Royals Hit Europe!
THE UNDER 18′s Invade Europe… sort of !
The October break from college and schools saw our Royals Under 18 team hop on a Coach in Cobham on Monday 26th October and alight in Antwerp Belgium in the early evening.
We were scheduled to play 3 games against Belgium and Dutch opposition and return home on the Friday – a pretty hectic agenda.
The first game on Tuesday evening saw us made welcome by our hosts Sparta Buggenhout: their ground was an hour away and, as usual, we were amazed at the facilities available. We played on grass (makes a change – our team have played on astro, mudflats and even gravel!) Luckily, in Belgium they still favour proper green playing surfaces.
The game was fast and furious, with a 6 – 0 win for the Royals! After hot dogs and beer, we returned to Antwerp and our hotel ready for bed. (If you believe that, you must be VERY gullible…)
Royals & Buggenhout in Relaxed Mood After the Game
Wednesday saw a bright and early start – between midday and 2pm to be precise – a trawl around the city, then back on the coach to cross the border and play SV Dosko in Holland. We had an idea of what to expect when the opposing Manager informed us his squad was a mixture of Under 21′s and Under 18′s… they grow them big in Tulipland!
Also we were back on the dreaded astro-like grass favoured in Holland – you need a good half an hour to get to grips with the bounce of the ball! The game was hard fought, fair, and was overseen by the fastest referee anyone had ever seen – he was in his early 40′s but chased the ball as if he were playing!
The balance of advantage swayed back and forth. We played 50 minutes in the first half – he may have been a rapid and fit referee but it seems no-one had taught him the art of time keeping – and it looked like being a tremendous result at 2 goals apiece with a minute to go. Then….you are ahead of me..THEY SCORED…whistle went! What a performance by the lads… we nearly caused a major upset! Drinks and mutual praise swapped through gritted teeth followed then back on the coach with trusted driver Ray and back to the city (at this point this article was severely edited as details of the evenings escapades were deemed unsuitable for those under the age of 16 and for those persons of a nervous disposition)
In fairness, the team were told that Belgium had over 500 different brews of beer and purely from a research point of view, that fact had to be investigated.
Thursday… Third game in as many days – a tall order considering the amount of liquid that had passed the lips of our gallant heroes… (In fairness, the team were told that Belgium had over 500 different brews of beer and purely from a research point of view, that fact had to be investigated.) Our final game took us to the ground of FC Katelijne, about an hour south of Antwerp.
Again, the facilities were amazing for a small local side. (We continually get asked on tours by our hosts for a return game in England but lack of amenities and no home ground leave us rather embarrassed!) This time, the teams were fair and evenly matched, the Royals opening the scoring, Katelinje equalising so setting up an exciting second half. Considering the frailty and absence of a full nights sleep, our boys did the Club proud and ran out 3 – 1 winners… a truly remarkable result! (You are referred to the earlier comment in italics if expecting an up date of “what happened that evening”)
Royal's Version of "Oxshott Till I Die" goes down well with the locals at Karaoke Bar!
Friday 30th October… 10am… leave hotel… drive to Calais… ferry to Dover… in Cobham early evening. Shattered, proud, voices lost, barely concious, met by relieved parents & relatives, the squad was sad that the tour was over.
Big thank you’s must go to Super Fan John Symes, Coaches extraordinaire Chez Cornelli & Mark Jarman, the boys for being ace all week (they did not get asked to leave the hotel, well – were warned, but that doesn’t count)… Kyle Reid, Sam Underwood, Sam Chaplin, David Griffiths, Josh Smith, Alec McDonald, Elliott Porter, Shreetik Bhandari, Freddie Bell, Lawrie Miller, Micah Pederson, Harvey Dunsire, Jake Boyd, Stuart Ramsey and Patrick Symes. Also to our excellent coach driver Ray Gritt and all at Sports Tours Ltd for their usual efficient help and guidance in organising and making the trip truly memorable.
Mike Smith, U18′s manager