Match Day 1

Sunday 18th October 2009

Woken up at 5:30am by the not so beautiful sound of Richard Gamble's singing. We got to taste the famous Mr O'Foray's porridge, which definitely lived up to its expectations, as well as fried egg and ketchup sandwiches. After breakfast everyone gave their rooms a much needed tidy and sweep which included the discovery of many creep crawlies! Afterwards we all headed down to the beach in our swimming gear for a paddle in the sea and some sun bathing.

Just before lunch we planned our coaching sessions for over 100 primary school kids. Both us boys and girls decided to device a circuit with different stations for netball and football. The girls decided to give each group a mentor to give the children continuity however the guys just thought it was a pretty excuse to copy X Factor! And for lunch we ate egg, mayo and onion sandwiches.

We then gathered up our kit bags and loaded up the bus for our very first international fixture! After a 40 minute tentative bus journey in 34 degree heat, we were definitely warmed up for our matches. Having arrived half an hour before Edisec Senior School, we were nicely relaxing in the shade when we suddenly heard the pounding beats coming from their bus accompanied by a Ghanaian football team and choir; to which we replied 'Who are ya?! Who are ya?!'. The entire population of Elmina turned up to spectate the first international match between Ghana and England at the local pitch. It was called S.S NIT park. The girls first team began and quite frankly 'kicked some Ghanaian butt' with a thumping 12-4 victory. However even though the Ghanaians knew the rules to the game quite well, they were more used to playing handball and basketball and therefore hadn't quite got to grasps with the obstruction rule. This made it quite difficult to shoot as well as causing quite a few people to end up on the ground. The girls second team were then next, who put in an excellent performance beating their Ghanaian counterparts 5-2.

After this the most anticipated game of the day began the kick off was taken by the Ghanaians who immediately set off on a sweeping passing move across the pitch. The Ghanaian's initially coped much better with the bobbley pitch and dusty patches, however Chesham's defense stayed firm and kept out all the Ghanaian's attacks deapite their amazing speed. The temas were evenly matched with the Ghanaians posing a greater attacking threat this was interrupted by a stray chicken on the pitch intent on making its mark on the match, by making an excellent run towards the far post this unfortunately distracted Chesham and caused a lapse of concentration which allowed the Ghanaians in for a soft goal! Chesham responded well by running for every ball and giving the Ghanaians as little space as possible. At the end of the first 20 minute third, it was Ghana one, Chesham nil, but Chesham were far from outclassed.

The second third was much of the same, with England playing hard and the Ghanaians becoming frustrated. The introduction of several substitutes at the interval kept England fresh and capable of matching the Ghanaians fitness levels in the heat. At the end of the second third the score remained 1-0 to Ghana.

In the final third however Chesham began to fight back. England began to attack, the Ghanaian's defensive weaknesses began to show. With 10minutes remaining, Paul Fellows passed the ball to the right wing from where Richard Gamble whipped in a cross to the back post where Ben Beard rose above the defense to knock in England's equaliser. Celebrations ensued and for the last few minutes England continued to attack but the Ghanaians put their bodies on the line and kept us out right up to the final whistle. In the end, it was a deserved 1-1 draw, with neither side doing enough to win the match.

During the match, spectators made lots of new friends- this included an international rendition of the Hokey-Kokey, started by Ella. The Ghanaians also loved (and joined in!) with Hannah Pawsey's fantastic multi-cultural dance moves. After the match ended and the exchange of many facebooks and email addresses had taken place, both the Ghanaians and the English retreated to the buses. Both teams headed home, waving to one another until totally out of sight.

Once back at Stumbleinn Lodge, there was a mad rush for the showers, to wash off the dirt and sweat of playing. As per usual, the water trickled out its last drop after 5 washes as well as all the lights deciding to fail, whilst people were still showering. This wasn't so amusing for those in the showers, including Alex W., Ella, Becky, Josie and Emily, but rather hilarious for those outside. Once everyone was “clean” and “freshly-clothed”, everyone headed down for the delightful and delicious Ghanaian speciality “Red Red”.

After dinner, the girls went straight to sleep but to their annoyance, it was joke night for the lads who sung until 1 in the morning.