Harris Sports News

Harris Rugby Visits France

 FRANCE-2001

ON THE 27TH OF MAY 2001, ALONG WITH YOUNGER MEMBERS OF DUNDEE JUNIOR RUGBY CLUB, THE HARRIS 2ND-YR RUGBY TEAM SET OUT ON AN EPIC ADVENTURE TO THE COUNTRY THEY CALL FRANCE!!! I DUNCAN MACKENZIE DECIDED TO GO WITH THEM AND REPORT ON THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF THEIR TRIP. (THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE FACT I'M ON THE RUGBY TEAM)

    FRIDAY 27TH APRIL

            AFTER GETTING OUR PHOTO TAKING OUTSIDE THE SCHOOL AT 16:00 WE LEFT HARRIS.  FOR THE FIRST FEW HOURS OF THE JOURNEY EVERYBODY WAS ON A HIGH, BUT WE SOON CALMED DOWN. THE BUS STOPED ROUGHLY EVERY THREE HOURS. OUR FIRST STOP WAS JUST OVER THE ENGLISH BORDER OUTSIDE CARLISLE. WE TRAVELLED THROUGH THE NIGHT UNTIL WE REACHED DOVER AT 03:30, MAKING A FEW STOPS ON THE WAY, TO BUY FOOD&MAGAZINES ETC... (UNFORTUNATELY I CAN'T TELL YOU WHAT WAS IN THESE MAGAZINES CAUSE IT WOULD PROBABLY GET SOME PEOPLE IN TROUBLE)

     SATURDAY 28TH APRIL

             WE ARRIVED IN DOVER AT 03:30, AT THIS TIME NOT MANY PEOPLE HAD SLEPT, AND THOSE THAT HAD WERE LUCKY IF THEIR EYEBROWS WERE STILL INTACT. ON THE FERRY IT WAS EXTREMELY WET AND WINDY. AFTER THAT LONG BUS JOURNEY WE NEEDED TO FRESHEN UP, JAMES DECIDED THAT WE SHOULD DO THIS BY RUNNING AROUND THE DECK IN THE POURING RAIN...WITH OUR TOPS OFF!!!

              THE REST OF THE JOURNEY THROUGH FRANCE WAS RATHER BORING. WE ARRIVED OUTSIDE PARIS AT AROUND 07:00, AT THIS TIME SOME OF US STILL HADN'T SLEPT. WHILST GOING THROUGH PARIS WE STAYED IN THE BUS, AND EVENTUALLY I GOT SOME SLEEP.

              WHEN WE ARRIVED IN ORLEANS IT WAS AROUND 15:00, AS YOU CAN IMAGINE SOME OF US WERE EXTREMELY TIRED AND WERE TOLD TO GO TO OUR ROOMS AND EITHER SLEEP OR BEQUIET. THAT IS WHY WE DECIDED TO HAVE A BOXING MATCH IN THE ROOM NEXT TO DAVIE NICHOL (THE COACH THAT ORGANISED EVERYTHING)...LET'S JUST SAY HE WAS NOT HAPPY!!! 

              WE TRAVELLED FROM THE FOOTBALL STADIUM (WHERE WE WERE STAYING), TO THE RUGBY STADIUM (WHERE WE GOT OUR MEALS). ON THE FIRST EVENING WE MET SOME OF THE FRENCH PLAYERS AND THEIR COACHES ETC... AS WELL AS THE PLAYERS OUR AGE, THERE WAS ALSO A NEW-ZEALANDER WHO PLAYS PROFESSIONALLY FOR "RUGBY CLUB ORLEANS" AND HAS ALSO PLAYED FOR THE NEW-ZEALAND CHIEFS!!!  WE ARRIVED BACK AT THE FOOTBALL STADIUM AT AROUND 22:30, AND WENT STRAIGHT OFF TO SLEEP.

      SUNDAY 29TH APRIL

TOURNAMENT DAY

               STILL ASLEEP WE WOKE-UP AT 08:00, GOT DRESSED, HAD BREAKFAST, AND THEN WENT BACK TO THE RUGBY STADIUM. WHEN WE ARRIVED THERE WE WERN'T SURE OF THE RULES AND EVEN WHAT SIZE OF PITCH WE'D BE PLAYING ON. AFTER A LONG WARM-UP WITH MR OSBOURNE, WE WERE READY TO PLAY. THE MATCHES WENT LIKE THIS,

                      MATCH           SCORE          TRY-SCORERS

                               1                        1-2                  BEN CORMACK           1-TRY     

                         2                        4-1                  DUNCAN MACKENZIE   2-TRIES

                                                                        JAMES WEYERS           1-TRY

                                                                        GRANT DUNCAN          1-TRY

                         3                        1-1                  RHYS JONES               1-TRY

                         4                        2-4                  MICHAEL LESTER         1-TRY

                                                                        MARK HOGG              1-TRY

                         5                        5-0                  BEN CORMACK          1-TRY

                                                                        DUNCAN MACKENZIE   1-TRY

                                                                        MICHAEL LESTER         1-TRY

                                                                        GRANT DUNCAN          1-TRY

                                                                        RITCHARD McIVER        1-TRY

                         6                        6-0                  GRANT DUNCAN          2-TRIES

                                                                        MARK LYNN               1-TRY

                                                                        MAX WALKER             1-TRY

                                                                        BEN CORMACK           1-TRY

                                                                        MICHAEL LESTER          1-TRY

            OUT OF THE BEST 15 TEAMS IN FRANCE WE CAME 5TH!!! WE PROBABLY COULD'VE COME 4TH AS WE HAD IN OUR GROUP THE TWO TEAMS WHO GOT THROUGH TO THE FINAL. THESE WERE ALSO THE ONLY TWO TEAMS WE WERE BEATEN BY.

           THE FIRST MATCH WAS AGAINST "RUGBY CLUB ORLEANS" AT THIS POINT WE WERE STILL NOT SURE OF THE RULES AND WE DIDN'T PLAY TO OUR FULL POTENTIAL. WE WERE LUCKY TO GET A TRY OUT OF THAT MATCH.

           AFTER PLAYING RUBBISH IN THE FIRST MATCH, EVERYONE PICKED UP THEIR GAME AND PLAYED SOME GOOD RUGBY IN THE SECOND.

           THE THIRD MATCH WAS MORE EXCITING. CRISS AND MATT WERE BOTH SENT OFF, MATT FOR PUNCHING SOMEONE WHO WAS SITTING ON HIS LEG, (HE SAID HE DIDN'T) AND I'M NOT SURE ABOUT CRISS. IN THIS MATCH WE COULD'VE AND SHOULD'VE PLAYED BETTER AGAINST A RELOTAVELY EASY TEAM.

           ALTHOUGH THE THIRD MATCH WAS FUN, THE FOURTH WAS DEFINITLEY THE BEST!!

    UNLIKE IN SCOTLAND, FRENCH GIRLS ARE ALLOWED TO PLAY WITH THE BOYS AT RUGBY. AT FIRST WE WEREN'T SURE IF SHE WAS A GIRL, AND AFTER THE MATCH WE WERE EVEN MORE UNSURE. ASWELL AS BEING ABLE TO TACKLE AND PASS AS GOOD AS A BOY, SHE COULD ALSO STICK-UP FOR HERSELF!!! THROUGHOUT THE MATCH SHE WAS THROWING PEOPLE OFF HER, AND AT THE END SHE EVEN HAD THE CHEEK TO ELBOW MICHAEL IN THE HEAD (ON PURPOSE)              SHE IS NOW KNOWN AS "THE WOMEN MAN BEATER" OR "SHE-MAN" FOR SHORT.

              AFTER THE GROUP STAGES WE WENT INTO PLAY-OFFS FOR   5TH,6TH,7TH,&8TH PLACE.

THESE WERE RATHER EASY AND BECAME BORING AFTER A WHILE.

              HERE IS THE CAPTAIN'S THOUGHTS ON HOW THE TOURNAMENT WENT FOR HIS TEAM,

                            "I THOUGHT WE PLAYED WELL AND HARD. WE WERE

                              A WEE-BIT RUSTY AT FIRST, BUT SOON WE STARTED

                              PLAYING AS A TEAM AND GOT A POSITION THAT

                              WE MERITED.

                              IT WAS A GOOD EXPERIENCE FOR ALL OF US, WE

                              TASTED A BIT OF CONTINENTAL RUGBY AND WE

                              ENJOYED A LAUGH AS A TEAM..."  (BY JAMES WEYERS)

             FOR A CHANGE NONE OF OUR TEAM WAS BADLY INJURED. BUT MALCOLM MACKENZIE (MY WEE BROTHER), NEEDED TO GO TO HOSPITAL FOR AN OPERATION, AND 12 STITCHES ON HIS LEG. THIS HAPPENED AFTER HE SCORED A TRY FOR THE UNDER 10 TEAM AND THE OTHER BOY TRIED TO JUMP OVER HIM, (UNSUCCESFULLY) AND SPLIT HIS LEG OPEN.

             THAT EVENING WE WENT BACK TO THE RUGBY STADIUM FOR TEA, (FOR ANOTHER FRENCH MEAL). LIKE THE NIGHT BEFORE THERE WAS SOME OF THE FRENCH PLAYERS BUT THIS TIME "ANGELIQUE" WAS THERE WITH HER WEE BROTHER!!! UP UNTIL THEN, THE ONLY GIRL WE HAD SEEN WAS "SHE-MAN", AND ALTHOUGH THIS IS DEBATEABLE SHE LOOKED LIKE MORE OF A GIRL. ANYWAY IF YOU WANT TO PHONE HER, HER NUMBER IS :0033 67*02****  

             MONDAY 30TH APRIL

             IN THE MORNING WE HAD A CIVIC RECEPTION WITH THE MAYOR OF ORLEANS. AFTER HAVING A TOUR OF THE CITY CHAMBERS, WE RETURNED TO THE RUGBY STADIUM FOR LUNCH. AFTER OUR LOVELY MEAL OF RABBIT, WE RETURNED TO THE CITY CENTRE FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS WHERE WE WERE ALLOWED TO WALK AROUND ON OUR OWN.

               IN THE EVENING WE HAD TEA IN THE RUGBY STADIUM, AND SAID THANKYOU TO THE FRENCH ORGANISERS.

          TUESDAY 1ST MAY 

               WE LEFT EARLY IN THE MORNING SO WE COULD HAVE AS MUCH TIME AS POSSIBLE IN PARIS. WHEN WE ARRIVED IN PARIS, THE WEATHER PICKED UP A BIT, (BECAUSE IT HAD BEEN RUBBISH THE REST OF THE TIME). AFTER BUYING LASER-PENS ETC... FROM THE "LOOKEY LOOKEY MEN" WE EMBARKED ON MR STIBBLE'S TOUR OF PARIS. ALTHOUGH IT WAS LONG EVERYONE REALLY ENJOYED IT, VISITING SITES LIKE, LE LOUVRE, NOTRE DAME, AND THE EIFFEL TOWER.

               WE LEFT PARIS AT AROUND 17:00 AND GOT TO CALAIS AT 01:00 STOPPING ONCE ON THE WAY FOR SOMETHING TO EAT AND GO TO THE TOILET.

          WEDNESDAY  2ND MAY

                UNFORTUNATELY ON THE FERRY COMING BACK WE WEREN'T ALLOWED OUT ON TO DECK, AND IT WAS RATHER BORING!!!

                 ONCE BACK ON THE BUS, MOST PEOPLE SLEPT UNTILL ABOUT 07:00 STOPPING EVERY THREE HOURS FOR FUEL/FOOD ETC...

                 OUR JOURNEY CAME TO AN END AT ABOUT 12:00 WHEN WE ARRIVED BACK IN DUNDEE, (AND THEN WENT TO BED).

                 ON BEHALF OF THE RUGBY TEAM I WOULD LIKE TO THANK MR NICHOL, MR STIBBLES, AND MR OSBOURNE FOR ORGANISING THE TRIP AND LOOKING AFTER US.

BY DUNCAN MACKENZIE 2CB