The Long and Winding Road

Day 17:

UPDATE 1
So far, so good (Quick! Touch Todd's bat... Boys are so superstitious)
We're on the bus to Cape Town Airport.
I've got all the passports.
We've got 17 Barker boys and 2 happy staff members.
And the plane to Joburg is on schedule.
Parents. I'll update this as often as I cam heading home.
At this stage, we're on time for our scheduled pick up time from Sydney Airport.

JMT

UPDATE 2
We are through customs on Joburg airport.
The boys are stocking up on local fare, like Simba chips and KFC.
In about an hour you will receive a text from the boys that the flight is running to schedule.
We will see you when the plane touches down at Sydney at 2:45pm on Saturday afternoon.
Fingers crossed that the boys washed their boots properly and advised against buying wood items.

Steve and I would like to sign off and say that the trip has been magnificent and all 17 boys have represented their country, school, their families and themselves to the highest standard. We would also like to thank parents for their support prior to and during the tour and we will see you soon.

JMT and SMT

UPDATE 3
Now it's time to reflect.
All 17 boys were delivered to a parent or responsible adult.
Each had their passport, a few stories and at least one present for their parents.
The Qantas staff were just as complimentary of the boys as they were on the way over, showing their standards had not slipped (or they were just exceptionally tired - Max sleeping at least 8 hours of the journey home).

We definitely hope that the experience that the boys had in South Africa not only lead them to becoming better cricketers, but balanced young men. Whether it be visiting places like the Apartheid Museum or seeing the faces of young students at the Zimasa Community School, we're positive that the trip had an impact on each boy and that they will reflect on the various things they've seen when making future decisions in their lives.

Once again, thank you for allowing them and us the experience.

Signing out for good,

JMT

Heading home to more familiar pitches.

Robben Island and our last game of the tour

Day 16:

Robben Island - or Seal Island translated- was an amazing experience for the group. When we got to the Island, which has has a very dynamic history and which has now been converted into a museum, a huge sign greeted us; "Robben Eiland: We are proud to serve". A timely reminder of the past and the change that has occurred in this country over the past 50 years.

Our guide met us at the entrance to the cell block. While I've forgotten his name, I won't forget him in a hurry. He revealed that he was was an ex political prisoner for close to 10 years. He was arrested without charge, tortured, interrogated and kept in a cell block with 50 other men. As we entered, our guide showed us the reception hall, which doubled as a court room for the people who had just arrived in the Island. Then we moved into the courtyard of A Block. It was extremely hot standing there, with only a bit of shade around the edges (and we were only there for 20 minutes, not 20 years). Nelson Mandela and other countless political prisoners worked, exercised and congregated there day after day and year after year - it was just mind-blowing. From the courtyard we were shown Madiba's window to his cell (4 from the entry point on the right).

As we progressed in, you could feel the hairs stand up on the back of your neck, heading closer to Mandela's cell - his place of solitude and capture for just shy of 18 years. His cell (as they all were) was tiny. A boring white and greyish blue in colour. It had been preserved with a bedside table, cups and bed - which would not have been long enough for most people of this touring party. He must have had incredible mental strength to keep believing that his vision would come true despite his surroundings. Standing there, it was inspirational beyond words. As we wandered down the hall to other cells within the block and they each had their own stories of the inmates it housed and even some keepsakes. One inmate had drawn chess pieces on paper, cut them out and used them - lots of time for chess in prison. For the board, they has drawn the squares on the floor with soap.

The last part of the prison tour was a trip to F Block. Our guide was held here for 10 years. It seemed to be a dorm-style room that housed almost 50 people. On the wall was an example of an ID card and he explained the numbers: he was 6984 - the 69th parishioner in 1984. So Mandela was was the 466th prisoner on Robben Island in 1964. Further along the walls, there were examples of documents showing how inmates had pleaded with authorities to compete in various sporting activities - soccer seemed to be the sport of choice. This was one of the initiatives that the men felt strongly about, but the main one, the key to their influence and eventual release, was education.

Back on the bus, an enthusiastic guide told us that we should be happier after just being released. He led our tour of the rest of the Island. Old churches, war relics such as massive gun turrants and even an education centre. One of the artillery guns was not completed until 1947 - two years after the war was over...

We also went past more of the moving parts of Robben Island. A gentleman called Robert Soubekwe, who started the PAC was another political prisoner on the Island and was kept under house arrest on the island away from the other prisoners, almost until his death. His house was next to the guard dog kennels and went close to insane due to his lack of human contact. In his two room house, there was a modest table, bed and copies of letters that he wrote to loved ones. It clearly showed a man who was lonely and missed the little aspects of daily life. The boys I spoke to couldn't imagine that for a week, let alone years.

The last part of the tour was a visit to the eastern part of the island where an ex prisoner had his ashes scattered by his wife. He had escaped and imprisoned a second time, but had fallen in love with a lady and was allowed leave from the island for 3 hours to marry her. One of the many classic tales that we were told. That ended the tour of the Island and it was definitely one of the highlights of the tour and something each one of us will not forget in a hurry.

Report by Jeremy

A friendly pom offered to take our picture. Thommo mentioned
 the Ashes and the photographer seemed to miss the all important sign above our heads. 

A young Nelson Mandela as photographed by the press in the 1970's.

The cell of prisoner 46664.

A group of lads that were lucky not to be left in the cell.

The infamous lime quarry and the tribute of rocks that ex-prisoners have left since their release.

Beautiful Cape Town from the Robben Island ferry.

For the second match in a row, Miklo the bus driver again decided to take us on a few laps of the school before parking 10 minutes away from the ground, after passing it at least twice.

After a good 10 minutes walk we arrived at the scenic ground with the iconic Table Mountain overlooking the green grassy field. Liam the skipper won the toss and decided to send the boys from Barker into bat after listening to The coaches' insightful pitch report pre game.

Adam and George strode out to the wicket at 3:30pm as the lads watched on with much anticipation unknowing what will follow in many of the boys first ever day nighter ahead. Adam and George began solidly with quick singles all over the park and rotating the strike with great effect.  However, what turned out to be the team's biggest partnership of the match came to a close at the loss George edging to the keeper with the team total on 23. Adam followed his opening comrade soon after departing for a top score for the innings of 18. Liam and Todd pushed the runs along before Liam fell shortly before drinks, which brought young Michael to the crease. Unfortunately the big man was run out due to some good fielding and an average call of a run for a diamond duck, which left the boys from Australia 4/60 at the first drinks break. 

Unfortunately, matters worsened for the fellas, as straight after drinks saw the arrival of an excellent spin bowling master class from both ends of Bishops main oval. Wickets fell left right and centre as barker lost 6 For 17 after drinks to collapse and fall shy of a decent total all out for 73 after a late resistance and true Aussie fight shown from Tom and James.

After a delicious dinner of chicken and chips was generously provided by Bishops the boys ran put pumped up and raring to get some early wickets. Brad kicked things of with some energetic fielding that led an early run out leaving the bishops boys at 1/8. 

Despite this positive start both the state of the game and the night sky grew darker as dusk fell over the field and the floodlights began to beam. The Bishops opener and number 3 batsmen countered some good bowling from James, Liam, Brendan and Bruce building a match winning partnership of 60 before Cameron came into the attack and snared a wicket. The Bishops men at the crease then creeped over the line with 8 wickets to spare.

An unfortunate result to conclude a fantastic tour for the boys but I'm sure everyone involved will 

remember this day night match for many years to come.

Report by Ben.

The beautiful Bishops College and one of the best school indoor facility I have seen.

Barker' openers got the team off to a great start.

The Reds rush the field with enthusiasm after the dinner break.

Either by day or by night, it's a wonderful backdrop to a cricket oval and 

Bruce sending down another thunderbolt

School, seals, sun, surf and souvenirs.

Day 15:


The boys and coaches were excited in the anticipation of a cricket-free day. While competition is important, it is nice to have a period of down time. A bit of a sleep in was appreciated and an 8am start took us back to Langa this morning. The Zimasa Community School has approximately 1400 students between years Kindy and Year 9. The Barker Rugby Tour of 2013 visited the school in April and donated some books, equipment and time to teach a couple of classes. Unfortunately for us, it was was the first day of school so it was a bit of a mad house therefore books and cricket equipment would have to do today.

We were welcomed by Jane and Tammy who gave us a quick history of the school and took us to the courtyard to be greeted by the choir who sang beautifully. The boys then presented a plethora of books and a kit bag full of equipment before visiting a few different classes. The deputy principal (who was a mad cricket fan) spoke to us about the surrounding area and presented a plaque to Coach Thomlinson from the school for his office. Then it was off to the jetty for our boat to Seal Island. After the mandatory coffee for coaches and toilet stop for Brendan and Tom, the boys had time to peruse the dock for leather and wood goods. Thomas made sure he visited every vendor but only bought something from every third one.

The boat was bigger than I expected, but the people coming back from the returning party seemed to have enjoyed their trip so that was reassuring. The cruise to Seal Island took just on 20 minutes and on the way there were some amazing houses on the sides and at the base of mountains. No cases of sea sickness by the time we reached the home of approx 5000 seals. Some of the boys wondered whether they would see a near kill as in Pilanesberg, but were disappointed when informed that there was a larger colony of seals further out to sea that the Great Whites preferred.

Back on the bus and we headed south for Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope. The boys received some imprompteau and surprising history points from Coaches Thomlinson and Toth on the way to our destination. A mandatory group photo in front of the Cape of Good Hope sign (apparently named as a common leaving point for sailing expeditions) and it was off to the fenicular at Cape Point. Coach Toth though it a good idea to skip the motorised transport and walk up to the look out instead - ideal warm up for tomorrow's Bishop's game. As can be seen below in the pics, the view (and the panoramic photography) was absolutely amazing.

A snack at the gift shop and it was on our way to Fisk Hoek, a little later than we anticipated - it may have had something to do with having to stop and watch the baboons. As this is a PG blog, I won't describe what happened next, but the laughter coming from the bus was fantastically loud. after about 3 minutes, the boys and I asked Coach Thomlinson and Miklo the bus driver to settle down and continue on to our luch venue. the entire tour squad thought fish and chips was the go, and what better place to have it but by the beach with a possible swim afterwards (of course we would wait 30 minutes after eating). During lunch, the 2 sirens and the raising of the black flag put an end to our thoughts of a swim. In Oz we don't have a black flag on the beach, but in SA it means a shark sighting in the area - so a swim was out of the question for all besides the mischevious members of the group and Miklo.

Back to the hotel with a bit of free time befroe our team dinner at the local pizza place, but not before teaching young Thomas some prolonged negotiating skills at the local sports shop. After dinner, the boys seemed keen to shop again; more than a Kardashian with their famous husband's credit card. However, tomorrow was going to be a big day and our pillows were beckoning.

Good night

JMT

The outskirts of the Langa township on the way to the Zimasa Community School.

A slightly tighter classroom than we were used to at leafy Barker College.

The school's choir took great pleasure in welcoming the boys to their community school.

Perhaps Pascal could use a lady like her in the kitchen at school. Very efficient. 

 

The Zimasa Community School from outside of the gate. A busy first day of the year. 

 

The students of Zimasa gladly accepting the gifts of books and cricket equipment from the lads.

Seal Island living up to its name.

 

Heading out to Seal Island with the older lads claiming the back seat of the ferry.

 

The cubs checking out the seals.

Looking for a kiosk at the Cape of Good Hope, but it was not to be.

A pano of Cape Point from up near the lighthouse.

Cheeky baboons helped the boys on top of their studies - this time, biology was covered.

Coach Thomlinson with the Cubs at Fish Hoek just before our extremely quick dip in the water.

Wynberg becomes an iceberg in front of the Red juggernaut.

Day 14:

The day started as always with breakfast. Conducting a poll of the player, the pork sausage was proving quite popular - though a little early for me I must say. We boarded the bus at 8am for a 9:30am game, but we had trouble early with a rough start where our bus driver, Miklo, decided a tour around the school and every bush in the Western Cape was necessary. Once we finally arrived, a very rushed warm up commenced. 

As the sun beamed down on Jacques Kallis Oval in the foreground of table mountain, THE Todd walked out to the road in the middle of the ground. Todd implemented the idea of tails never fails, and it prevailed. He sent us in on a brown but very promising deck for batting.

Sadly an early wicket fell which brought Lachie to meet Ben and the two batted superbly taking every opportunity with a bit of poor bowling and fielding. Then Ben dragged one back onto his stumps but surprisingly the bails didn't dislodge. However, two balls later, the bowler made sure of it. Michael was in much earlier than anticipated and batsmen both showed significant fight to settle the ship and we ended on 64 for 2 at drinks.

After drinks, Lachie was doing his best to get the Red Tsunami back on track with a number of long bombs over the boundary. Unfortunately he was caught by the keeper for 47 as he tried to bring up the milestone with one shot. Sadly, many wickets were falling around him. We evidently lost that session finishing on 121 for 6 after 34. The game ended very quickly after drinks with wickets dropping like flies. The Mighty Reds finished all out for 128 and had their work cut out for them in the field on an increasingly hot day. 

As the Reds fired up marching onto the field behind their skipper, they were ready to take a few 
wickets early with Brendan and Michael (opening the bowling for the first time in a game) but it wasn't the case. The Wynberg batsmen worked hard at the outset and was helped along the way with some runs from Sammy Sundries. The boys never gave up, making the Wynberg boys fight for every run after the first drinks break, but only a few wickets fell making it look ominous for the Red army. Nevertheless, the bowlers and fielders put in the hard yards. Tommy worked hard and pushed through discomfort to pick up a wicket, while Max claimed 2 wickets with some strong fielding by Ben.

Sadly, the Wynberg boys batted with great resistance and won the game only 3 wickets down. Despite the result, the Reds showed great determination and potential leading into our final game of the tour 
which will be an absolute cracker. Almost as good as Jez's pre game pitch report - ask around; very funny.

Match report by Double B (Brad and Bruce)

Lachie after his gallant innings of 47 batting at No. 3

Barker trying to restrict the Wynberg Boys on the picturesque Jacques Kallis Oval.

The boys waiting for their lunch to be delivered while taking respite from the sun. It's a tough life...

It doesn't get much better looking than this.

The Reds win 2 in a row.

Day 13:

Some of the boys had an interrupted night's sleep due to the howling wind outside and a seagull stuck in the ventilation shaft. The breakfast fare was top shelf yet again; hot food, pastries, cereal and of course the staple toast. Things weren't looking that promising as we piled into Miklo's bus. The windy conditions meant that the cable cars were closed so we ventured to Signal Point. Interestingly enough, Coach Thomlinson tried to make a call from there and there was no signal - it's Africa...

Max and Luke had the good idea that the team should try walking up the mountain, more for a warm up before the Langa game than for any sense of achievement. The lads set a cracking pace following the underneath the cable car line. The scenery even from the height we achieved was breath-taking. As we progressed, the boys enjoyed putting on their best Australian accents when speaking to our fellow hikers - Michelle and Natalie from Toronto, Canada seemed to garner the interest of the boys. As we headed down the mountain, there was movement at the station and talk of the cable cars reopening. The boys got to the front of the line and watched the tourists pile in behind. Within minutes we were taking in one of the new 7 wonders of the world from the cable car and then the city of Cape Town from a height of 1065m. Hopefully the pictures do the view justice as I'm sure my words would not.

An hour up the mountain did not seem enough, and after a photo that may make Coach Thomlinson's wall at home, we headed down and towards our lunch destination; Sheila's house within the township of Langa. Eric our guide talked us through the oldest township in Cape Town. Sitting down at Sheila's, we were treated to some fantastic local music and the band asked a few of the boys to fill in and jam with them. Cameron was definitely MVP.

Our game was relocated from Langa Stadium (due to a training camp for the Zimbabwe Soccer team
- and the guards withs AK-47's were a definite deterent) to the Pinewoods School. Captain Adam lost the toss and Barker were forced to field on a hot windy day. Regular wickets for the boys kept the Langa Invitational team under pressure. Bruce was pick of the bowlers here with 3/5 off his allotted
four overs. Due to the windy conditions, Sammy Sundries was the top scorer for the hosts and the target was set at 74.

Captain Adam and Brad opened the innings and got off to a cautious start. 0/10 off 3 overs through some tight bowling from Mtubabe and Sibitu. Adam started playing cross bat shots and Brad started playing expansive drives which led to a sharp rise in the run rate. After two big 6's Brad was dismissed for 34, caught by Michael, who was playing for the Langa XI, while Lachie played the shot of the innings, a six over mid wicket to tie the scores. Barker won the day by 9 wickets but cricket was the winner on the dayas both teams came together, shook hands and sat in front of the backdrop of Table Mountain. As a reward for yet another win, the boys were left to their own devices for dinner. An early night followed in preparation for Wynberg tomorrow.

Jacques Kallis Oval, here we come.......

The spectacular Table Mountain and adjoining Lion's Head.

The back up photo when we found out that the cable car was closed.

Captain Liam suggested we warm up for the Langa game in a non traditional way.

Here's the real team photo as a result of a little devine intervention.

The Barker Music tour meets the Barker Cricket tour - though Lachie seems to be a little out of time.

One of the main challenges of the Langa game was to display the score in the howling wind.

A fantastic game played in great spirit ends on a high note.

Travel, Sun and Shopping.

Day 12:

An early rise and Coach Thomlinson said goodbye to his room in Grahamstown one last time. Two mini buses took the boys and their gear to PE Airport. All seemed to be going well until we tried to check in - apparently PE Airport is like the Hotel California, as they staff expected touring cricketers to have less than 20 kg of luggage per player. Coach Toth expressed his dissatisfaction with a steely glare, while the consummate professional, Coach Thomlinson suggested to the boys that they should try and wear a a much of their clothing on the plane - Luke, Michael and Thomas never looked so buff. Coffee and further negotiations got us through the gate and the views out of the window made up for the earlier annoyances.

Flying into Cape Town, the boys were jealous of a fellow flier who got to join the captain in the cockpit, though any window seat showed off the natural wonder of Table Mountain and it's surrounds. We met Craig from Bundu Bashers and he took us straight to our bus and to our very classy hotel. While most of us were happy with our accommodation over the past four nights, there was a lot to like about our new digs.

A few hours of free time at Victoria and Anchor Harbour and then to a great pizza house as selected by Todd. Good food, good company and even a view of the ocean and Robben Island. A perfect way to end the evening in preparation of our first game in Cape Town versus a Langa Development Side.

JMT

The road to Port Elizabeth airport for the last leg of our trip.

Some of the great scenery on the way to Cape Town.

After a week of rain, Cape Town was showing The Reds it's true colours.

The Reds bat and bat and bat.

A cloudless day greeted the boys at breakfast. Scrambled eggs, tomato and croissants were the lunch ladies' choice and a bit more of a relaxed lead up as the game was at St. Aidan's Oval today, a local St. Andrew's ground. Liam won the toss and liked the look of what he saw. A flat deck, though it had a couple of weeds on a good length and a lightening outfield. The going was a bit slow early but Adam and George got the side off to a solid start before Adam fell for 19. Then Liam joined George for a 123 run partnership to put the Reds in a commanding position by morning tea break. George kicked on with the middle order who provided pleasing support. Some scoring issues saw our total revised down to 306 from 317 - perhaps some home-schooling scoring is in order.

After an ample lunch, Brendan took the new ball but not his spikes. It mattered for little as he took the middle stump of their opener with the first rock of the innings. Just to prove it wasn't a fluke, after a change of shoes during the wicket celebration, he did it again to the No. 3 just 3 balls later with spikes. The skipper then made an M S Dhoni like move (last World Cup vs Sri Lanka) and brought the keeper on to bowl. It took 4 balls to take the wicket of Ben. Oh, did I mention the the coaches swapped a player from each team? African Ben for Aussie Jesse - Ben should be applauded for making Jesse's dream of playing with Australains come true.

At the first drinks break, Albany were on target for a massive run chase and were 4/98. With some words of wisdom from the coaches, the ball was entrusted to the Spin Twins; Thomas and Jez. Each bowled with poise to take 3 wickets for an average of 8 and 9 respectively. The opposition batsmen were overheard saying "I can't believe it spun so much". In the end Barker won by 182 runs but the match was played in a wonderful spirit with parents from the opposition shaking each and every boys' hand. After the match, the team and coaches celebrated by walking to Wimpy and enjoying a milkshake. Dinner and an early night for our last night in the boarding house. Coach Thomlinson was sad - he loved his fluffy pillow and single room privacy.

Tomorrow - sunny Cape Town.


JMT

George gets the first 50 on tour for the younger members of the squad.

Coaches Toth and Thomlinson are overjoyed at the boys scoring 300 for the first time on any South Africa tour.

The Barker boys look to escape the heat of Grahamstown and the Barker batsmen.

Captain Liam notches up his second 50 in as many innings.

Todd offered some solid support in the middle overs.

Brendan after taking a wicket with the first ball of the innings.