At the halfway point in the season we sit at 5-3 with a busy schedule coming up for the second half as we have several games to make up. We lost our most recent game to the Walcountian Blues.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Trip to Germany
So for the second straight year I spent Christmas outside of the US. This year I was in Salzburg, Austria following a trip to Munich, Germany. We arrived in Munich the morning of December 20th and were welcomed by 3 degree weather. After getting our bearing in the city and checking into the hostel we decided to get schnitzel and one of the local restaurants famous for it. Schnitzel is basically a fish fry but instead of fish it's fried pork. The servings at the restaurant were roughly the size of an elephants ear and needless to say I was unable to finish it despite my best efforts. Afterwards we headed to the most famous beer hall in the world, the Hofbrauhaus and had a few of their giant liter sized beers. These were honestly some of the best beers I've ever had. The next day we went on a free walking tour of the city which was one of the best tours I've ever been on. We realized on this trip that for some reason the less money you spend on a tour the better it usually is. After talking with our tour guide we decided to go on his tour of local beer halls that night. Ridiculous is the only word I have for it. At one point our entire tour group (consisting of 20 people) dined and ditched at the insistance of our tour guide. We had a good reason as the beer hall was trying to make us pay for food that we had already paid for but it was still crazy. The next morning I was hurting but we had to get up to go on a tour of the Dachau prison camp a few miles outside of the city. Despite my hangover this was an incredible place to visit. The next day we went to the place I was most excited for, the Neuschwanstein Castle two hours outside of Munich. The Neuschwanstein castle was the inspiration for the Disney Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disney World. The castle was amazing even if the tour was horrible. When we got back to Munich we got on a train which took us to Salzburg, Austria. Christmas Eve saw us going on a 'Christmas Tour' in the Salzburg area. It should have been titled the "Tour of small churches related to a Christmas carol...for old people and families." It was a tour that took you to places where 'Silent Night' was written and culminated in a annual celebration of the song. It was completely in German but it was still pretty cool to be there on Christmas Eve. On Christmas Day we took in the sights of the city and enjoyed the many Christmas Markets throughout the city. That night we attended a Christmas party at our hostel with people from all around the world. The following day we continued to tour the city before catching our flight back to London. Tomorrow I'm heading up to Edinburgh, Scotland for the Hogamanay New Years Festival.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Thanksgiving and Mustaches
Pictures:
Top-Sunday Thanksgiving Table
Second-Everyone at the table
Third-Wednesday London Thanksgiving (I'm in the back)
Last-Good looking mustaches
The two most exciting things going on here at the moment are Thanksgiving and my distinguished mustache. I actually had four Thanksgivings. On Wednesday the London University team I coach had a Thanksgiving party which they did a really nice job with. Thursday me and my American friend Chris went to a local carvery and had a turkey dinner. While it wasn't quite American Thanksgiving it was still really good. Than on Saturday another American coach organized a Thanksgiving party at a pub complete with a full Thanksgiving dinner. To round out the holiday yet another American had a dinner at her house with the family she lived with. In summary I don't want to eat turkey again for a week but it was alot of fun even though I still would have preferred to be home with all of you. My sad excuse for facial hair came out of a English men's tradition called 'Movember' or 'No Shave November.' Basically alot of young guys grow mustaches to raise awareness/money for prostate cancer research. My American friends also grew them. Thankfully it will be gone on Saturday after my game. I recently booked my Christmas trip to Germany and Austria with four of my friends. We're going to Munich and than heading to Salzburg, Austria for Christmas Eve and Day. After that we're heading to Edinburgh for the Hogamanay New Years Festival.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
More Croydon Pictures
We had a sunny day a few days ago so I took out the camera and took a few pictures of lovely Croydon.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Switzerland
For my half term vacation I went to Switzerland. We landed in Geneva Tuesdy night and spent a night there in a hostel. In the morning we walked around the city which was really nice but very expensive. We saw the UN building and a fountain in Lake Geneva which is the biggest in the world. After walking around for a bit we checked out the Red Cross museum which was about as exciting as you would imagine a museum for the Red Cross would be. That afternoon we headed to Telepherique du Saleve which is a mountain near Geneva just over the French border. We took the cable car to the top, hiked around near the summit, and took in the view of the city and Lake Geneva. The mountain was really interesting because there were no guard rails like alot of places in the States. We were able to go right up to the edge and actually climb down a little way (sorry mom). After the mountain we headed to Lausanne, where we stayed with a friend of one of the guys I was travelling with. He was an intern with the World Baseball Confederation and lived in a mansion on a vineyard. While there we got the idea to rent a car and head to Interlocken which is a city in the mountains known for its extreme sports. The next morning we rented the cheapest car the rental agency had which happened to be a Mercedes. In Interlaken we stayed in a famous hostel named Balmers. When we got there we headed towards Gimmelwald, a village in the mountains. After a long series of bus rides, train rides and finally another cable car ride we made it to the village which had one of the coolest views of ever seen. We wanted to head up higher but it was getting late so we settled for a night in the hostel's club. In the morning we headed to Montreux and the Chateau de Chillon which is a famous castle where both Lord Byron and Hemmingway lived. This is also the place where fatigue and hunger lead us to settle for a 25 dollar McDonalds dinner. All and all the trip was extremely expensive but worth it.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
More Games
We beat East Grinstead 9-6 on the tenth. I hurt my ribs in the game. Here's some pictures from the game.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Games
We lost our friendly game against the Blues 10-15 bu we won our first official match 11-9 against Hitchin here's the game reports.
Friendly (I really scored four goals :) ):
It was bright sunny day at the Blues, great playing conditions, and with a number of other matches being played also a great atmosphere. In typical pre-season friendly form both teams were markedly below strength; Purley were missing their complete attack line (AWOL), 'keeper (honeymoon!), and captain (swollen eye from a bee sting), and the Blues were missing at least 3 key personnel and their 1st choice 'keeper.
For Purley this match saw the first appearances for Dave Copple in defence, and Dave "Gordie" Bennett, Purley's new LDO (that's coach to you and me). Naturally, being on a team with so many Daves already (and none of them actually called Dave) the first order of the day was to give the new LDO a nickname – Gordon Bennett, or Gordie for short (non UK readers might want to Google that reference).
At the start of the first quarter Purley moved the ball quickly and efficiently around the pitch, which led to a 2-0 lead. However the Blues responded leaving the first quarter at 3 a piece in what was becoming a very competitive game.
The Blues came out strong in the second quarter, forcing stand-in Purley 'keeper Riaz to make some big saves. The Blues continued to pass around the Purley defence which paid off with 4 goals, before a solo move behind goal allowed Dave Cluney to feed Dan Afoke on the crease, bringing the halt time score to 4-7.
The Blues dominated the start of the third quarter taking a lead of 4-10 lead, but the Purley team pulled together under Dave Cluney's leadership, and goals from Rob Clark and DC reduced the deficit to 7-10 by the end of the third quarter.
In the final quarter it was down to Purley to take the game to the Blues, but despite a hard effort on the field from Purley, and goals from Bennett, Clark and Cluney it was not enough. Final score 10-15.
Despite the result, the relatively inexperienced Purley team had much to take from this encounter with the Blues, who are tipped as a serious contender for honours this season. It was a game which saw many of the less experienced players get some quality game time (and they all stepped up to the mark), allowed Dave "Gordie" Bennett to settle into the team, and brought a superb Captain like performance from DC. Special mention to Riaz from Maidstone for stepping into the pipes last minute for Purley and having a fantastic game.
Goals: Dave Cluney 4, Dave "Gordie" Bennett 3, Rob Clark 2, Dan Afoke 1 Ref: Blues x2
Hitchin:
The start of the 2009-10 league campaign saw Purley heading into the wilds of Hertfordshire to play Hitchin. Purley's 17 man squad saw the long awaited return of Andy Booth, the first league appearance of new American coach Dave "Gordie" Bennett, and Paul Terry returning tanned and refreshed from his honeymoon (congratulations to him and Helen). All in all, the Purley team had a good mix of experienced players laced with a number of younger players.
Playing conditions were good, with a hint of gusty wind. Purley put into practice their summer training sessions, which paid off with two goals coming from Dave "Gordie" Bennett. Continued possession saw Purley ending the first quarter 3-1 up.
It was more of the same possession, quick passing and off the ball movement from Purley in the second quarter, with Wes enjoying his freedom behind the cage, moving, passing, and feeding the cutters well. Goalkeeper Paul Terry’s precise passing and Purley’s well worked clear led to a number of off-sides by Hitchin, and Purley were able to capitalise on the resulting man-ups to finish off the second quarter with a comfortable 7-2 lead.
A confident Purley side came out for the 3rd quarter, extending their lead by 1 goal coming from Guy. For the first 10 minutes of the quarter Purley continued to dominate possession, and really should have put the game comfortably beyond Hitchin's reach, but though they created many scoring opportunities they failed to take any of them. This allowed Hitchin to respond back with 3 goals, generated from good movement off the ball for which they are known, before Mike Barrett added to his already growing tally to give Purley a 9-5 three quarter time lead.
Final quarter and again Purley started off with Mike Barrett scoring to give a lead of 5 goals. Hitchin rallied together at this point and started to eat away at Purley’s lead. Despite Jesse and Dave "Gordie" Bennett both hitting the pipe, Purley struggled to kill off Hitchin’s momentum, and the tension grew as Hitchin pulled the score to 10-9 in the closing stages. Rob Clark had been having a great day facing off, winning the lion's share of possession, and this became crucial towards the end of the quarter. A face-off win from Rob, and a quick string of passes saw Jesse firing one in off the pipe to end the match with a Purley win 11-9.
A good work rate and team effort from all for Purley’s win, though the made it difficult for themselves by not closing out the game at the beginning of the second half, which allowed Hitchin to fight back well towards the closing stages.
Goals: Mike Barrett 5, Dave "Gordie" Bennett 3, Jesse O'Hanley 1, Dave Cluney 1, Guy Francis 1 Thanks to Ref: Hazel; CBO: Sevan
Friendly (I really scored four goals :) ):
It was bright sunny day at the Blues, great playing conditions, and with a number of other matches being played also a great atmosphere. In typical pre-season friendly form both teams were markedly below strength; Purley were missing their complete attack line (AWOL), 'keeper (honeymoon!), and captain (swollen eye from a bee sting), and the Blues were missing at least 3 key personnel and their 1st choice 'keeper.
For Purley this match saw the first appearances for Dave Copple in defence, and Dave "Gordie" Bennett, Purley's new LDO (that's coach to you and me). Naturally, being on a team with so many Daves already (and none of them actually called Dave) the first order of the day was to give the new LDO a nickname – Gordon Bennett, or Gordie for short (non UK readers might want to Google that reference).
At the start of the first quarter Purley moved the ball quickly and efficiently around the pitch, which led to a 2-0 lead. However the Blues responded leaving the first quarter at 3 a piece in what was becoming a very competitive game.
The Blues came out strong in the second quarter, forcing stand-in Purley 'keeper Riaz to make some big saves. The Blues continued to pass around the Purley defence which paid off with 4 goals, before a solo move behind goal allowed Dave Cluney to feed Dan Afoke on the crease, bringing the halt time score to 4-7.
The Blues dominated the start of the third quarter taking a lead of 4-10 lead, but the Purley team pulled together under Dave Cluney's leadership, and goals from Rob Clark and DC reduced the deficit to 7-10 by the end of the third quarter.
In the final quarter it was down to Purley to take the game to the Blues, but despite a hard effort on the field from Purley, and goals from Bennett, Clark and Cluney it was not enough. Final score 10-15.
Despite the result, the relatively inexperienced Purley team had much to take from this encounter with the Blues, who are tipped as a serious contender for honours this season. It was a game which saw many of the less experienced players get some quality game time (and they all stepped up to the mark), allowed Dave "Gordie" Bennett to settle into the team, and brought a superb Captain like performance from DC. Special mention to Riaz from Maidstone for stepping into the pipes last minute for Purley and having a fantastic game.
Goals: Dave Cluney 4, Dave "Gordie" Bennett 3, Rob Clark 2, Dan Afoke 1 Ref: Blues x2
Hitchin:
The start of the 2009-10 league campaign saw Purley heading into the wilds of Hertfordshire to play Hitchin. Purley's 17 man squad saw the long awaited return of Andy Booth, the first league appearance of new American coach Dave "Gordie" Bennett, and Paul Terry returning tanned and refreshed from his honeymoon (congratulations to him and Helen). All in all, the Purley team had a good mix of experienced players laced with a number of younger players.
Playing conditions were good, with a hint of gusty wind. Purley put into practice their summer training sessions, which paid off with two goals coming from Dave "Gordie" Bennett. Continued possession saw Purley ending the first quarter 3-1 up.
It was more of the same possession, quick passing and off the ball movement from Purley in the second quarter, with Wes enjoying his freedom behind the cage, moving, passing, and feeding the cutters well. Goalkeeper Paul Terry’s precise passing and Purley’s well worked clear led to a number of off-sides by Hitchin, and Purley were able to capitalise on the resulting man-ups to finish off the second quarter with a comfortable 7-2 lead.
A confident Purley side came out for the 3rd quarter, extending their lead by 1 goal coming from Guy. For the first 10 minutes of the quarter Purley continued to dominate possession, and really should have put the game comfortably beyond Hitchin's reach, but though they created many scoring opportunities they failed to take any of them. This allowed Hitchin to respond back with 3 goals, generated from good movement off the ball for which they are known, before Mike Barrett added to his already growing tally to give Purley a 9-5 three quarter time lead.
Final quarter and again Purley started off with Mike Barrett scoring to give a lead of 5 goals. Hitchin rallied together at this point and started to eat away at Purley’s lead. Despite Jesse and Dave "Gordie" Bennett both hitting the pipe, Purley struggled to kill off Hitchin’s momentum, and the tension grew as Hitchin pulled the score to 10-9 in the closing stages. Rob Clark had been having a great day facing off, winning the lion's share of possession, and this became crucial towards the end of the quarter. A face-off win from Rob, and a quick string of passes saw Jesse firing one in off the pipe to end the match with a Purley win 11-9.
A good work rate and team effort from all for Purley’s win, though the made it difficult for themselves by not closing out the game at the beginning of the second half, which allowed Hitchin to fight back well towards the closing stages.
Goals: Mike Barrett 5, Dave "Gordie" Bennett 3, Jesse O'Hanley 1, Dave Cluney 1, Guy Francis 1 Thanks to Ref: Hazel; CBO: Sevan
Update
I'm starting to get used to my schedule with my primary schools and universities. Some of the primary schools are a huge pain but I really enjoy the universities. I usually stay the night and hang out with the team after practice so I've basically been living with the teams from wed-fri. On Monday I went to Stonehenge which wasn't that impressive. You can't get that close to them and we really only stayed for 30 minutes. But it was something I had to do while in England. Today I booked a trip to Geneva Switzerland for my first half term break. I'm having some trouble with my camera so I can't update pictures until I fix it.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Lacrosse and Other Things
This past weekend was a big lacrosse weekend for me. My team had our first friendly match. We lost to the Walcountian Blues 15-10 which I guess we took as a good sign because they're one of the best teams in the league and we were missing our three starting attackmen and starting goalie. I had four goals on five shots. Goalkeeping is not very good here. The next day I played for a team called SOCO and Lime (Southern Coaches and Limeys) against the English National Team. Traditionally the team is made up mostly of American coaches but this year most of the clubs wouldn't let their coaches play. We only had five Americans which largely contributed to our 22-6 loss. The other factor was the night before (a beach party hosted by Reading Lacrosse Club). It was still a good experience getting to play against the English National Team though and we had alot of fun. Tuesday night I went to a Pub Quiz with a guy on my team. I proudly represented the states as the only two questions I knew were that the US is the largest English speaking nation in the world and that Ray Croc helped start McDonalds.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
My House and Croydon
1. Surrey Market
2. My backyard
3. Benson Road
4. Middle one is my flat
5. 98 Escort speed machine
More pictures here
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