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Max.

Every time Sailen Tudu makes the trip back to his village in the troubled forests of south Bankura, he carries a few rugby balls with him a most unlikely gift from someone who grew up hunting and kicking a football around with playmates. But then, that is if you didn’t know he is the only representative from the state among India’s rugby probables for the October 3-14 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.

Tudu has also spent the last couple of years in England on scholarship, completing a diploma in rugby at the Hartbury College, and is preparing to fly back next month for a three-year degree course there. And he has always looked forward to going back to his leafy hamlet in Phulkusuma, close to tourist destination Mukutmanipur.

“We just throw the ball around and have a great time. Many kids are actually getting interested and there are plans to take the game there,” the 21-year-old said on Friday. “Most are, of course, intrigued by a game that’s so different from anything that they have known. Just as I was when I first saw it.”

That was in 2004, long after his father, a retired policeman, was transferred to Howrah and then to Kolkata. “I studied at Chetla Boys and was a decent district-level footballer before a back injury put me out for over a year. So, I used to run near the race course. One afternoon, I came across Paul Walsh and a few others playing with this strange ball,” Tudu recalled. “I stopped to watch and soon someone asked me if I’d like to play. I asked what I had to do, they said whenever you get the ball, just run’. I was good at running, and it was no problem,” he added with a laugh.

He was soon playing for Walsh’s team, Jungle Crows, and by the end of 2005, making the trip to Pakistan with the India under-19s as its youngest member. Two years later, he was vice-captain of the Under-20 team and last year was playing the Asian five-nation meet with the senior team. “And, of course, I played a few matches this year,” he said.

Walsh, formerly employed with the British High Commissioner’s office here, was instrumental in sending Tudu to England. “No, I didn’t choose him, he selected himself by being very talented, hardworking and dedicated. And everything else fell into place as well,” says Walsh.

Tudu is saddened by what is happening in Jangalmahal’. “I was born and brought up there but now I am scared to go there at times. We can’t go outside in the evenings. It shouldn’t be like this,” he said, adding: “I’m not sure about all the reasons why this is happening, but people there are not getting what they need. I hope the government, the media, sportspersons… everyone, comes together to solve it.”

Anthony “Ant” Lewis- Week two was just as great as week 1. I played in my first two rugby games. One against a school called Massey and another against a school called Rossmini. They were good teams but unfortunately we lost both games. I played well and had the “hit of the game” in both games!

During the week, I visited North Harbour stadium and watched them practice. We took a tour of the offices and learned how their game analysis works. It was great! The fact that NO ONE can hide is amazing as there are four different angles at which the game is recorded. We also went to an after game party with a teammate who plays on the “1st fifteen.”

We also had a newspaper interview. It was cool. We sat and talked with the reporter for about 45 minutes about the people that made this trip possible and the main differences from our school and Rangitoto!

Afterwards we had a “photoshoot”. Well at least that’s what it felt like. The photographer took soooo many pictures. I also got to see my homestay mom play net ball! Boy was she awesome! That’s about it for week two. Looking forward to week three. More activities are planned which means more fun.

Tony Rogers- Week 2 brought along with it a heavy dose of rugby, rugby, and more rugby with a side of newspaper interviews and classic video games. We played two games against teams called Messy and Rosmini. Unfortunately we weren’t able to come away with the victory but you could see that the three Americans were making a huge difference on and off the field.

Later on in the week, we were interviewed by the North Shore Times and they also had us do a photo shoot for them. That night after the interview was by far my favorite because after school we all went over to Ant’s house and we found a Nintendo 64 just sitting in a box in the basement. We spent hours playing Mario, 007, and Star Wars. That night brought back so many childhood memories! Week two down, 3 more to go! I’m ready for some more rugby!

Antoine Johnson- With week 1 having gone by so fast, we took on week two of our trip at a slower pace enjoying the scenery of the landscape and the cordial welcomes by literally everyone we meet. We have all “settled down” more as you would expect by now.

We been playing rugby with the school; Rangitoto College, and the only one that plays their original position is Ant, Tony and I seemed to be more useful at wing! We recently had a game against Massey University and lost in a close one!

Taff from AUT gave us a camera to take pictures but the batteries were dead but we did take a lot of pictures. While on a tour around North Harbour stadium and we were actually allowed to run through the game tunnel. The trip is still fun and we’re still seeing new things everyday as well as new people.

Rangitoto College is huge! I don’t see the same person more than three times a day. This week will be the most memorable week for many reasons. One is the fact I lost my headphones for my iPod prior to the game. Two is the fact that we lost that game obviously. Last but not least is three, me losing my iPod after I found the headphones for the iPod! My friends told me to report it but the only problem is that I don’t know where I lost it at, and if I knew where then I’ll have it by now!

Either way, we’re having a great time. Taff acknowledged us about our “recovery packs” after training sessions and our new favourite snack; squiggle biscuits, Saleem and Pettiford (Hyde players who came last year) know about them. Some of the best parts about the experience thus far are listening to some of the local kids trying to talk like us, with our accent. It’s funny because I don’t think we sound like the way they say we sound but I can’t be the one to judge how we sound. It’s also funny when I have regular conversations with them, and you can see them misunderstanding everything you say but try to follow along. They’ll get it sooner or later, I’ll keep you updated!

On behalf of the Pot Bellied Pigs RFC…….we invite you to attend The Seventh Inaugural, International, Invitational Fat Boys 10’s VII on Saturday September 4, 2010 at Challenger Field Stadium, Clark Airbase, Angeles City, Philippines.

 The tournament has been growing steadily….in weight of tourists since it was first played back in 2004, the rugby isn’t bad either. Landmarks have been created, literally when Akeboneo ran last year and was reputedly the biggest man to play the game. He had such enjoyment last year that he is looking to return with a couple of ‘sumo mates’…make of that what you will.

Matt Cullen is like a kid on Christmas day at the thought of everyone coming back to the Philippines to enjoy themselves and our good friend, Ross Bendix at Overgaard has been working day and night to ensure everything on the ground in Angeles is ready.

The 7th Fat Boy 10s

Last year, we raised over HKD350,000 (USD45,000) for the charities at the tournament and this year……we are aiming for over HKD390,000 (USD50,000) but we really need your help!!!

 The success stories are starting to show after a number of years of raising money for the Bahay Bata Orphanage and the PRFU Development Fund are paying off……last year we gave out HKD350,000!! One of the orphans, Hosilito was recently selected for the Philippines U20 squad, which is an amazing achievement and with the continued support we look forward to hearing more success stories.

The Bahay Bata Centre for Street Children and Duya Ni Maria Orphanage need the continued support that the tournament donates, this year covering operational costs is the main goal of both orphanages……your continued support is really much appreciated!

If you wish to be involved in the 2010 tournament don’t hesitate to get your team together, the cost per team will be US$600. This will be entry to the tournament, emergency medical cover, tents, water.

For teams wishing to pre-book 15 dinner tickets along with tournament entry, we have put together a package price of US$900…….so please confirm your attendance ASAP…..you know it makes sense! The entry fee is payable to “The Pot Bellied Pigs RFC”. Our bank account details are as follows:

Bank: The Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited
Branch: Hong Kong Office
Address: 1 Queen’s Road Central, Hong Kong SAR
Account name: The Pot Bellied Pigs Rugby Football Club
Account number: 004 502 046345 001

We do hope that we can attract a good number at this year’s tournament including the Pot Bellied Pigs, Aberdeen Angels, SCC Titans, Royal Selangor Club Dogs, Seoul Barbarians, Cebu Dragons, Manila Nomads, Manila Carabaos, Alabang Eagles, Low Flying Dragons, Causeway Bay Pirates, MAAP, Slongers 69ers, Phuket Viagrabonds, Baretto Blues, Kowloon Beavers and Macau.

We would also appreciate if you could consider adding a donation or help with some auction items or even stuff for the kids which will be passed on directly to the charity fund. We do not make this compulsory but would like to think that all teams attending will help to contribute to the success of the event.

The Fat Boys Tens Golf tournament is being arranged again for Friday September 3 at Mimosa Golf Club again (Chris Simpson aka PB Nicole Ritchie will once again be the Golf Tournament Director and helping to co-ordinate this key event) so please try to make every effort to arrive on Thursday evening and join the fun on Friday…..please let us know if you are interested to play and drop an email to Chris at chris@rcp.com.hk

It is going to be another truly awesome weekend so make sure you are there and press those reply buttons now……you know it makes sense!!!  Once again, a very big thank you to our two great main sponsors yet again for 2010….Tanner De Witt and Overgaard…..and all of the other sponsors…..thanks guys….you are terrific!

More information can be provided by our organising committee including Matt Stockdale – matthewstockdale@hotmail.co.uk and Ben Harris – Benjamin.harris@kpmg.com.hk

Pleasels support the Fat Boy Tens in its seventh year and all the kids that benefit……THANK YOU!

Best regards,

Anson 
aka PB Paris Hilton
 President – The Pot Bellied Pigs RFC

KK Sharks in Action

Recently, our team has been crowned as the cup champion for the 9th Labuan 10s tournament which was held a couple of weeks ago. It is one of the most sought after tournament in East Malaysia and there were about 16 teams participated from all over the country. Only allowing one professional player on the field per team, it is definitely a great opportunity for the locals to show off their skills in this extreme sport.

At the tournament, the KK Sharks faced stiff competition from the beginning being drawn in the same group as the Sabah Eagles. However, they emerged from the “group of death” in first place and earned the right to go into the Cup stage full of confidence. The first Cup semi-final pitted defending champions UiTM Sabah against the SEAHAWKS (Royal Malaysian Airforce) from West Malaysia. UiTM emerged victorious. In the second Cup semi-final saw Tawau Rugby Club take on the KK Sharks. It was a scrappy game but the Sharks were too strong for Tawau. The well-organised KK Sharks defence pressurised the Tawau team and led to an interception try for KK Sharks captain Azrul ‘Apo’ Hani. Another late try by the Shark’s captain sealed the win.

KK Sharks RFC are Champions of the 9th Labuan 10s

In the final UiTM and the KK Sharks – quite evenly matched teams – went head-to-head in an intense battle. In the first half the Sharks struck first and took a 12 -0 lead with tries by Philip Simon and Zoolhisham Zulkarnain. In the second half the UiTM Sabah team pulled back with a converted try to make it 12 – 7 which setup a grandstand finish. The next upcoming tournament will be the King’s Cup and the ‘Gilbert’ SRU President’s Cup.

Hyde Senior ’10 D’eric Robinson practicing 2 v1 with JRC students16 members of the Hyde Rugby team spent what what would have been a 1/2 day off from school working with students from Jackie Robinson Center(JRC). The JRC works to educate and address the social and emotional needs of students in 1st- 6th grade who have serious emotional disabilities.

After arriving at the school, the team was escorted to the school auditorium to meet with students, show video clips of the rugby program and share our experiences. During the meeting, a student wondered how “hard” Hyde Rugby players tackle and who was the hardest tackler. This question led to a discussion about the importance of “power” in tackling but more importantly “control.” This was explained as being both for the safety of the players and the outcome of the tackle.

Coach Bayer used this moment to talk about how power and control are important in daily life. To help make the connection, an analogy was used of a powerful car that could go 300MPH in 1.5 seconds but unfortunately had no steering wheel. All students agreed that it would ultimately crash. Coach Bayer asked students to think of themselves as that car with all that power and in what ways do they not have control? and what would their crash look like? One student summed it up when he said “If I don’t have control over my power, someone else with power will control me.” Great insight from an elementary student and “power with control” became the motto of the day.

Following the assembly, the team worked with the kids in a variety of rugby themed activities including practicing “lineouts”(see photo) and a spirited game of keep away. I am not sure who enjoyed themselves more, the JRC kids or the Hyde players! It was a great experience for our players and hopefully the JRC students as well.

At the “debrief” discussion on the bus trip back to school, Hyde players were asked to share their thoughts about the day. Comments ranged from “it was a lot of fun, to see kids excited and happy to have us there”, “working with the kids was challenging and a lot of fun”, “I now know how much patience it takes to work with kids, I didn’t realize what we put our teachers through with our attitudes” and a reference and discussion of the movie Invictus. In the movie there is a moment when the South African rugby team works with kids from the local Township and the shared experience bonds the team together. Hyde player, Roger Lowrey felt that, like the movie, “I think it brought us together as a team and we are better for it” I think that pretty much sums the day up and we hope to return to Jackie Robinson in the near future.

“What began as a rag tag bunch of kids tossing a “funny shaped” ball around on a rough patch of grass and dirt has evolved into a highly competitive program that includes more than 90 high school and middle school boys and girls from the Hyde Leadership Public Charter School in Washington, DC.

Their unique story as one of the first all African American rugby programs in the USA has defied stereotypes and changed perceptions. It is not just playing a game that makes them special, it is more than that. The experiences shared between the rugby players at Hyde, their opponents and the larger community, have helped change minds, hearts and futures…”

Once we were agreed and ready to go, Tal sent me over some photos taken of the boys, the school and the team in action – all taken by an extremely talented local photographer … I was blown away. Usually I get a handful of jpegs that are 50% sky and 50% grass with a few teeny people in the distance that my clients think can be miraculously salvaged and transformed by the wonders of photoshop, but on this occasion I had several hundred images, EVERY single one of which I fell in love with – HELP!! I love this website, and I went above and beyond to get every single inch of it spot on and it is probably still my favourite website from an artistic/design viewpoint.

Hyde are still our only club from over the pond, despite my constant nagging of clubs from Canada to Los Angeles – we shall continue to ‘poke’ in hope.

Thank you Tal and Thank you Hyde for this great project.

You can the website here: hyderugby.com

Meanwhile – I stayed in touch with Martin Hansford, Trev and the trust. Just recently, as a reward for the pro bono projects I have done for the likes of the Nile Crocs and Mbale elephants etc; the TRT decided to let me have a go at their own website – which I have been nagging them about for some time. Result!

As I was in the process of moving RuckinRugby over onto WordPress, I thought this would be a great opportunity to get stuck in and I designed the whole TRT website around a bespoke wordpress theme. I experimented with some new plug-ins, a new navigation tool and a widgetized sidebar, all of which I think have turned out well.

Over the next month we will really hone the nes updating and distribution services built in to this website and I hope to add a full report here once that is all running smoothly. I am aiming to get a really comprehensive approach to the social media channeling but with the absolute minimum of fuss – using things like Ping.fm and Dlvr.it to do the hard work. We will see.

You can see the website live here: TagRugbyTrust.co.uk

Have a look at it and let me know what you think, – I really like it.

Jeddah have a proud history and this is reflected through the design of the website and in the manner in which they keep it. The whole design was themed on their colours and worked around a fantastic, circular image they sent me which features on their home page.

A lot has changed in Gulf Rugby over the last 12 months so I am hoping that the new season will see an opportunity for Jeddah and other clubs in Saudi Arabia to play more rugby and get in shape before the Dubai 7s every December.

You can see their website here: jeddahrfc.com