The Northwood 1st XV rugby squad took part in a team building and high performance camp over the weekend (25 – 27 January). After a session on Friday afternoon with renowned Sports Psychologist Dr Henning Gerricke, the weekend got underway, with the day scholars getting a taste of the life of a boarder. The squad got together and supported the Northwood Water Polo teams in their matches against St Charles, before getting together in the dining hall of John Bruyns house for dinner. After dinner, all team members (including management) took part in a team building exercise designed to ensure that the boys became more acquainted with one another. This was followed by a walk to get dessert (Wakaberry’s).
After breakfast on Saturday, we departed for Margate. Arriving at the local rugby club just before 10am, the boys changed and practice began in a constant drizzle. The fields were soaked and handling became tricky. Just before 1pm, we left to go to our accommodation in Oslo Beach where we had lunch (the owner had thought it was a primary school and prepared lunch accordingly – needless to say, most of the boys ordered a 2ndlunch from the kitchen!). 3pm saw us back on the training fields (still raining), where we practiced until just before 6pm.
Dinner on Saturday was more substantial and after dessert the boys split into their groups for a bit of evening fun. Each group was tasked with imitating a teacher and their class. After more than an hour of side splitting laughter, we spent the rest of the evening relaxing.
Breakfast was at 7:30 on Sunday and, to the delight of the boys, was substantial. After breakfast, we packed up and checked out. We had our last practice at 9:30 (in the sun for a change). This was watched by a number of locals, who commented on how well drilled and fit the boys looked. After practice, we left for Durban. It was a wonderful weekend and I think the boys are now more cohesive and have a better understanding of each other.
