Today I had my last training with my boys in Fight Shop. They are such a good boys and good fighters too. I'll miss them a lot. And tomorrow is my last training with my girls. Girls had their first game against Auckland on Saturday. It was a good game, Auckland ended up winning 23-0 but I think Manawatu played well for their first game. Auckland has team full of black ferns so they are quite hard to beat. It was a good experience for me to see such a high level womens rugby and be part of all that atmosphere. Everything is organized so well. Girls have their Jerseys and shorts and socks waiting in dressing room, there is fruits and powerades and big white board with watch so every player knows what is happening at what time.
Before and after the game girls are weighted to see how much fluids they loose during the match and Lisa tells them how much electrolytes they have to drink depending on the weight loss. There is also hot & cold baths and chicken and sandwiches after the game in dressing room. Some of this stuff is actually easy to organize and I hope we could take things more to this direction in the national team. These little things can make a difference 'cause it also makes the girls feel more professional, our team more competitive and it just is another step forward. After the game we had captains speeches and socials. It was awesome to see all these black ferns, they are just so incredibly nice and friendly. My girls made me this huge farewell card where they had wrote nice messages to me. It was a really great night.
-T-