After PE, I feel as though I've ran a marathon. I just slump on my chair and let the cool air from the air-con bring me back to life. When school ends, I just have little energy left to do my own trainings! OH ...btw I cycle to and fro school so....its zero level at the end of the day. Joani said this to me befor...
1 comment
Read more

Day 3 & 4 - Halong Bay

HALONG BAY Cat Ba Island (2 days, 1 night) After 1 day of exploration of Hanoi city, we headed for Halong Bay via the junkboat. Our destination was on Cat Ba Island where we stayed for the night. It was also there that we ventured onto 'Monkey' Island - not to be deceived; there was only 4 monkeys sighted. The exhilirating part of this journey was the motorbike ride to the ferry terminal to board the boat to 'Monkey' Island. Felt like I was part of a short scene of a James Bond movie (pillion with Pierce Brosnan!). Will never forget the cold draft blowing against my face and just riding up and down the slopes! Cat Ba Island is a very quiet & tranquail place. Little activity especially at night. Wanted to catch the morning activities at the fishing wharf opposite our hotel but could not wake up in time. Nonetheless, managed to capture some snippets of what goes on at the bay. Waiting patiently to board the boat. Snapped this on board the boat. Not a vietnamese but fe...
2 comments
Read more