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General News
South Africa Tour

The South Africa Tour Squad

South African Tour blog will appear here once the tour gets underway!

 

Editor's note :

Sunday, 10th August

The squad left this morning. They're on their way! Be sure to check back soon for the first blog entry!

Monday, 11th August - 1st blog entry

Having left soaking Lancashire, the SMH tour party made good time and arrived early at Heathrow and got good seats for the long flight to Cape Town. After a 12 hour flight we landed safely in South Africa in bright sunshine to be greeted with a warm welcome by Aldo, our coach driver.
 
As the weather was beautiful he suggested it was an ideal time to go up Table Mountain so the tour party enjoyed a white knuckle ride up the cable car. The spectacular view towards the Waterfront and across to Robben Island was simply stunning and lots of team photos were taken of the group.
 
We are going out to dinner in the Waterfront after a long 24 hours. Tomorrow we have our first match in the Township. If the first day is anything to go by we are in for the trip of a lifetime........
 
 

Wednesday, 13th August - 2nd blog entry

 

 
After a late breakfast, the squad boarded the bus and travelled to Langa Township for our community matches. We received a warm welcome from Eric, our guide around the settlement, who gave a passionate history and tour of Langa to the SMH squad. The pupils were given a guided tour of the settlement and an excellent lunch provided by Sheila in the Lelapa restaurant.
 
We travelled to Zimsasi school for our netball matches. What a welcome.......
 
The entire school surrounded the court to support the home team. Our girls played well in the circumstances against their Under 14 team.
 
The girls tried hard in difficult surroundings, and it provided a good start to the tour.
 
Netball: Under 12, Lost 8-4
             Under 13, Lost 8-7
 
The boys we next to play at the Langa rugby pitch. The opposition was extremely quick with excellent hands. Our forward play was good and we scored a good try under the posts from a series of mauls, however, the oppositions scored from loose play to level the match. We did well in the second half to score another forward try but a missed touch with the final play of the game allowed the fullback to score the try to leave the final score 14-14. The boys played well and learned from the match.
 
The afternoon finished with a return match against the Zimsasi Under 14 hockey team. SMH played a mixed U12/U13 11 aside game.  We approached game with determination and desire to win.  The girls performed exceptionally and adapted well to the 11 a side game.  Great attacking play was seen by the forwards, resulting in a final score of SMH 5 - Zimsasi 0. 
 
We returned to our hotel in high spirits after an exhausting and enlightening day to enjoy a hearty meal at a waterfront restaurant.

 

Thursday, 14th August - 4th blog entry

After an enlightening and rewarding day at Langa Township, the tour party checked out of our hotel and enjoyed a relaxing day on the beach at Camps Bay. The children played touch rugby, American Football or made sandcastles on the beautiful golden sand before moving to our first set of hosts at Sweet Valley Primary School. Our welcome was extremely warm and our pupils departed in pairs to their host families.

Tomorrow, we play our second match and the children are raring to go......

Friday, 15th August - 5th blog entry

The tour squad played Sweet Valley School today. The games were close.

Netball 5-5 Draw

Hockey 2-3 Loss

Rugby 0-17 Loss

The children played well and enjoyed the warm hospitality of the hosts. Many pupils were invited to traditional braii with the opposition. We have just returned from a fascinating tour around Robben Island. More details to follow......

Monday, 18th August - 6th blog entry

The trip around Robben Island was a truly moving experience. We were shown around the prison by Eric, a former prisoner who gave the tour party an informative tour which went via Nelson Mandela's former cell. A truly memorable event. We then travelled to Somerset West to meet our first set of hosts at Sweet Valley School.

The welcome was warm and friendly and our pupils left to spend time with their opposite player. The next morning we spent time travelling around the area sightseeing and returned in the afternoon to play our second match. The girls played their hockey match at Cape Town University astro and a tight match ended in a narrow loss. The boys were next on the field and were welcomed by some physical forwards. Our boys performed really well and came off with another narrow loss. The netball team had learned a lot from the previous match and moved the ball well. The final results are above.

The pupils met early at Eikestad School in Stellenbosch before travelling around the local region enjoying the fine scenery. The area we visited was the centre of the South African wine industry. We passed mile upon mile of vineyards.

The afternoon matches proved to be a tough final set of games. Four matches in a week had taken its toll but our tour squad played with real spirit against a much stronger school.
 
Results
 
Hockey  1-2 Lost
Rugby 7-35 Lost
Netball  2-10 Lost
 
Tuesday 19th August - 7th blog entry
 
Having said farewell to our final set of hosts, we travelled back to Cape Town for some rest and relaxation. The pupils enjoyed retail therapy at the Victoria and Albert Waterfront. Tomorrow we are up early for a tour of the Cape.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Thursday, 21st August - 8th blog entry
 
What a day........
 
Our final full day in Cape Town saw the tour squad enjoy a memorable journey around the Cape Peninsula. After an early breakfast the squad boarded the bus for the short ride to Hoat Bay before enjoying a boat trip to see the seals. We travelled further around the coast to see the penguin colony at Boulders Beach, Simonstown.
 
The squad then took the bus around the rugged coastal road, stopping briefly to enjoy the whales in False Bay. Finally we went to the tip of Africa to the Cape of Good Hope where plenty of photos were taken......
 
A truly magical experience.
 
Tomorrow the squad heads to Mabula Game Reserve for the end of tour safari.
 
 
Saturday, 23rd August - 9th blog entry
 
The safari exceeded expectations. All the tour squad were able to travel around Mabula Game Reserve in open air Landrovers to enjoy the spectacular scenery and countless wild animals. Elephants, giraffes, buffalo,crocodiles, hippos, zebras and of course, the lions were spotted by all the groups. Stories were exchanged over supper as the group relived their experiences. The children are all tired but have been excellent tourists.
 
Now the long journey home begins.....
 
 
Monday, 25th August - 10th and final blog entry
 
The tour party arrived safely back at Stonyhurst after a memorable fortnight in South Africa. All the squad benefited greatly from the experience.  The people we met along the way were extremely warm and genuinely pleased to see us. The host families could not have been more hospitable and I feel sure that the children will relive the whole tour for many years to come.
 
 
 
 


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