Last Blog

Here they all are outside Winhoek High School. We are now just doing the last bits of souvenir shopping and then will see you all in just over 24hrs. Expected arrival at CNS is currently 11.00-11.30am on Friday morning but we will tell students to phone when we are about an hour away. See you soon.

Winhoek - The final leg

After being hosted with the families the players came into school in the morning with many stories of what an excellent time they had all had. This experience of being hosted will no doubt be one of the best of the tour.

Our final match day arrived with the players both excited and nursing bumps and bruises from the previous encounters. The Netball team were first to take on the Windhoek High School, the best Netball team in Namibia. The competition in the first half was fierce and WHS built up a strong lead. Chipping Norton came back into the game after half time to win the 3^rd quarter, and continued to fight hard up to the final whistle. Unfortunately WHS had too much of a lead for us to catch up, but the girls can go back to England with their heads held high knowing that they never gave up and showed great determination throughout. We are extremely proud of the Netball squad and have enjoyed seeing them grow and improve and play some excellent Netball against teams with International players.

The Rugby started slowly for CNS, a stark contrast to the previous games where we have come out extremely strong. WHS scored within 5 minutes and then proceeded to build a lead. It was evident that the CNS boys were feeling the effects of 2 games within 5 days with only 1 substitute. At half time WHS led 35-3, a shock to all concerned. In the 2^nd half CNS played their own game and dug deep to work extremely hard for each other. We played some great rugby in the 2^nd half and out scored WHS by 14-5 making the final score 42-17. We ended the game with players physically and mentally exhausted but determined to fight to the last whistle for each other. The team spirit amongst the CNS rugby boys has stepped to another level this tour and some of the team talks after the game will remain with us all for a long time.

We are extremely proud of all the Rugby and Netball players, they have represented themselves, their school and their country extremely well throughout. We are now looking forward to seeing the huge positive effects this will have for PE and Sport at CNS next year.

Walvis Bay & Swakopmund

On Sunday 19^th July we set off for Walvis bay and Swakopmund. This part of the tour had always been billed as the holiday and relaxation part of the tour. We had 2 days to relax and take part in some activities that we had organised. After arriving the tour party set out to find somewhere to eat dinner that night before retiring for a well earned early night.

Monday brought much excitement and anticipation as we headed to the sand dunes for the quad biking and sand boarding. This proved to be a great hit as the tour party choose their vehicle (Automatic, semi-automatic and manual.) Then we set off in smaller groups for 1 hour of quad biking through, up and around the desert dunes. When we stopped for the sand boarding there were many comments about how it was such an awesome experience. Then came the adrenaline rush of hurtling down 150 ft dunes lying on our fronts on a waxed piece of wood. After this we headed to the beach and despite the weather being the worst it has been since we arrived and the water being about 12degrees half the group went straight in, some against their wishes.

We then headed back to shower and change before going out for our last meal together as the students are to be hosted for the last two nights. We had a lovely meal with people ordering steaks, shark, ostrich and springbok amongst others.

On Tuesday we had our first lie in and breakfast was at 8.00am before we set off for a marine cruise around Walvis Bay. We didn't really know what to expect so when we experienced a Seal climbing on deck and wandering around being stoked by the all and fed by the guide we realised this was going to be yet another experience to remember. We continued out of the bay and saw many of the 50 000 seals in the bay. Then we had Dolphins swimming and playing alongside the catamaran as we cruised through the water being served cold drinks.

When a fantastic fresh fish and meat lunch buffet was served we all sat back and enjoyed the view from the back of the catamaran. As we approached the shore a baby seal climbed (flopped) on board and lapped up the attention and fish that he was given. Yet again we have a something that with live long in the memory.

After the cruise we set off for Windhoek, and we are on the road now as I sit and write this for the blog. The students our very excited about being hosted with the families in Windhoek and can't wait to arrive and meet them. Our last match day tomorrow against the best school in Namibia so we will update you after that.

Match Day 2 (Outjo)

Match day 2 arrived with both teams hoping to outwit the Outjo Secondary school. We arrived at the local sports field early to get in a training session prior to the start of the games. The netball girls were adamant they were going to bounce back from the disappointment of losing the first game and set about their warm up with renewed enthusiasm and a real sense of determination to win. They started well leading Outjo 3 - 2 after 7 minutes. The 2nd quarter saw both teams scoring and Outjo led 7 - 5 at half time. After a very tense 3rd quarter where CNS girls worked extremely hard, Outjo had extended their lead slightly but we had them still within reach. Unfortunately the final quarter saw Outjo pull away and ended winners by 20 - 9. The CNS netballers should be extremely proud of their efforts and they certainly stepped up from the last game. There was a real sense of achievement amongst the girls and the staff are proud of all of them. The Outjo side were excellent and would have beaten any team we ahve played at home this year.

Attention then focused on the Rugby and the pressure was building on the boys to make it 2 out of 2. The atmosphere around the boys was awesome in the build up to the game and they were clearly in no mood to lose. Sam Allen delivered what can only be described as an inspirational speech in the changing rooms and they took to the field more fired up than i have ever seen them. Early in the game they called a lineout move straight from the training field and executed it perfectly to score in the corner. The physicality of the game was evident for all to see and CNS never took a backward step. They played some of the best rugby i have seen in my 3 years at Chipping Norton and were 40 - 0 up with 15 minutes to go. However a massive defensive effort was needed to keep the Outjo players from scoring. We ended the match winning 60 - 0. We then went to the Outjo school to present them with gifts and see the school. What followed was heart warming experience seeing our students mix with those from Outjo and both parties just wanting to know more and more about each other.

Etosha Safari Park

On day 4 and 5 we visited the Etosha National Park and embarked on a day and a half safari. Immediately everyone was amazed by Zebras and the 20 000 springbok in the area. The park is over 20 000 square kms. By the end of the 2^nd day we had not seen any of the Big 5 (Lion, Leopard, Hippo, Elephant, Rhino ).

Day 5 brought huge excitement and anticipation and it did not disappoint. Within 1 hour of entering the park we saw a a Zebra that had just been killed by a lion and the other animals waiting in line for a piece. Then an amazing end to the day saw us encounter 2 Elephants within in 10 minutes of each other. Absolutely amazing and a once in a life time experience. Now we look forward to Saturday with anticipation of building on the success of our first matches.

The Spitzkoppe

Day 3 - At The Spitzkoppe.

Today we enjoyed a whole day at the Spitzkoppe, a range of mountains over looking the vast plains of the desert. On route we stopped at the roadside to see the roadside sellers and their collections of semi-precious stones. Many of the party brought souvenirs to take home, whilst also seeing first hand the traditional Namibian way of life.

When at the Spitzkoppe the students had a couple of hours to explore and climb the huge mountain formations. Then our guide lit the “brill” (BBQ) and cooked the food he had marinated the previous day. After lunch we all set of for the perfect spot to watch the sunset. As you can see from the photo it was a spectacular spot and a memory that will remain for a while.

First Game (Karibib)

We arrived at Karibib Private school on Monday night to a fantastic welcome. We are being hosted in the school hostel where all the staff can not seem to do enough for us.

Netball - this game was extremely well fought in 25 degree heat. the first quarter saw CNS losing narrowly 4-2. Unfortunately the Karibib students were too strong and the midday sun took its toll on the CNS girls leading to a victory for Karibib. The CNS netball team can be extremely proud of themselves as they never gave up.

Rugby - This was possibly the most physical game we have played this season. CNS started strongly scoring two tries in the first 10 minutes, but then had to dig deep and defend well to keep Karibib from scoring. As the game went on CNS played some great rugby and can be proud of their 54-3 victory. Both teams showed enormous pride, passion and determination until the final whistle.

We are currently at the school where the Karibib students have organised a disco for our students.

Tomorrow we are off for a day at the Spitzkoppe where we will take in a barbeque before staying to watch the sunset from the top of the mountain.