Week 2 thoughts/observations

Down goes another week so here are some more thoughts/observations:

•    Just like in English, punctuation is important in Afrikaans.  The difference between the word for high school and whore school is an umlaut (hoërskool vs hoerskool).
•    If SA and the US have a food in common, SAs feel theirs is better.  For example, biltong is “like beef jerky but better” and a braai is “like a barbeque but better.”
•    Evan hates chairs.
•    Emily might not be the strongest one here but she outworks all four of us in the gym.
•    The rain lasts the whole time the sun should be up.
•    There are at least two squirrels in Stellenbosch.
•    The kids on the field do more talking to the ref than kids back home.
•    SA doesn’t know what Chick fil A or Five Guys are and that’s a shame.
•    The “tournaments” that we officiate do not have eliminations or a final winner or brackets of any kind.
•    The thing called a “text” is referred to an “SMS.”
•    The gods don’t want Hendrick to test his fitness because the only two times, since I’ve been here, that we scheduled a speed/agility session with Hendrick “wanting to train” with us, rain has fallen from the previous night into the morning. 
•    Our mental preparedness classes will probably be thing that helps my refereeing the most while I’m here.
•    During classroom sessions there is nowhere to hide; we all have to answer questions, make arguments, defend our on-field choices, and be put on the spot but we all leave the session a little better than when we entered.
•    With the high volume of matches available on a weekly basis we can only prevent ourselves from not improving by not setting appropriate goals and learning from our success/failures.
•    With four other people, in the house alone, willing to listen to you talk about rugby there are many opportunities for hearing different perspectives, bouncing ideas, seeking criticism, and keeping sane (being so far from our homes).
•    I’m ready for the hostel league to start that way I’m around players that are about my age.  So far the matches have been youths and high schoolers.
•    These last seven days flew by much faster that first.  Hopefully that trend does not continue because I am really enjoying my time here.

All Americans

This weekend is a long weekend for us so Ryan went back home and Geoff went to stay with a friend in Cape Town so only we three Americans are in town.  Hendrick decided since we have today off we should have a braai (SA version of a BBQ).  He picked us up, took us to his house, we watched a few Super 15 matches, and ate food all afternoon and into the evening with his family.  We even watched some cricket (Emily and Evan both learned the rules).  Not a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon if you ask me.

   

 

 

 

Today is Human Rights Day in SA

Today we each refereed three matches at Paarl Gym, a high school athletic complex.  Mine were U16, U19, then U16 again.  U15 and U14 were also played.  One of the teams was New Orleans so I, of course, asked if they were from the states and the answer was no.  I was told before the day started that the parents at this event would be more vocal than those we had previously seen.  When I arrived at my first pitch for kickoff at 8:30 there were hardly any parents around and there were still not very many parents at my field for my final kickoff at 12:30.  The other referees didn't have any problems with spectators either so that was good.

It was very hot during the afternoon.  The temperature was probably only in the low 80s but the sun was playing no games.  At halftime of my final game I decided to take a seat near some spectators under a shady tree.  After sitting there on a hill for a minute a kid, maybe 12 or 13 years old, appears next to me, arm extended, with a can of grape flavored Fanta in hand.  I didn't get his name and I don't know where he went after he gave me the drink but I appreciated his very kind gesture.

Bergpad update: The trail is actually 2.33 miles.  I beat Ryan by one second but lost to Evan by 10 seconds but it was Evan's personal best so I take some credit for that.

Fans watching from the shade

The clubhouse

U19

U16

U15

Left to right: Evan, Jason (non-academy), Kahlil, Hendrick (our admin), Neil (non-academy), and Emily.  Ryan and Geoff not pictured

It's always sunny...

Seven days have come and gone so here are some week one thoughts/observations:

• There had to be a perfect storm for this academy to exist: a powerhouse school with accessible facilities and personnel, a city that, when rugby is in full swing, has dozens and dozens of teams playing each week, a live-in high that serves meals to the students that can also feed us twice a day everyday, a house in walking distance to all of these things, and who knows what else being the scenes.
• Players either make smart, well-timed passes or they don't pass at all.
• In terms of sporting facilities, there are rugby pitches, tennis courts, and seemingly nothing else.
• On the whole, goods are notably less expensive here. I don't know if the cost of living is also lower but the fact that things are less expensive makes me want to spend money.
• There is no rest for the weary. My legs (and the others') have felt tired since the day I started. We run in the stadium or mountain, work legs at the gym, do water aerobics, walk everywhere for the first half of the day, and then referee multiple games in the afternoon.
• College level players are not faster than the top college players back home but their fundamentals are rock solid. I'm convinced all players, even the barefooted ones, wear stickum.
• As solitary as a referee's work can be, all five of us are here as a team; we challenge, critique, laugh at, debate, and support each other everyday.
• I haven't referred an official matches yet but no one argues with the refs. They don't even speak to Emily.
• There are no clouds in Stellenbosch.
• There are no police in  Stellenbosch.
• There is one squirrel in  Stellenbosch.
• Walking around town with bare feet is not only accepted but not questioned.
• Walking around town in tiny shorts is also not questioned.
• The five of us have high hopes for ourselves. Among us are dreams of the Olympics, 7s World Cup, 15s World Cup, and 7s World Series.
• The next eight weeks are going to be great.

Uphill both ways

This morning we ran the bergpad. It was a mountain run of about 1.5 miles. Emily and I were running the trail for the first time but the other three guys are no stranger to the run. Our goal was to finish the trail in under 20 minutes and we almost succeeded; the slowest times were 20:15 and 20:30. Sometime after the run Evan told Ryan, the best runner of the three refs here before me, that he shouldn't have let me beat him because I'll think I'm the fastest. Ryan responded, "He's not the fastest." We run the trail again on Thursday so we'll see how that goes. We'll see how that goes.

Monday evening saw the Maties (Stellies U) play their final home game of the Varsity Cup regular season. The fourth and final spot in the semi finals was on the line for both teams. The opponents were the defending champion Tuks so no pressure but either last year's champ or a perennial contender will be missing the playoffs.

This was probably the best 15s match I have ever seen in person. 11k of my closest friends and I filed into the Danie Craven Stadium with high hopes for the home team. The sun had set and the full moon was rising from behind the mountains. The temperature was in the mid 70s and there was little to no wind so it was a great night for some rugby. The Maties came out flat, losing most of their own lineouts and losing the ball within the attacking 22. Their defense was sound, however, so the Maties were only down 16-0 at halftime (try=5 conversion=3 penalty goal=2). The halftime speech by the coach and/or captain had to be Tebow-esque because a different team took the field for the second half. They came out, won their lineouts, held on to the ball (unless they were kicking it away), exploited gaps/overloads, and kept up the stout defense. The Tuks scored eight more points in the second half but not before the Maties scored 36 points of their own. On several occasions the Tuks were knocking on the door of the try line but the Maties were having none of it. The final score was 41-24, ending the reigning champions season and giving the SU students a reason to go partying on a Monday night. Next Monday we will travel to Cape Town to watch the semi final matchup against UCT. I'll bring my camera this time.

Apparently football isn't a big deal for Ivy League students because Emily asked if the atmosphere in the stadium tonight was similar to football at Florida. The answer was yes. The feeling tonight was like the feeling after that South Carolina field goal was blocked before UF went on to win the championship in 2006.

Saturday's a rugby day

The tournament today was more of a youth festival; score was not kept so there wasn’t a “winner” at the end of the day.  The teams were either U11 or U13 and I think some players had double duty.  The day started with 7s using a playing space that fit between the 22m line and try line.  After six 7s matches there were six 10s matches playing on half the field, and then there were four 15s matches on full field.  From the teams I refereed there were two standout individuals from different teams who, unfortunately, I did not get a chance to photograph.  I saw both of them during the 7s portion of the day.  One of them was unfairly fast for someone so young.  There was sound tackling throughout the day but when this kid had the ball with a sliver of space he would dart around anyone defenders near him.  Once he broke the first line of defense the rest of his team started heading back to mid field for kick off and this kid would run, not walk, back to midfield ready to score again.  He alone had three or four tries during the one half he played.  The other kid was not as nimble but his individual skill was head and shoulders about those around him.  His stiff arm put several defenders on the ground, he ran over a few people, made some beautiful offloads, and had a solid restart kick.  After that one match I think that young guy is going to be a Springbok one day.  My biggest take away from the day was that the kids just wanted to play rugby.  They didn’t argue with the refs, their teammates, or the other teams and they played hard for every minute of every match.  Even though the matches didn’t count for anything it was a pleasure to see these kids do their thing.

I was supposed to referee eight matches but after the seventh one my Achilles tendon was feeling so tight that I limped when I walked so I asked Ryan to do the match for me.  I propped my foot up and iced the tendon on and off for about an hour then decided to go looking for food. 

Vendors had been there all day serving food and I was pretty hungry since I had been running around all morning (the first match kicked off at 8:15a and the final match at 1p).  Marius suggested I try samoosas and pancakes.  A samosa is curried beef stuffed into a puff pastry type pocket and a pancake is a thick crepe rolled up with cinnamon and sugar.  Both were very inexpensive and pretty tasty.  I ended up having six samoosas and three pancakes.

Evan looking mighty creepy

Ryan ready for kickoff

Emily taking it all in

Samoosa

Samoosa insides

Pancake

Pancake insides

After the festival Evan and Geoff (looks unhappy about the try he just awarded) were to referee one half each of a scrimmage between the Maties U21 and U19 club sides.  Many of the players involved had already played in scrimmages earlier in the day but the U19 did not care about fatigue or age and dominated the match from start to finish.

U21 in yellow

Quick note: Emily has a personal blog here and we have a shared blog here.  Thank you for reading.