St. Patrick's Day

          This St. Patrick's Day was unlike any St. Patrick's Day I've ever had and likely, unlike any St. Patrick's Day I will ever have. My day began with athletics, rather than large amounts of alcohol, on my mind. It was my rugby club's first match of the season against a local rival, the University of Stellenbosch. The St. Patrick's Day match couldn't have been on a more beautiful day, or at a more beautiful location. Despite the aesthetic beauty, the nerves in our stomachs began to build as game time drew near and the reality set in that we would be battling in the savage manner we've become accustomed to playing rugby in. 

University of Stellenbosch @ University of Cape Town

            I hadn't had this feeling since high school sports ended. Though I have played in many college golf matches, while at Bowdoin, the mindset necessary for a Football, Hockey or Rugby game is another animal altogether. It felt good to have this pit in my stomach, the fear and uncertainty of what lay ahead and the camaraderie of teammates fueled off of adrenaline. This was what I loved and missed about athletics, the moment where preparation meets execution, and where instinct takes over. Though I don't know the game of rugby as well as hockey or football, I was excited to be in the game again. So, we headed up to campus under blue skies and prepared to do battle with a much larger, more experienced Stellenbosch team. 

Me on the far side playing '11' or 'Wing'

           I was deisgnated a winger for our club, and was not starting this match. The other squad was bigger, faster and knew the game better than we did, but we put up a fight. About a minute and a half into the match, Sinjin, a player of ours was down with a dislocated shoulder. We had trouble holding field position and before long Stellenbosch scored the first try of the match. They soon added another, missing the kick on the second try and held a 12-0 advantage. We dug deep before the end of the first half and were able to score a try, with a missed kick to bring the match to 12-5. Just before halftime, Stellenbosch scored again making it 19-5 at half.

Half-time adjustments

          We were tired heading into the second half and already were down 2 tries. I was out on the wing, throwing my body around and waiting for the ball to come down the backfield my way. I had a few touches with the ball, no large gains, but the majority of my time was spent defending. Stellenbosch ran hard and our backfield and forwards were banged up by midway through the second half. Stellenbosch scored another couple of tries late in the second half to turn it into a relative blowout, but we held in the game for the majority of the time. They were a bigger, more physical team and we all left the field hurting. There were plenty of positives to take away, but we realized there is a lot of work we have to do.

A restaurant style tap was the only option for a keg in South Africa

Despite the loss, we came away from the game positively, especially considering it was the first rugby game ever for many of us. So, it was time to begin enjoying St. Patrick's Day in the way we had become accustomed. A group pitched in for a keg back at our apartments, so there was a day party celebrating the day when we returned home. One of my favorite bars in Cape Town is a bar by the name of Dublinners. An Irish pub on Long Street that has I've music every weekend night and an eclectic crew of Europeans and Africans. We originally intended to travel to Dublinners on St. Patrick's Day, however the news of massive crowds traveled quickly to Rosebank where we decided there were better ways to celebrate than wait in line to get into an Irish pub. So, a group of us from the Rugby club decided to have a Braai and celebrate elsewhere.

Levi and I playing some "Dizzy Cricket" upon our return from the match

       The Zimbabweans and Mozambicans we were spending our St. Patrick's Day with treated it like any normal Saturday night in Cape Town. But the Americans in the group insisted that drinking a combination of Beer, Bailey's and Jameson's made this a particularly special and important holiday in America. So we braid, drank and enjoyed each others company before heading out to bars and finishing our St. Patrick's Day with a Saturday night out on the town. It was an unusual St. Patrick's Day, but the incorporation of Rugby and inter-cultural mingling made it an interesting one. I am sure it is one I will not soon forget.