Lindfield Junior Rugby Tour 2011
Lindfield Junior Rugby Tour 2011
Friday 23rd September to Monday 26th September reports and photos here ...
Tuesday 27th September to Thursday 29th reports and photos here ...
Friday 30th September to Saturday 1st October reports and photos here...
The day of the long goodbye. There were final photos in front of the Stinky Bus, games of drunken boy (the loose translation of scissors-paper-rock), chants of chicka-chicka-goiza (no idea what that means), manic waving and our 21 hour journey was underway.
The families followed the bus to Kansai Airport where we had Round 2 of the farewells over coffee at Starbucks with our host families. Starbucks was part of the slow re-acclimatisation process for us back to our normal life. The full readjustment could take some time and we might be randomly bowing and saying "mushy-mush" for a while. There were a few tears and some more frantic waving as we headed through the gates and straight to the duty free shops; let's hope our wives don't compare notes because there was some commonality in choices.
And so our journey comes to an end. Many thanks to those who put it extraordinary efforts to organise such a memorable tour. Firstly to all at Kawanishi for hosting; President Kuzuo, Kuni and Kimi Eto and all of the host families especially the mums who devoted so much time to making it such a fantastic trip.
On the Lindfield side, the biggest thanks go to Andrew and Isabel Heaven and Geoff Sullivan, who weren't even on the tour but put in many hours over many months. Thanks to our on-tour leaders, John Sears and Jason Parata, who did not have the chance to relax as they made sure we were all doing the right things at the right times, giving the right presents to the right people and putting out a few fires along the way. Thanks to our coaches, Tim Wedlock, Paul Evans, Jason Parata and Phil Stockwell that made sure we came home with the silverware. Thanks to Zena Gardiner for translating particularly at the bizarre press conference. Thanks to the photographers, Tony Davis and John Clark for giving us a detailed, high quality record of events and especially to John Clark for working late into the night to get the shots and commentary on the interweb. Thanks to Paul Evans and Angela Quinn for the cultural presentations which were a real step up from previous years and the stars Max Evans, Jack Sharp, Jack Dudley and Nimmy Stockwell. Thanks to the human auditor, James Sutton, who took on a tough role and finished with a 100% success rate, as well as providing one of the tour highlights on karaoke night. Thanks to Peter O'Donoghue for transport logistics. Thanks to Margot Reimer for her help with the gear and presents pre-trip. A final thanks to the boys who all got on extremely well, and were as well behaved, respectful, polite and easy-going as any group of 21 boys could be.
Sayonnara from your correspondents Matt Penfold and Tim Rocks.
Travel and General Photos here ...
2nd Report
Our last full day in Japan was a local derby in Osaka that was to feature 4 games for each age group including a game against the reigning championship club Nishinomiya, a duel with Kita Kobe, a Barbarians event with mixed Lindfield/Kawanishi squads and a final to decide the day.
The opening ceremony commenced under cloudy skies and Jack Dudley's (and a very reluctant Kawanishi Player) birthday celebrated in the usual manner in front of the whole tournament squad.
Under 11s vs Nishinomiya
It was a tense start with Captain Chapman arguing the toss literally, seeming to question the legal standing of scissor-paper-rock.
Nishinomiya had a huge No 1 and some hard running backs. They managed to hold off Lindfield for a few minutes before Reimer scored the first try from a penalty.
The next try from Stockwell was the try of the week; a multiple sidestepping effort reminiscent of Campese in the 1991 World Cup against NZ. Chapman was next to score after a Reimer steal in a ruck.
Dudley's radar was off with his kickoffs with one going dead and another not going over the half way line, but he had an outstanding game otherwise. He was the next to score, and spent the rest on the match on a personal mission to tackle the big No 1 at every opportunity.
James Price then got his first try for the week before Parata got another. Tai has really enjoyed his time in the centres this week.
The Nishinomiya No 1 was then rewarded for his hard running with a barging try down the sideline. Rocks took another knock but responded to Super Coach Parata's yelling to "get up and get angry".
Parata junior and Reimer then finished with second tries for a 40-5 win. Tries to Reimer 2, Parata 2 and 1 each to Price, Stockwell, Chapman and Dudley.
Stand out players were Reimer for his seeking in the ruck, Dudley for his tackling and Stockwell for that try.
Under 12's game 1 v Kita Kobe
Resplendent in a fetching red kimono, forwards coach Paul 'lady boy' Evans was lucky not to become the target of the unsolicited attention of backs coach Tim 'sumo-san' Wedlock who's bleary eyes suggested the night before might not have ended as happily as he hoped the competition would today.
Led to the field by Game Captain, James Penfold the Lindfield team began well with Penfold & Sharp gathering & taking the ball down to the Kita Kobe 5 meter line. 2 Nishinomiya line outs & some aggressive defensive work by Lindfield led to a turnover which allowed Richard Sears to break over for our first try. The restart was crisp with Lindfield regathering through Sharp who fed to James Davis who raced down the wing for our second.
Our kick offs were a little deep through the first 1/2 of the game and we had to come back for 1/2 way scrums. Again A good tackle from Sharp allowed Nick ODonohe to clean out, feed to George Gardiner who broke the centers for try number 3.
Kita Kobe fought back but then ODonohue stole the ball and weaves his way to his first. Sears did some great work to regain from a Kita Kobe knock-on which led to the first real back line movement of the game finally reaching Gardiner who broke 2 tackles to score again. Quickly regained by our boys by Gardiner he went again very quickly and nearly made the line with following a rolling tackle Marty Wedlock gathered on the line & pushed down his first.
Again Kita Kobe fought back keeping possession for their longest stretch of the game. However some strong defense by our forwards led to a breakdown from which Penfold regained & pushed through for his first. Another steel by ODonohue from the kick off saw James Davis go in again. Kita Kobe going forward from the restart looked threatening till a steel by Penfold then Sam Spanton and Evans stepping combined to go within a few meters before the ball went to ground only for Sears to gather & weave through for our final try.
Lindfield 45 Kita Kobe 0 (Sears 2, Davis 2, Gardiner 2, ODonohue 1, Wedlock 1, Penfold 1)
Under 11s Barbarians with Kawanishi
A bit of fun with the game against Kawanishi. It followed a Barbarians format with Sutton, Price, Rocks, Elston and Chapman wearing Kawanishi colours, and five Kawanishi boys in the blue and white.
It turned out to be a bar room brawl with the Lindfield boys out to settle some scores. Classmates Stockwell and Chapman lined each other up all match, and Chapman also went suspiciously high against Clark. Rocks was also one of the few players all week to nail Reimer.
A much more even game and there were some good tries. Stockwell got the first two and then Reimer got one through the middle all for Lindfield after a violent tussle for the ball with Chapman. A Kawa boy then scored for Lindfield before the try of the match was scored by Shogo Hidaka who jigged and sprinted down the line for Kawanishi's only try. Reimer then finished the game with a final try.
The final score was 25-5 with Stockwell 2, Reimer 2 and one to a Kawanashi boy. More importantly there were no injuries from the most violent game of the week.
Lindfield Barbarians U12`s Game 2 v Kawanishi Barbarians
The true spirit of Rugby was played out in a tightly fought contest where 4 boys from each club pulled on the colours of their rivals for our traditional Barbarians game. Wedlock, Gilmour, Gardiner & Penfold pulled on Kawanishi purple, while James Davis led the Lindfield Barbarian team as Game Captain.
The short field trapped ODonohue who kicked long & the resulting scrum began a see-saw battle in which possession & territory was exchanged many times. Sharp did well at the breakdown and finally made a break that could have been a try in the corner but a knock-on was called and Gardner took it up to the 1/2 way for Kawanishi. Max Evans stole, fed to Sharpe who went hard passing to Richard Sears who took the line for Lindfields first.
From the restart Penfold received for Kawanishi & they looked strong but ODonohue stole &, supported by Sears, made good yardage but the Kawanishi defense held him up & pushed back off their line. Kawanishi regained through Gardiner but a knock on was gathered up by Max Evans fed to ODonohue then to a a Kawanishi boy who again nearly pierced the Kawanshi defense. The arm wrestle continued till Max Evans burst through for Lindfields second.
The restart saw Gardner break 2 tackles great cleaning out by the Kawanishi pack with Gilmore pressing down the sideline before Sharpe stole for Lindfield. Finally, ODonohue swooped on the loose ball and flew to the line for Lindfields 3rd.
Wedlock & Penfold combined well for Kawanishi but Davis took up the challenge, stole & made some brave barging yards for Lindfield. The Kawanishi boys contributed strongly to the Lindfield attack passing to Sears who again weaved his way to the line.
Kawanishi had their best chance with a great run down the wing by one of their boys from ball delivered by Wedlock but ran into touch 10 meters from goal. Lindfield took clean ball from the line out and Sears sprinted away only to be pulled down by Wedlock & Gardiner. Davis cleaned out, broke 3 tackles going hard but was penalized. Penfolds quick tap gained him precious yards & Gardiner drove further forward before Evans reclaimed for Lindfield. Sears again set up an opening with Thompson breaking through 3 tackles to Sam Spanton who scored his first.
The final try of the game was by one of the Kawanishi boys playing for Lindfield after some excellent work by ODonohue, & Sharp. A great game played with passion & commitment by both teams.
Lindfield Barbarians 25 Kawanishi Barbarians 0 (Sears 1, Evans 1, ODonohue 1, Sears 1, Spanton 1)
Under 11s vs Kita Kobe
Captain Sutton won the toss with a suspiciously late scissor call. There followed a one-sided match against a very small opposition.
Highlights were Clark scoring his first try for the week closely followed by his second, and Elston also breaking his duck with a solid midfield run. Other tries went to Reimer, Stockwell 2, Chapman and Sutton.
With Lindfield down to 7 players, Kobe scored 2 late tries with one try scorer finishing with some Rocks' claret on his boot. Final score was 40-10 with tries to Clark 2, Elston, Reimer, Stockwell 2, Chapman and Sutton. Clark and Elston were best on ground.
Lindfield U12s Game 3 v Nishinomiya
Matty Wedlock Captained our boys for this game and made showed his skill with expertly targeted kick-offs on every occasion. Our boys started with a bang with ODonohue steeling the ball from a tough tackle and sprinting to the line for our first.
Nishinomiya fought hard all game but our second try went to Thompson running on the wing from a pass by ODonohue who followed shortly after with a second try of his own. Great work by Sharp and Wedlock fed the ball to Gardiner who made easy work of his first try of the game. Wedlock continued his great kicking game at the restart and a penalty to Lindfield gave Sears a look at the line and he burrowed through for the points in very opportunistic style. Sears tried again with his` wombat attack` but was held back. Nishinomiya then put together a great series of phases that led to their being awarded several penalties that had Lindfield on the back foot with the Nishinomiya centre showing great skill to finally give them a well deserved try at the final whistle.
Lindfield 25 Nishinomiya 5 (ODonohue 2, Thompson 1, Gardiner 1, Sears 1)
Under 11s Final vs Nishinomiya
This was the best game of rugby on tour. It became a battle between Nishi's huge No 1 and our entire forward pack. Not only was he enormous but he ran hard and straight and looked for the ball at every opportunity. Our forward pack (Reimer, Rocks and Price) lined up to take him on but at times he dragged 5 Lindfield players down the field. Reimer helping him off the ground after one big hit was a terrific moment.
Other highlights were Reimer's handoff to Chapman for the first try, and Reimer also catching our own kick off ball and scoring untouched up the middle. There were also tries to a sniping Stockwell, Parata, Elston, and 2 more to Stockwell before the break.
The second half was mostly a forward tussle before Parata went in and Chapman scored two quickly. By this stage the No 1 was going beserk with some cringing hits between him and Reimer. The No 1 was finally rewarded went he carried the entire Lindfield team over to score on the bell. The final score was 50-5 with tries to Stockwell 3, Chapman 2, Reimer 2, Parata 2 and Elston. Best on ground was the forward pack led by Reimer but strongly supported by Rocks and Price.
Final Lindfield Under 12`s v Nishinomiya
This was a tougher match than any on tour with possession swinging back & forth throughout the game.
It was obvious from the opening whistle that Nishinomiya were determined to step up to the challenge and try to take the Cup from the Boys from Down Under.
This was a tougher match than any on tour with possession swinging back & forth throughout the game. However some strong work by the forwards after a penalty by Nishinomiya led to ODonohue finding an opening and charging over for our first points. Sears folowed soon after with another great try to add to his significant tally for the tour.
The Nishinomiya never gave up and their strong centres combined to threaten our line time & time again before our backs set up Gardiner for4 a break that took our boys ahead by 3.
Nishinomiya came back through their quick passing and opened their account regaining composure and keeping their hopes alive but James Davis found the line on the blind side with a great run down the line just before 1/2 time.
The second half saw Gardiner & ODonohue add to their impressive list of touchdowns and Sears also kept his clever moves flowing with another try to the boys in blue & white. Nishinomiya wouldn`t give up and after a sustained attack went over for their second. Finally Gardiner & Odonohue scored one more each to end the game with an impressive 3 a`piece.
Lindfield 45 Nishinomiya 10 (ODonohue 3, Gardiner 3, Sears 2, Davis 1)
Official player of the day for the 11s was Stockwell. Across the day Lindfield scored 31 tries to 4. Stockwell 8, Reimer 7, Parata 4, Chapman 4, Clark 2, Elston 2, Price 1, Dudley 1, Sutton 1 and one to a Kawa boy in the barbars game.
Sam Spanton took a very well deserved award as Player of the Day for the 12`s
The day's rugby was followed by another trip to the beautiful Yamanohara Golf Club for our formal Farewell Dinner. The boys had one last chance to outclass our hosts efforts in the arts department, but, alas, it was painfully evident our skills lie on the paddock not the stage.. however they did a great job and certainly showed that in years to come they will be every bit the match of their parents when it comes their turn to front up for karaoke on their sons LJRC Tour of Japan circa 2026..
Zena Gardiner & Margot Reimer stole the show in their wonderful kimonos and were rewarded with an amazing performance by our host mothers who amazed us with a bell choir version of Waltzing Matilda and their own voiced rendition of Kookabura Sits in the old Gum tree. Spectacular!
The evening, and the official part of our tour, ended with speeches from both clubs looking forward to next years return of Kawanishi to Lindfield, followed by a LONG victory arch exit where boys and parents of both clubs bid fond farewells.
We have all enjoyed an amazing 11 days in Japan. We have played great rugby and made great friends. This `once in a lifetime` trip will never be forgoten.
Closing Dinner Photos here ...
The Kawanishi and Lindfield Rugby Exchange and Tour Project is supported by the Commonwealth through the Australia-Japan Foundation of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
