We settled in well, into our ‘families’ and straight into training.
We have an awesome facility for this tournament, not only for training and playing but also our accommodation where we are housed in our rugby ‘families’… the Quinnells’, Williams’, Edwards’ and Jones’s.
We have our own floors with kitchens and a common area, an ideal place for chillaxing in front of the TV, having a brew and playing cards and games… Princess [Lisa Newton] introduced us to the ‘Musical Action Game’ and it fast became Flowey’s [Claire Flowers] favourite, Caryl’s harp is great but Mared and her Bongo’s are very impressive, we even had the IRB anti doping officers joining in during a doping education workshop.
The preparation for our first game was top class and we couldn’t have been more prepared for our first match against Australia.
The ‘buzz’ had been there all week and the morning before the game there was so much anticipation and energy we couldn’t wait for kick off.
It was great to see the support from family and friends and although we didn’t provide the win we hope that our performance was worth the long drive up the M4.
On reflection the loss is a bitter pill to swallow, having analysed our performances, had our synchronised pool recovery session and screened our bumps and bruises we are well and truly focused on righting our wrongs and taking on South Africa on Tuesday.
But until then it’s time to regroup and the social committee are organising a family performance competition tomorrow night… may the best family win!
