Footy Camp and Rugby

Well, what a crazy weekend it was down here. Over Saturday and Sunday we had our footy camp, which is basically a weekend retreat for team building. Saturday morning started off nice and early with a scratch-match at 9 am. It was just an intra-squad scrimmage so the intensity wasn't full-on, but it was still a good litmus test for myself. I started off a bit nervous, but after the opening bounce I calmed down and got into the flow. I actually played pretty well (played half-back, my normal position), but unfortunately my side lost. Still though, the fitness and skills of the team were pretty good, so I'm looking forward to the season with confidence! Our next scratch-match is next week, so I should have much more confidence and play even better!

The game ended around 10:45, so after a quick shower the team took off to the camp grounds as we had to arrive by 11:45 (the grounds were 45 minutes away). Once at the grounds we had a quick lunch, broke into groups, and then straight into the activities. Our first activity was a team exercise where we had to solve a problem which involved moving eggs, two barrels, and two planks of wood from one end of a imaginary pit to the other. It wasn't difficult as we finished in 3 minutes. After that we had a game of basketball outside in the baking sun. It was only about 90 degrees...no big deal. It was a lot of fun as I realized the Australians aren't very good. I laughed the entire time. I knew it was going to be fun when the point guard threw the ball over the backboard on his first layup attempt.

After basketball we had a ropes course. It isn't at all like it sounds as it was actually a ropes climbing course with rock climbing, repelling walls, a zip line, and cargo nets. What a great time. I've never done anything like it before and it was heaps of fun. Even though I'm scared of heights, it was great fun and pretty darn cool to jump off a building on a zip line. After that we had a quick dinner and then the nightly activities, which was a team meeting, watching a game of footy, and drinking beer. I was exhausted so I was in bed by midnight while some other people were up until 1...crazy Australians.

Well, those people who stayed up late sure regretted it as the entire team had a 6:30 am survivor challenge. The challenge involved a swimming leg, filling a pale with sea water only using shot glasses (which took forever), a digging section, and the putting together of a puzzle. My team came in second, which wasn't bad considering we couldn't find the puzzle pieces buried in the sand for 10 minutes. The only bad part was that it was freezing outside!!!

The rest of the day had some more activities: Cricket, Volleyball, and a scavenger hunt. Everything ended around noon, which was fine by me as I was rooted. All I wanted to do was to sleep, but that wasn't to be as that night Jared and I went to watch a rugby match between the Western Force and the Crusaders (out of New Zealand), who are part of the Super 14. We scored some free tickets from a friend on the Scarborough team as his girlfriend is a massage therapist for the Force. The game was incredible as our seats were in the corner of end zone three rows up from the field. Directly in front of us we saw three trys scored, a few scrums, and the game losing turnover. Each side featured players for their National teams, so the level of competition was superb. Nick, if you're reading this, these are some MASSIVE people. It's like watching an NFL linemen who is pure muscle, no fat, who can run a 4.5, and has a chest as thick as a tree. Not quite like DePaul rugby. Unfortunately my battery for my camera was drained so I didn't get to take any pictures, but I'm sure there will be more opportunities!!