Sub-14 6 Nations Tour 2015

View images from the tour and read Tom Rains' tour report here.

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Click here to view images from the tour.

Sub-14 Rome 6 Nations Tour 2015 - Report by Tom Rains

There has been much talk about last weekend’s record-breaking finale to the Six Nations championship, but spare a thought for a small band of sub-14 players from St. Julian’s who, on the evening of  Friday 20th March,  took on and beat, what amounted to a small legion of Romans from Frascati Rugby club. Many of our Italian counterparts had clearly been fed on a diet of pizza and pasta but the old adage ‘the bigger they are, the harder they fall’ proved correct. The collective effort and spirit displayed by the St. Julian’s players was outstanding, with the boys playing their best Rugby of the season. This is now our third visit to Frascati Rugby Club and, once again, they didn’t disappoint with their post-match hospitality. Players from both teams socialized, swapping shirts and stories, before breaking into song.

Saturday proved to be monumental in terms of both the Rugby and the boys´ ability to buy absolutely anything and everything from Rome’s hordes of street hawkers. After a leisurely breakfast, the group headed to the Stadio Olimpico to see the Welsh trounce the Italians, giving the visitors a whiff of the championship. The atmosphere in the stadium was fantastic, packed with centurions, leeks, daffodils, dragons and, of course, the occasional sheep.

After the match the group headed into central Rome. Olivier Van Zanten had clearly not watched Monty Python’s ´The Life of Brian´, as he systematically went about haggling with every street-vendor who approached the group to offload their wares. Having navigated the crowded streets, we found ourselves being royally hosted by The Nag’s Head Pub, which provided us with some much needed sustenance. It was here that we watched the concluding game of the Six Nations Championship between England and France. Whilst the red rose prevailed in some style, it was not enough to quieten the increasingly raucous Welsh fans who, unsurprisingly, were firmly rooting for the French (and their very own referee, Mr Nigel Owens).

On the Sunday morning the historic sites of Rome were visited, including the Colosseum, The Spanish Steps and McDonalds. After having finally depleted the vendors of their entire stock, it was time for the boys to head to the airport and return to Lisbon. Over the course of the tour, the boys certainly had their fill of the oval ball, having played their part in a wonderful weekend of entertaining Rugby.

As everyone who has ever been on a Rugby tour knows, there has to be a Kangaroo court. This is where sentence is passed on those players for whom common sense momentarily deserts them. Those found guilty in this court are ‘invited’ to wear the now infamous St. Julian’s Rugby Club pink pyjamas. Judge Ferris was passing sentence and on the Saturday deemed João Costa’s crime of bringing two bags to the airport instead of one heinous enough to have to wear the said articles. Despite Gonçalo Mendes being nominated on day two for an array of crimes, Judge Ferris condemned João Pereira to wear the dreaded outfit. It has to be said that both boys wore the pyjamas without batting an eyelid, leading me to think they secretly enjoyed it.

Our thanks must go to Mr Bell and Mr Ferris for their time, effort and patience, along with the organisers of the tour Samy Djavidnia and Simon Mount, A special thanks to Frascati Rugby Club, and in particular Gordon Campbell, who, once again, ensured that things ran like clockwork. We very much hope that Frascati will take us up on our offer to tour Lisbon next year.