What’s news …
- We were all relieved to learn that Battleship Old Boys are safe
and sound. There was some concern for their safety after seeing TV
coverage of the carnage caused by the hurricane that hit their
home town of Mobile. However Lars Granade, manager of the team in
Limerick, has confirmed that the storm shifted 30 miles east just
before making landfall putting the majority of the teams’ homes
on the west side of the eyewall. One of the team lost the first
floor of his home due to flooding and everyone had lots of trees
down but thankfully they are all in good health.
- A special thanks to Failte Ireland, Shannon Development and
Heineken for their enthusiastic and generous support – they are
fantastic organizations !
- There were 4 awards presented at the final dinner in Limerick by
John King, Shannon Development’s Director of Tourism &
Heritage and Ciara Gallagher, Sports Tourism Officer for Failte
Ireland:
Photo credits – Michael E Johnson Photography.
Click any of these photos to see a large version, then
"back" to return..
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The Best Team Mascot award went to Helvetes
de Geneve from Switzerland for their mascot Milka the
cow. |
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The Oldest Player at the Carnival was Peter
Brandt aged 80 a member of Diok Oude Meesters from
The Netherlands. |
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The Best Dressed Team was Les
Archiball USA. |
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The Silliest Move award went to Bustard
Eagles from Australia for going out and buying a gas BBQ
that they attempted to light in a timber enclosed building
at their village in the University of Limerick.
Needless to say security arrived and steaks were eaten very
rare that night! |
- The inaugural Team Leaders Conclave held at the end of the
Limerick Carnival was attended by over 50 reps. The discussion
covered a wide range of topics. The notes have been sent to those
who attended. Additional copies are available on request – paul@vintagerugby.com
- Old Bangkok Bangers (winners of the early bird team prize – a
medieval banquet at historic Bunratty Castle) duly collected their
prize and had a great night. Rumour has it they were out until
after 4am !
A view from the New York Vintage Whines…
We asked Geoff Andrews (leader of two teams representing the New York
Vintage Whines in Limerick) to contribute a Carnival report. Here is what he
wrote…
Most of the New
York Vintage Whines team arrived in Limerick early on the morning of
Saturday Sept. 4th. We seemed to have far too much luggage, but then again
this was Ireland so make sure you bring plenty of sweaters, winter jackets,
and other cold and wet weather gear. We were excited to be pioneers at the
inaugural World Vintage Rugby Carnival and chuckled amongst ourselves at the
five-day forecast we'd seen on the Internet prior to leaving New York. The
prediction for Limerick was 5 days of warm sunny weather blah blah blah.
What a load of garbage. Don't they know this is Ireland? You know, Ireland,
where they have four passing rainstorms a year and each one lasts 3
months.
Well, well,
well. How wrong we were. Those Internet predictions were right on.
The weather for
the entire Carnival was magnificent. Five of the six days were cloudless
with temperatures in the low 80's (25 Celsius). Perfect weather for rugby
and cold beer. Is it just me or does Heineken always taste that good when
the weather is this hot?
The Carnival
began with a muster of all teams on the banks of the Shannon River where the
Mayor of Limerick welcomed us. Not only did he welcome us, he insisted on
bringing out the ball used in the magnificent win by Munster over the mighty
All Blacks in 1978. Munster won 12 to nil and they still talk about
it. Tough for an All Black supporter (like yours truly) to be constantly
reminded about it, but then this is Limerick, the home of Irish Rugby.
The parade of
teams to King John's Castle for the welcoming party was a colourful affair
and it was wonderful to see the children of team members joining in the
celebrations. The welcome party lasted well into the night and the band got
everybody in an "Irish" mood of goodwill.
All games were
played at the University of Limerick and the fields were magnificent. Well
watered by the ground staff and covered in lush grass. The University
"Sports Bar" was only a five-minute walk from the fields and they
kept us well served with cold refreshments and good food.
The Vintage
Whines had two teams at the Carnival and were lucky enough to play on fields
close to one another so we could sub between teams when needed. Our games
were well refereed and played in the spirit of Vintage Rugby. If you wanted
to play "full steam ahead" Old Boys rugby you could, and if you
wanted to play with a red vest and not participate in the more physical
aspects, you could do that as well. We survived all three games and I have
no idea what the score was, however I think we spent less time restarting
the games than the teams we played.
This being the
inaugural Carnival there were a few minor hiccups such as lack of seating
and ice (old knees need seats to seat old bums and old muscles and bones
need ice) at the fields, but I'm assured these concerns will be taken care
of at the next Carnival in Buenos Aires in 2006. The team managers Conclave
meeting was held towards the end of the Carnival and it proved to be a good
open discussion. Vintage Rugby folks have a mission to make the Carnivals
about the players and at this the inaugural Carnival; team managers were
enthusiastic in contributing ideas. I'm sure these ideas will be sent out in
future newsletters, but what I remember most from the managers meeting was
the commitment to the next Carnival in Buenos Aires in 2006.
The final
dinner was held at the Limerick Race Course and it was a great affair with
everyone dressed up for the occasion. I can't remember who won the awards
but I'll never forget how smartly dressed the Old Bangkok Bangers were.
Where did they get those silk jackets and bow ties?
All in all a
wonderful Carnival and as everybody that attended said “ROLL ON BUENOS
AIRES”.
Geoff Andrews
Charity was the winner in Limerick – to the tune
of Euro 20,000…
Vintage Rugby is dedicated to supporting local charities where World
Carnivals are staged.
 Each
year the Limerick Leprechauns (who formed the organizing committee for the
Carnival) raise much needed finance for many local and national charities.
Working with the Vintage Sports Charitable Trust the Leprechauns were able
to raise Euro 20,000 (US$24,500) from the Limerick Carnival for their 2004
project - a specially constructed playground at St Vincent’s School
Lisnagry for children with intellectual and/or physical disability.
Anne O’Sullivan, Principal of St Vincent’s
School Lisnagry, pictured with Mike Doyle (Chairman of Limerick Leprechauns)
and Paul Gleeson (Vintage Rugby Office) on the site of the new playground).
.
Post Carnival comment…
Here are some of the messages received since the Carnival …..
“We met a number of members from Presentation RFC at the opening
function and they hosted us for the entire week and were excellent hosts
both for Vintage Rugby Carnival, the city of Limerick and their own club.
I’m not sure if Mike O’Loughlin, Noel or Christy got any sleep for the
week. We could not have had a better time while in Ireland and are looking
forward to Buenos Aires in 2006. Thanks for putting on a great
event”
- Lars Granade, Battleship RFC.
“Everyone is still abuzz about the good time we had in Ireland. Most
people prefer the smaller tournaments to the larger Golden Oldies. Buenos
Aires is a must!!”
- Bill Welsh, Les Archiball USA.
“I wish to thank you all for the fantastic Carnival and the experience
I had. This was our first experience with ‘seasoned’ rugby and it
won’t be the last. I and my team mates WILL be in Buenos Aires in 2006”
– Jim Cunningham, Brisbane Bustards/Manly Steamers.
“I am, myself, just back from having a kilarney of a time participating
in the inaugural World Vintage Rugby Carnival held in Limerick. This was a
very, very interesting carnival. Small numbers (30+ teams) meant you could
get around and meet almost everyone. There was great weather with no rain in
a week and in Ireland this was unheard of. God must be a rugby player also !
And obviously Irish ! Over on the green isle, the guys really love their
rugby, partying and story telling. It was a truly memorable
carnival.”
- Geoff Phillips, part-time NY Vintage Whines player (an extract from his
newsletter ‘The Gull Files’ distributed to Queensland Over 35 Rugby
Association members).
“Hello from
Limerick. The weather is here, wish you were beautiful. We’ve come through
our first game without injury. The team we played spent fewer times under
their posts than we did, but who cares. The only incident worth reporting
occurred when our lock, and assistant tour guide for the trip to Buenos
Aires in 2006 got bored and put one foot out of the scrum. Not long after,
however, he put one foot back in the scrum. Still later, he put one foot
back out, and shook it all about. Unconfirmed reports then indicated that he
did the Hokey Pokey and he turned himself around”
- (extract from an anonymous postcard sent home during the Carnival).
“Congratulations on creating a wonderful rugby experience! The Vintage
Rugby Carnival 2004 in Limerick will be, without a doubt, among my most
cherished memories. From the opening ceremonies to the closing gala, every
aspect of the event seemed to be run with the highest level of organization
and professionalism.
After fifteen years of marriage, this trip was both the honeymoon my wife
and I never took as well as her 40th birthday gift. And as much as I enjoyed
our trip, she enjoyed it even more! This was her first rugby tour and she
was amazed at the overall spirit of comradery and at how quickly the bonds
of friendship can form among ruggers. I feel this speaks volumes of the high
quality of your people and product and the teams that it attracted.”
- Alan W. Thompson, a member of Les Archiball USA.
A chance to treasure the moment …
If your camera malfunctioned or you couldn’t be in Limerick but
would like to see what happened there are two things you can do.
-
Michael
Johnson (the photographer with Les Archiball USA) took literally
thousands of photos of the week and has loaded them onto his website http://mejphoto.easyphotoview.com
(choose the ‘Augusta Rugby Club category). They are available to buy
– take a look at this interesting website. You can also contact him at
mejphoto@aol.com.
-
The
official carnival DVD is ready. It features highlights of the matches
and the off-field events. The cost of this great souvenir of the
Limerick Carnival is only Euro25 which includes postage and packaging.
Enquiries to McGuire Media - 41 Rosnaree, Church Hill Meadows, Raheen,
Limerick, Ireland.
Ph: +353 61 309581 (Evenings Irish Time)
Mob: +353 86 3894979 (Day Irish Time)
E-mail: vteditor@vodafone.ie
It was a grand week to be sure …
Enjoy this montage of Carnival highlights.
Click any of these photos to see a large version, then
"back" to return..
Limerick team reps lead the parade. |
Battleship Old Boys add colour to the parade. |
Opening party at St John's Castle. |
The opening party later that night. |
Action at the University of Limerick. |
The ultimate lineout. |
Final dinner action. |
Old Bangkok Bangers were smart at the final dinner. |
More lineout action! |
Action in the scrum. |
More rucking action in Ireland. |
Games were fast, free and open! |
We are updating the website for Buenos Aires…
While we transition to our new site for Buenos Aires the following
are the key links to find out more about Vintage Rugby…
We’ll keep you in touch...
Your next newsletter will be sent in a month or so and will feature further
exciting announcements about the World Vintage Rugby Carnival in Buenos
Aires and the teams you will be meeting there. Stay tuned to Vintage
Rugby news.
And
we can keep others up to date too....
If there is some one else in your team or club who should receive
details of future World Vintage Rugby Carnival please let us
know click
here ; or if you would like us
to forward this to your friends or team mates click
here.
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