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. 

Woodridge a bridge too far.

Day 10:

A warm sunny sky greeted us as we arose for breakfast on Friday morning. The boys had a good night sleep as the coaches heard our opponents for the coming game into the the wee hours. Beans, bacon and eggs, and then a quick shuttle bus ride to Knight Oval within Kingswood College led us to our opponents for the day; Woodridge College from Port Elizabeth.

Captain Bruce lost the toss and the Red Caps were sent in. Woodridge were full of confidence after bowling out Muir College for 72 and chasing them before the rain yesterday. The Reds batting failed to fire, perhaps too much biltong was the reason. With the score at 8/51, Brendan mounted a one man rescue mission, as he struck numerous boundaries in making the third half century of the tour. Brendan was well supported by Jeremy (who batted for a full 20 min to almost get us to morning tea) and Max (who showed amazing poise to get Brendan to his milestone). The Reds were able to post a respectable 107 when drinks were taken.

Woodridge looked to take the initiative early by playing an expansive game. Enter Lachie the Outfielder. After his heroics at Parktown (obviously Woodridge hadn't watched the footage) he fielded a ball three metres in from the boundary, threw across his body and hit the stumps at the bowler's end to have the batsmen out by two metres. James had the opener caught at slip by Adam and the PE school went to lunch at 2/48. Unfortunately, we let a couple of chances slip in the field and Jez's friends from Woodridge passed us just 2 wickets down. A funny moment in the game was when Lachie was given an English and grammer lesson by the official umpire when he asked "How much balls left in the over?"

After some jovial negotiations between the coaches, it was decided that the teams would play an international T20 - South Africa vs Australia - in a lead up to the February series. The hosts won the toss and decided to bat. Cameron was the hero with the ball, taking three wickets and bowling with some serious heat. The Aussies were set 8 per over to win, and looked a real shot to take the chocolates with Michael looking busy during his 20 and Todd hitting an impressive 64 off 42. The boundaries were coming thick and fast until Todd was run out on a hit straight back to the bowler. The Reds innings closed at 7/142 - just a bit short of our target. There are no pictures of the second game due to the fact that the team photographer / blogger / physio had to take over the scoring due to a couple of indiscretions in our innings. Todd volunteered to talk through his innings with those interested in absence of photographic evidence.

Tomorrow, we have the Albany Rural Invitational team, who like Barker are yet to register a victory. With a lot at stake, there is talk of Coach Thomlinson to open the batting and Coach Toth to open the bowling - only time (and rules of the festival) will tell.

Overlooking the main grounds at St. Andrew's College.

A very proud young man after his first half century since his time in the Under 10's.

Coach Thomlinson in the process of making another fantastic decision.

JMT

Kingswood College saved by a downpour.

Day 9:

In the first match of the Grahamstown cricket festival, Captain Liam won the toss and had no hesitation in taking first use of the Kingswood College strip. After losing George early to a seaming yorker, Ben and Liam settled into a solid partnership. Ben was unluckily out LBW for a well complied 19, while Liam continued to dominate the bowling making a majestic 68 off 99 balls under difficult conditions. The highlight of his well-compiled knock being a cracking hook shot for 6. Mark and Todd made strong starts, but failed to capitalise on the conditions. Thomas was unfortunately dismissed first ball and Bruce failed to reproduce the heroics from the Parktown match. James made a classy 13 not out to see the Reds finish on 136. Just as the players were about to take the field the skies opened and ruined any chance of a result. After the brilliant bowling and fielding performance against Parktown, the Reds were supremely confident of their chances for victory; Kingswood College escaping with a draw. One of the plays of the day was the scoring prowess of Brad and Jez despite a number of distractions.

The boys have settled into the Espin boarding house at St Andrews College and are enjoying meeting many of the fellow players from the other 15 teams that are participating at the festival. After dinner tonight, the boys took the opportunity of the clearing skies to take a guided tour around the multitude of grounds and facilities that the boys at SAC have at their disposal. Then it was back to the boarding house to talk tactics for the Woodridge game, who just happen to be staying in the same boarding house as us. Jez volunteered to do some recognisance work in preparation, but it was decided that playing the game straight up was preferred by the masses. 

SMT

Gane Oval. Kingswood College's main oval and the home to their 'great escape'.

Some of the girls from DSG came down to see the 'Red juggernaut' continue.

Three generations of Thompsons watch to see if the youngest can continue his good form.

The Barker Touring Squad at the St. Andrew's College Cricket Festival 2014.

A slightly waterlogged Gane Oval.

Captain Liam scoring the squad's second half century on tour.

A day of travel, but one of the best days yet...

Day 8:

An early rise and we were back on the bus. But this time Mike took us to O R Tambo Airport. We don't think we left anyone or anything behind, but Lachie, Max and Brendan were asked on numerous  occasions to check their rooms. A bit of spare time at the airport meant that the boys could acquire some 'reasonably' priced presents for parents (Jane and Nigel, I can feel a few wood items coming your way).

A quick flight to Port Elizabeth with an even quicker kip by some of the touring party saw us arrive to some very windy conditions. We were greeted by our bus driver Mike (which we decided couldn't be a coincidence) and we travelled the 100km to Kwantu Elephant Sanctuary. The impressive thing about the tour has been while he have seen some amazing sights and done some fantastic things, some of us are continually surprised that the day's activity seems to surpass the previous one; today was definitely such a day. At first the boys thought, oh well, more lion cubs. But when our guide, Innocent said that we could pat them and let them gnaw away at our hands (Coach Toth stressed that it must be each person's non-bowling hand) the boys went ga-ga.

We then ventured into other parts of the reserve and saw a number of lions, cheetahs and amazingly, Bengal tigers. The reserve has four of them which they've bred and will return them back to India next year. Three immature highlights in this part - Coach Thomlinson trying to stare down a female lion through the electric fence after if roared at him - Brendan reaching through an electric fence tot try and get a better look at the tigers despite being pre-warned (don't worry, no ill effects resulted) - and a lion passing wind in front of us, or at least that's who our guide blamed.

And as if the day couldn't get any better, we went on an hour long game drive in two groups. Kwantu game park is privately owned and operated and is over 6000 hectares in size. They have amazing bungalows that you can stay in overnight and in the central part of the park, there is a five star lodge and restaurant. Both land cruisers saw an absolute plethora of wildlife but there were two things that the boys wanted to see. A hippo and an elephant outside of the sanctuary. The guide for the older boys, Cool Man, didn't disappoint. A hippo was spotted early on in the piece, and with the help of Lachie, he spotted an elephant in a dam from almost a kilometre away. As we drove with haste to try and get a closer look, I must admit, I didn't think we get to see him up close. How wrong I was...
We were no more than 40m from a very large bull elephant in the wild. While extremely cautious, you couldn't help but be amazed by yet aura of such a magnificent beast. On the way back to the admin building, we saw some blue wildebeest, cranes and gnu to add to the animals we saw in Pilanesburg.

Then it was on the bus to the sanctuary part of the game park. Below you will see some pictures of the four trained female elephants. However, there is no way on this earth that they do the experience that the boys had any justice. To look into the eyes of this gentle giant, made you think how anyone could hurt these animals and how well that Steve and his staff have done to train an animal so large and previously thought to be untrainable. The elephants could be fed in two different ways: by putting the food pellets on her trunk and she could feed herself, or you could say "trunk up" and place some pellets on her tongue and overcome your fear of losing your hand in the largest mammal walking the earth. Everyone partook in both methods without incident - thank goodness!

The time seemed to pass too quickly and we were back on the bus and on our way to Grahamstown. We checked into the boarding house and got an early night before having to play our strongest opposition in the tournament.

Both men doing their best impersonation of Zoolander.

The boys eagerly awaiting what's to come in Port Elizabeth.

Coach Thomlinson giving the 24 year old Majula a quick pat on the tongue.

Some of the boys were a bit anxious with their backs towards the big girls.

One of the groups in the new Land Cruisers at Kwantu Elephant Sanctuary.

The King of the African jungle. 

The Queen of the Asian jungle (in Africa). 

Some of the younger boys flirted with the warnings provided, but ultimately sanity prevailed.

This was definitely my highlight of the tour thus far. The chance to pat Amala the white lion cub and Survivor the brown lion cub was absolutely amazing.