The South Africa Hockey Tour 2023 kicked off on the College car park with nervous laughter and tears. For some girls, the start of the tour was also the end of their time at Scarborough College and many had come to say goodbye.
Day one was spent exploring both Franschhoek itself and the retail therapy opportunities. The first game, against Franschhoek Dragons was played under the lights and the girls ran out with a comfortable win.
Morning training at Rhenish Girls’ High School was followed by lunch at Stellenbosch airfield. The girls then enjoyed themselves with an afternoon of padel tennis and a transfer from Cape Town to Hermanus.
In Hermanus, the group enjoyed two days of adrenaline fuelled activities. The girls went quad biking, zip lining and even whale watching. Returning to Cape Town, the adventure continued with an unforgettable trip up to Table Mountain and a trek around the nature reserve.
There was still time for hockey with fixtures against Western Province and Milnerton High School. Along the way, tour comedians were appointed to keep spirits up. In addition, there were the appointments of tour guides, informing us of local culture, and tour musicians. The latter provided the entertainment with some sold bus karaoke.
The second part of the tour saw another impressive morning of hockey against Milnerton High School, followed by a spot of lunch on the beach at Table Bay. Not a bad spot for lunch with Table Mountain as the backdrop. There were more photo opportunities, as the drive took the group along famous Chapman’s Peak. At the end of this journey, the girls visited Boulder’s Beach and Simonstown. A great opportunity to see the penguins, their chicks and even some dassies. Dassies are also known as rock hyrax and though they are very small, they’re closest relatives are actually elephants.
Before venturing out to Robben Island, the girls enjoyed their first proper lie-in of the tour. The visit to Robben Island was poignany as an ex-political prisoner provided the group with valuable insights. He had spent five years on Robben Island and the visit left an impression on everyone.
The final days started with a game against Curro Durbanville in stunning surroundings. With multiple positional changes and a variety of tactics, our girls came away with another victory after a superb performance.
The group spent the evening at Camps Bay Beach, a game of beach cricket and a stunning sunset. Later, it was the staff’s turn to provide the karaoke. Up until that point, it had been primarily student led but Ms Brightlin, Mr Elliott and Mr Kench did not disappointment.
The penultimate day in South Africa started with a leisurely Morning at the ‘Old Biscuit Mill’ marketplace with some exceptional food and last chance souvenir shopping. The final and toughest games came in the afternoon in the form of Constantiaberg HC with back to back games against their U18 and 1st teams.
Although there were two wins, the victories were bittersweet as they marked the final game for some of the girls. For them, it wasn’t just the end of the South Africa Hockey Tour but also their final game for the College. The group celebrated the final games with a traditional South African Braai and penalty shuffles. The evening marked an energetic but, above all, emotional, awards’ evening where Ellie and Amber scooped the Tourists’ Awards.
On the very final day the Aquila Game Reserve did not disappoint. On arguably the best day of the hockey tour, the girls saw most of the Big Five up close and in their natural habitat.
All in all, an unforgettable South Africa Hockey Tour that no one will forget.
Game 1 vs Franschhoek Dragons 8-0 W
Game 2 vs Western Province 2nds 2-3 L
Game 3 vs Milnerton 12-0 W
Game 4 vs Milnerton 10-0 W
Game 5 vs Curro Durbanville 9-0 W
Game 6 vs Constantiaberg HC U18 4-0 W
Game 7 vs Constantiaberg HC 1st 6-0 W
