Thursday: "COME ON IRISH!"

After the midweek game against Windsor RFC, we caught the train to Reading, and took a shuttle to the Madejski Stadium to watch a top level rugby union game.


" The thumb of Destiny" (my dad's) holding the ticket to the Heineken Cup Quarter final game between the London Irish (from Reading haha) and Bourgoin (from France). Courtesy of Coach Joseph's connections at Bracknell RFC (thank you Mark).

The Highlanders squad were given the privilege of being the Honor Guard as the teams ran out onto the pitch. We were mentioned in the match program. This game was televised live, and hopefully some of you at home in NC were able to see us welcoming the players.

It was a great moment, and one of the highlights of the whole tour for us. Really cool.

It was a good game with many lead changes, but it was a pity that London Irish lost in the last minute. Although they lost, we were very involved in cheering them on (especially Ryan).

"IRRIISSSHHHH NOOOOO!!!!"

Posted by Robert Jordan

Friday: Twickenham and Central London

At 9am we got on the coach and headed up the M3 towards South-West London - Destination: Twickenham (the biggest rugby-only stadium in the world).After spending time in the Rugby Store (and almost missing the right entrance to the stadium), the group assembled and commenced their tour of Twickenham (aka"Headquarters") at the top of the South Stand.

It's hard to imagine that this was once known as "Billy Williams' Cabbage Patch".

Jeep Morrison took a closer look at the work of the Twickenham field crew.......
..... and the players decided to count the petals on the England Rose (15)......



....before bidding farewell to HQ, we checked the wind direction from the famous weathervane high above the North Stand (which has Hermes/Mercury, the messenger of the gods, showing how to pass the ball properly at speed!). After some desperate last-minute purchases, the squad got back onto the coach and headed into London.

At 3pm we arrived and split into groups with chaperones, and headed off on a planned walking tour of London SW1. Along the way the groups visited/passed famous landmarks, such as: The Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, the (original and best) Hard Rock Cafe, The London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, Whitehall and Trafalgar Square.

"Steven. Who's that woman behind you, and is that her house?"

One last picture at Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square, before heading off to a budget dinner in Panton Street, and then it was back to the coach and Wokingham.

Robert Jordan & Richard Jordan

Sunday: Final game against Bracknell and last day of the tour

The final game of the tour was played on a damp, cool early Easter Sunday afternoon, having been brought forward from 3pm to 1215.

The touring Highlanders were at full strength, as were Bracknell, and this was a full-blooded, evenly-matched encounter.

It was a great game to watch. The Highlanders had clearly assimilated the learnings from the earlier games, and adapted very effectively to the faster English passing and tackling game, while still retaining their strengths upfront at the lineout and in the loose.

The front row was a keenly contested area throughout, with the Highlanders props packing-down against much bigger and more experienced opponents. (It was good to see them all sharing tips and techniques after the game!!)

Both teams stepped-up their performance from the previous week, and it was good to see that despite the closeness of the scores, the full squad was used. The Highlanders will have learned a lot that will help them in their preparation for the upcoming Souths.

In the end 20-20 was a fair result for a hard-fought contest, played in the best traditions of the game.

"Take me home country roads".

Monday morning at Heathrow

Everyone is accounted for and delivered at the airport. One group has already boarded for the AA departure direct to RDU. The rest of us are flying different routes. The majority of the boys are flying back on Continental via Newark from a different terminal. Both the US and the Canadian U17 national teams are walking around here too! Jane congratulated the Canadians on their win but added we supported the US team. It's been a fantastic trip!

I hope this will not be the end of the blog, but that others will post more stories and photos. Send mail to prins@unc.edu to be added as an author.

The Last Day

In a sea of green Brits, a black blur emerges from the masses. He has the rugby ball tucked gracefully into his arms with a machine-like grip. Above the sound of raindrops pitter-pattering on the worn field rises an uproar of cheers for the young rugby star Willem Prins as he scores the Highlanders' first points of the game with a thrilling break away try. Then, minutes later, a penalty kick succesfully converted by Graham Joseph gave the Highlanders an eight point lead. However, Bracknell were not about to let their spirits down. The Bracknell boys played hard with all their hearts and evened the table with an eight point run. In the second half the Highlanders were down, but Willem soon scored an impressive try to reduce the Highlander defecit to only 2 points. Sebastian then let the Highlanders take the lead, and Graham made the kick, making the score 20-15 Then in a heart lifting turn of events, Bracknell narrowly missed a penalty kick by hitting a crossbar. Unfortunately, Bracknell were not done. Several minutes before the end of the game, Bracknell scored a try with agressive forces drawing the game at 20-20. The game came to a close with both teams worn and exhausted. The Highlanders sustained a few injuries, Michael Pugliese suffered a minor cut on his leg (but continued playing), Matt Daniels took a hard hit to the sternum, among other minor bumps and bruises. After the game the two teams came together to take pictures and have a delightful post-game meal. MVP awards for the tour were given to Sebatian Torres of the backs and Michael Pugliese of the forwards.

Written by: Jules Hill, Emily Prins, Gabe Blanchard

(Happy belated birthday Dad!) -Zach

Day Two: The West Country

A bright, sunny and blustery day greeted the Highlanders' first day trip to the West Country.

The first stop was Bath (known by the Romans as Aquae Sulis), and is one of several English cities that built their rugby or cricket grounds within sight of a cathedral or abbey.

We split into several groups and headed into the city.

Carlos Torres is admiring the view of the Abbey from the 'Rec'.... home of the famous Bath Rugby club (est. 1865).

"Now that's a rugby field".

After lunch (Cornish pasties, fish & chips etc), we got back onboard and headed to Millfield School to watch some international rugby.
We raised the flags and saw the US U17s play the Canada U17 team. Several of the Highlanders players knew members of the US team.

After the game we had a special briefing from the US U17 team coach, followed by a tour of the school's very impressive sporting facilities, including the pool......

..and the cricket field which has a great view of Glastonbury Tor (where King Arthur is reputed to be buried. Last stop was at Stonehenge in Wiltshire. Overall a great day.

Windsor Game

On Thursday the Highlanders faced a tough side from the Windsor Club. Windsor started strong, scoring in the first 10, the conversion was good forcing the highlanders to step up to the challenge. Following another converted Windsor try the Highlanders scored in the corner off of a penalty, the conversion hit the post for a score of 14-5 to Windsor. Following huge pressure by the Highlanders forwards Windsor picked up another two tries to end the half 28-5. The Windsor forwards were clearly being pressured by the powerful Highlander pack, but the backs struggled against the experienced English players and the fast, expansive style of play.
The second half opened well for the Highlanders with two tries. Following heavy pressure in the Windsor half the Highlanders had a try held up. Windsor was penalized and the Highlanders scored a try off of the penalty. Windsor fought back but the Highlanders were able to punch one more in before the Windsor backs were able to run another two in. The final score didn't really match the game, the Highlanders held the ball for more than 60% of the game but were unable to capitalize on it due to the strong Windsor defense. A great game with a final score of 40-19 to Windsor.

Roster: Bahner, Pugliese, Werner, Daniels, Thomas, J. Harrington-Smith, Jordan, Painter, Joseph, Prins, Stamper, Marshall, Smith, Harper, S. Torres
Subs: Van Valkenburgh, Morrison, Mackman, Workman, Blanchard, Gazzola
Tries: Torres (2), Harper
Conversions: Joseph (2)

Compiled by Jim Morrison and Graham Joseph