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Rugby Tour: Hamburg 2013
“It was the best of times, it was the Würst of times.”
The Gentlemen of the CCRFC enjoyed an action-packed week full of Beer, Würst and of course Rugby as we embarked on a tour of Hamburg. Based in a hostel on the notorious Reeperbahn, the team indulged in a multitude of activities including mini-golf in the dark, boat tours of the city, a trip to the chocolate museum and of course sampling the local liquid refreshments. Yet before the team even made it onto the plane, disaster struck. Jon Anderson, experiencing chest pains (described by some of the squad as a classic case of ‘Mangina’) had to seek medical attention and missed the flight, joining us at our destination very late that evening. This would not be the last trip to hospital made by the members of the CCRFC this week.
The guys were itching to stretch their legs on the Rugby pitch, and this desire was clear on the second evening as we turned up in full force to train with our host team, the Hamburg Exiles. An extended game of ‘touch’ was all that was needed to shake off the rust from a long summer and by the end of the session our hands were safe and our running-lines were incisive. This was a great opportunity to size up the opposition. They were lumpy so our game plan would be to avoid the upfront battle and spread the ball wide, making use of the dangerous backs we had at our disposal.
Game day arrived. The floodlights were on, the new kit looked flair and the team was clicking in the warm-up. Both teams agreed to play four 20 minute quarters with rolling subs and the referee got the game underway. The CCRFC started with style and a quick try was scored by Kidney after a bulldozing run. It was clear we were the quicker and more skilful team. Throughout the match Christ’s dominated possession and territory in a convincing display. Further tries were added by Kidney, Helliwell (pre-fresher mk 1 or 2), Roden (pre-fresher mk 1 or 2 / koala) and Anderson. The whole team performed strongly and ran some devastating lines; it was merely frequent handling errors that prevented an all out drubbing, and the game ended CCRFC 25-0 Hamburg Exiles. Notable performers included Fergdog for his hard running, Kidney for always seeming to be in the right place at the right time and Robbins for an incredible work-rate. Man of the match was rightly awarded to Gajjar for a resolute performance on the wing; clearly the skills of a sporting blue are highly transferable to the Rugby pitch. After the final whistle, both teams gave rousing renditions of their eerily similar club songs, and the teams mingled for some inevitable beer and sausage consumption.
On the Sunday, the CCRFC gallantly provided our friends, the Exiles, with some substitutes for their league match. A notable performance from Ex-Captain Brown culminated in him nearly having his head ripped off and the Exiles being awarded a Penalty Try (Matt, unfortunately this does not count as a try for you.) The other squad members who could tear themselves away from bed turned up in support. The loss was unfortunate, but further comradery between us and the Exiles was forged.
As our week in Hamburg drew to a close, it was clear that the entire squad had exerted themselves to the full. Exhaustion was widespread. Bodies were aching. “Next year shall we just go for a long weekend?” was a suggestion thrown about by many, answered by a chorus of consenting mumbles. In retrospect, surely this fatigue was just a sure sign of a week enjoyed to the maximum. Bring on next year!
A special thanks to Alex Clark (Tour Secretary) and Chris Rowlands (Social secretary) for their tireless work in getting the tour organised, and ensuring everything ran smoothly whilst we were there.
UTBRs!
Alex Aylward, Tour Captain and Vice-Captain of the CCRFC 2013-2014
Rugby VII - May Bumps, Day 3
We started the day fearing that our bad luck from the previous days may continue, with our stroke Dan ill and unable to row. However, at the last moment, a replacement going by the name of Danny was found. Sam moved from 4 to stroke, Pete moved from 6 to 4, and Danny subbed in at 6. It took a little while for the crew to adapt, but when we reached our station we were ready.
As sandwich boat, we had a difficult task ahead of us. However, it seemed like luck was on our side today. Magdalene M3 may have taken half a length off us by the plough, but after that we found a good rhythm and held them. The headwind in the Reach, favourable to a heavy crew like ourselves, did not faze us, and we pulled clear of Magdalene along the reach. Relentlessly, we battled on, with the power still coming on after an epic show of commitment, and by the top finish we were a good 6 lengths ahead of Magdalene.
Our day was not over yet. We had to then catch Hughes Hall M2 in the M4 division. By now, we were all tired, but eager to bump, or even overbump on St Edmunds. With nobody chasing us, we gave it everything. Unfortunately, it was not quite enough, as even though we had one whistle on Hughes after our start, they smelled Jesus ahead and closed in for a bump in the gut. Another solid rowover; unquestionable effort from everyone, following Sam's great lead. Time to catch Jesus M4 tomorrow. The game continues...
Alex Clark
Rugby VII - May Bumps, Day 2
After the bad luck of day 1, the crew were excited for the opportunity of revenge on Jesus IV. We knew there was a possibility of a long row, as they had had a fast start the day before, but unfazed, we broke out of the start with much gusto. The first whistle came quickly, but at the cost of a lot of energy. Nevertheless, our sloppy rowing was still superior to those around us as we had pulled to 2 lengths ahead of Hughes Hall II, and got 2 whistles on Jesus by first post corner.
It got interesting here; a big push from the whole boat refreshed the pace and by grassy corner we had reeled in Jesus to a canvas. However, Hughes Hall somehow achieved a bigger one, and ate a length out of our lead by this time. A tough time getting around the corner meant Hughes Hall caught yet more ground, and despite being able to hear the breaths and gasps of Jesus IV, we were left at the whim of the speedy Hughes Hall bow just before the Plough.
Dan Fisher
2012-13 MATCH REPORTS
