D
daz
Guest
I thought this might be fun.
Tell your story here and let everyone know you have been there and done that.
Have you ever played with or against a current or former pro rugby player? Was it juniors, club rugby, or just a social hitout?
The reason I can nod wisely when Matt Burke speaks, is because I was posted to Thailand from 2003 - 2008 and in that time I was part of an expat team.
In 2007 during the Bangkok 10's competition, we played in a round robin tournament featuring many teams from Asia and a few teams from England and Oz. Mostly expats and social players. You know, the kind that find the after match activities far more interesting than the actual playing.
In one of the Oz teams was Warwick Waugh. I don't know Warwick at all and I really don't know what kind of bloke he is. He could be the kind of saint that makes Ghandi look like a street peddler, but I never tried to find out because I was simply awestruck at what nature had built.
Warwick was (and is) a man mountain with a pretty decent look about him. The kind of man that makes you want to just give up and crawl back into the evolutionary swamp. Because next to him, you know you just don't cut it. An Alpha male.
As he paced the side of the field watching the games being played, every set of eyes was on him.
I swear my wife starting panting when he walked past; and I didn't blame her one little bit.
Ok, so you get the gist of what I am saying.
And so here's me. Apart from a couple of games in my army days I was very much the prototype social rugby player. A bit soft and better suited to being the beer allocator. But, I am 6'1" and weigh 120kgs (pure relaxed muscle) so that makes me a second row player. I say player in the loosest possible sense.
No prizes for guessing who my direct opponent was.
Now at this point, I am going to have to defer to my ex-team mates for the details, because they needed to fill in a few blanks for me.
All I know is, in the first 30 seconds of play, my team mate went to ground and placed the ball back to be recycled, and I positioned myself beautifully. Bum over Ball, knees off the ground and alert for the counter ruck.
And there was a counter ruck. It was Warwick, who saw an opportunity to clear me out.
I didn't even feel the impact until my brain caught up some 10 minutes later. By that time, I had been subbed and was lying on the ground in the team shelter. In the manner of social games I had been unceremoniously dragged from the field to much applause and laughter, and dumped in the corner to regain what was left of my wits.
After the game I shook Warwick's hand and he asked if I was ok. No probs I said. At least I think I said that. It may have just been a nonsensical mumble.
A few beers and a couple of panadol and I was good to go.
And I retired to become the team mascot.
Yes, Burkey, I am with you. Unless you have played the game at thehighest lowest possible level, you cannot understand what happens out there on the field. In that sense, I love being a spectator.
Tell your story here and let everyone know you have been there and done that.
Have you ever played with or against a current or former pro rugby player? Was it juniors, club rugby, or just a social hitout?
The reason I can nod wisely when Matt Burke speaks, is because I was posted to Thailand from 2003 - 2008 and in that time I was part of an expat team.
In 2007 during the Bangkok 10's competition, we played in a round robin tournament featuring many teams from Asia and a few teams from England and Oz. Mostly expats and social players. You know, the kind that find the after match activities far more interesting than the actual playing.
In one of the Oz teams was Warwick Waugh. I don't know Warwick at all and I really don't know what kind of bloke he is. He could be the kind of saint that makes Ghandi look like a street peddler, but I never tried to find out because I was simply awestruck at what nature had built.
Warwick was (and is) a man mountain with a pretty decent look about him. The kind of man that makes you want to just give up and crawl back into the evolutionary swamp. Because next to him, you know you just don't cut it. An Alpha male.
As he paced the side of the field watching the games being played, every set of eyes was on him.
I swear my wife starting panting when he walked past; and I didn't blame her one little bit.
Ok, so you get the gist of what I am saying.
And so here's me. Apart from a couple of games in my army days I was very much the prototype social rugby player. A bit soft and better suited to being the beer allocator. But, I am 6'1" and weigh 120kgs (pure relaxed muscle) so that makes me a second row player. I say player in the loosest possible sense.
No prizes for guessing who my direct opponent was.
Now at this point, I am going to have to defer to my ex-team mates for the details, because they needed to fill in a few blanks for me.
All I know is, in the first 30 seconds of play, my team mate went to ground and placed the ball back to be recycled, and I positioned myself beautifully. Bum over Ball, knees off the ground and alert for the counter ruck.
And there was a counter ruck. It was Warwick, who saw an opportunity to clear me out.
I didn't even feel the impact until my brain caught up some 10 minutes later. By that time, I had been subbed and was lying on the ground in the team shelter. In the manner of social games I had been unceremoniously dragged from the field to much applause and laughter, and dumped in the corner to regain what was left of my wits.
After the game I shook Warwick's hand and he asked if I was ok. No probs I said. At least I think I said that. It may have just been a nonsensical mumble.
A few beers and a couple of panadol and I was good to go.
And I retired to become the team mascot.
Yes, Burkey, I am with you. Unless you have played the game at the
