World Medical Games 2011

It's the last day and we're heading home. There just hasn't been time to do a daily up date, what with all the training, playing and re-hydrating. Now it's a matter of waiting around for the flight home, and reflecting on the week. There has been the usual shirt of shame, for a non-football related offence, and the shorts of shite for a football related incident. The socks of chagrin have now also been introduced, but I haven't quite followed why you get them, except they usually go to Tim Strang.
Guilty I was, for the first shirt of shame, for asking the airplane passengers if anyone had a hair band. A red one came flying through the air. I didn't see where it came from. It proved handy in the end. The other shirt of shame awards rather fade into a blur. I didn't win it again. last year I managed to get it every day even though I wasn't playing.
There having been some champagne moments though. Perhaps the best was a chimp played on Jamie. Outside our hotel, the Hotel Cristina, on the beach a couple of artists had been making sand sculptures. Really impressive ones of Star Wars characters and people from Greek Mythology. Someone, I think Tim Strang again, had the idea of getting them to do a Sculpture of Jamie. We had been spending most afternoons at the bar just overlooking the beach, so we happened to be there while they were creating Jamie. We all were in on the joke, but Jamie remained quite oblivious. The funniest aspect of the joke was Jamie's reaction to the emerging sculpture, wondering what it was and why they were doing it. Jamie had been sent off the day before, so the final act was to place a red card in the sculptures hand. he still didn't see it until finally it was pointed out to him. How we laughed at his reaction.
Las Palmas itself was rather disappointing. It is permanently covered by cloud and has a stiff breeze. Enough sunlight gets through to get a tan, but it's not quite sunbathing weather. For this you have to go to the south of the Island of Gran Canaria, past the airport. Mark and I did this on our first rest day. We caught the bus and in a hour or so we were there. Glorious baking sunshine, and we have a lovely restful day soaking up the rays. As the day went on the tide rose. Beach space was quite tight so we were quite near the waters edge and fell asleep.
We were awakened suddenly by a big wave which completely covered us, our clothes and our towels, much to the hilarity of the fellow sun worshipers.

So the taxi is coming now and we'll be off to the airport for more hanging around. back home soon I hope.

This year my room mate was Jamie and to my surprise it went well. He saved my embarassement by providing me with a spare pair of white shorts and socks, a definite shirt of shame if I'd turned up without them.

Another new friend was Keith, well two Keiths actually. One who owns a pub and works with Budwizer, always handy to know. The other works in the cardiology department at Wythenshawe Hospital, another useful contact.

My own pweformance on the pitch? Well average I suppose. It hasn't helped picking up an achilles strain in the first game. My last kick resulted in me being clean through , only to be judged off side, by a whisker. The burst of pace however pulled the ligaments and that was that. If I'm to take away positives, it is that I can still play at this level but need to become fitter.

Next year is Istanbul. I had been thinking of going there anyway. So I have a year to prepare, and that begins today.