Never over until the Fat Lady Sings

A final updatefrom the KESblogger, now availing himself of wi-fi at Seattle airport after more time in the wilderness of Kamloops.
Meralomas 17 - KES 37
A hard, aggressive Vancouver club team were subdued by some equally hard KES tackling. The game featured a drop goal from half way from Rhodri Adamson and a referee who was about as popular as Simon Cowell when he's just voted a sobbing terminally ill 10 yr old girl off the X factor semi finals.
Kamloops 14 - KES 30
KES ended the tour on a ferociously hot afternoon at this rugby outpost in the shadow of Mt Paul. The excellent hospitality of the Kamloops folk made it a highlight of the tour, and we left feeling as though we wished we had spent more time there - probably a good sign. The game itself was scrappy at times, both teams suffering in temperatures of around 37c. Man of the match was Jamie Rhodes, who put in a dynamic performance in the tight, and around the park.

On the eve of Game Day 4

The emphasis has been on the extra curricular in recent days, with yesterday (Saturday) spent white water rafting on the Green River below Whistler, and today saw us taking the gondola up to Grouse Mountain. The fine weather continues to treat us to some stunning views wherever we go. From Grouse Mountain, we could see the city of Vancouver spread out below us, and beyond that, the conquered land of Vancouver Island. Tomorrow we face the Meraloma club, one of the strongest in BC.
Kick off 7pm at the University of BC grounds, just in case you're in the area (which half of KESSOC seems to be right now...) Accommodation available at the Chateau Sport.

News from Whistler

The KES rugby tour has swept on through British Columbia, remaining undefeated after two more impressive performances on Vancouver Island. Your KES blogger must apologise for the time lapse since the last post, but he has spent a lot of time staring at Sproat lake (pronounced "Sprout", which kills some of its mystique),a beauty spot frequented by John Wayne, Cary Grant, Adam Wilkinson and other Hollywood greats. But entirely free of wireless free...
KES v Crimson Tide @Oak Bay,Victoria BC
Strange as it may seem, KES owe a lot to their defence in beating "the Tide" by 55 points to nil. The match was not as easy as the scoreline appears, and in a ferocious opening quarter it was the KES defence that stopped the opposition gaining any momentum. A beautifully executed backs move orchestrated by man of the match Charlie Kickham put Adam Wilkinson over for a try, and the deadlock was broken. KES went in to the half time interval 17-0 up. The game was essentially made safe by a superb passage of rugby rounded off by Dylan Saunders right under the posts. We had turned the tide.
KES v Port Alberni
A young looking KES team overcame an initially determined Port Alberni side. Captained by Jamie Judd in his last game for the school, the forwards built a platform for Rhodri Adamson to release his backs. This was backed up by some excellent kicking by Will Thompson. James Cresswell put in a man of the match performance in the back row, matching the home team's physicality hit for hit. KES eventually ran out winners by 65 points to nil.

Our next game sees up against the Merolomas club, who are rumoured to be the toughest of all our fixtures.

Game Day 2

Victoria, BC
A gentle jog to a nearby patch of grass, a training session under a bright blue sky, and the squad for today's match to be announced by the coach. We have two games on Vancouver Island, both against well established clubs. Today brings us up against the worryingly named "Crimson Tide RFC", a representative set up who draw their players from a pool of three or four league clubs.
But we're ready !

A-Viking we will go.

SeattleVilkings 7 - KES 79

A young KES squad rewarded the coach with a handsome victory at Magnusson Field in Seattle yesterday in the Tour's opening fixture. The home team found it difficult to secure enough ball to threaten the tourists, and what possession they had was disrupted by an aggressive KES defense ( hope you like the way your correspondent has slipped into the vernacular - "defense" with an "s").
But it was the KES "offense" that stole the show.Right from the start, all 15 tourists looked determined to play an attractive brand of rugby that had the coach purring well before half time. Thoughtfully skippered by James Protheroe, the backs picked good lines, feasting on the excellent ball provided by the forwards. Dylan Sanders and Will Slowen carried the ball to good effect, and Rupert Macey barked the orders at scrum half.
All in all, an impressive start to the tour. Fabio Powell has kept some of the more experienced tourists to play in today's sevens tournament. They have a tough act to follow, but spirits are high in the camp. 

It's Friday...I think

Arrived safely at our hotel in downtown Seattle, the very English sounding Red Lion Hotel. As I write, the boys are stirring themselves for breakfast, ready for the harbour tour at 11am. We play our first game this evening against the Seattle Vikings. "Fabio" Powell is keeping his cards close to his chest with respect to selection, as we are also fielding a team in tomorrow's sevens tournament at the same venue. Will he go with the (newly) blonde bombshell Charlie Kickham at 10, or will it be Andy P ? Big Daddy Sylvester at 8, or will he leave the skipper under wraps until the sevens get under way ? The sporting cognesenti in Seattle are buzzing. We will know the line up in a few short hours - round about 2am, our time. It may be that the coach just picks anyone who is still awake...