Demolition Derby
02 Feb 2010 12:13
We arrived in Birmingham, Alabama late on Monday night. Most of the teams on the tour had left West Palm Beach at the earliest convenience, choosing to get the travel over and done with and recuperate ahead of the next tournament. Unlike the Knock and Roll, the Demolition Derby was taking a more traditional format with two pools and crossovers ahead of a final placing game. An additional quarterfinal stage gave us a total of six more games before our return to the UK.
GB had been given a favourable seeding on account of London’s good showing at the Derby the previous year and our first day was quite straightforward. We jumped out to an 11-0 lead on the HIRR Texans and continued to pile on the goals using a variety of different line-ups. The final score was 65-30 but we kept reminding ourselves that our focus for this tournament (and the whole tour for that matter) was performance and not result. That afternoon we faced Germany and were very pleased to put in another cohesive display with plenty of energy. After a tight first quarter we pulled away, eventually registering a 55-39 win.
The next day we played Phoenix in the pool decider. The last time I had seen these guys was at the “Best of the West” in November 2009 but they were a different side now…fitter, better prepared and with a larger bench. Our start line didn’t match up well with theirs and we went behind early and never managed to make up the deficit. We lost 45-54 but showed signs of some really good Rugby within the game. Line-ups were beginning to play more smoothly together and develop a better understanding of each other.
Second place in the pool gave us a quarterfinal against Sweden. Once again our start was poor but this time we fought back. As much as they tried the Swedes couldn’t shake us and we continued to match them goal for goal. We began the last quarter two down but the Swedes were tired and had used all their timeouts. Our three 2.5’s line-up (2.5 + 2.5 +2.5 + 0.5 makes 8 points on court) put in an awesome performance to take the lead and win the game by one goal 41-40. This gave us a massive boost…and a semi-final against Canada on the last day!
Canada had been the form team throughout the tour looking stronger and better drilled than any other squad. I know all the guys well and we’re friends off court but its all business when the buzzer goes and the games are never dull. The scores were level at half time even though we had been down by as many as five. This was very promising as it showed we could mix it with one of the best three teams in the World even at this early stage in our preparation. Unfortunately Canada stamped their authority on the game in the third and the game ended 54-47 in their favour. Phoenix had also lost their semi-final so our final game of the tour would be a re-match.
The game was very similar to the first encounter with us struggling the break Phoenix’ press and having to use timeouts early. Tiredness was also creeping into our game and we didn’t have an answer for Phoenix’ speed. We went down 43-51 and took fourth place overall in a very competitive tournament.
I’m writing this as I fly home from Alabama and thinking back on what the squad and I have achieved over the last two weeks. We’ve learned a great deal and have taken some of the first steps to building our 2010 team. We have a lot to improve on yet but if we keep learning as fast as we have on this tour I’m confident that we’ll be a formidable force in Vancouver this September.