We awoke to an early morning English breakfast. Coach Oliver was hyping up the deliciousness of the food and it certainly lived up to his kind words. A buffet full of scrambled eggs, bacon (similar to canadian bacon but with less fat), eggs, and a wonderful selection of fruit and cereal. After breakfast, we jumped on the bus and headed to Hadrian's Wall and Housetead's Fort.
The journey was an extra special treat as we surprised the team with the Roman reenactors who were present at the fort, dressed in traditional garments and armor. The views from the Wall and Fort were breathtaking.
While it had rained earlier in the morning, the weather gods held off the sprinkles until after we left. Many of the boys picked up swords and shields as souvenirs, as they needed them to fend off the roman army who approached as we were leaving. A parade of young children, dressed in roman armor and adorned with shields and swords, marched up the hill for a demonstration. It was certainly a sight to see.
Afterwards, we coasted back to Durham to have lunch and then get ready for the match against Billingham Town FC. Lunch was quite nice again but the boys quickly switched into soccer mode, getting cleaned up and grabbing their soccer bags before boarding the bus to head to the pitch (or the field for us Americans). We arrived and the boys headed straight into the locker room to get dressed into their strips (or uniforms) and started to warm up.
At 4:30pm, the referee stepped onto the field and the captains of each team exchanged handshakes and the coin toss was done to see which goal the teams would be defending. Downer's Grove brought one of their high school letters as a token of their appreciation to Billingham Town for their generosity.
Once the match got underway, the boys from Downer's Grove did a superb job of controlling the play. Headed by strong defense, they were unable to finish many of the good chances they had at putting the ball in the back of the net. At the half, the score was tied nil-nil (zero - zero for the non-British). The level of intensity was quite high from both teams. One player from Billingham Town even cursed at the referee because of a hard play along the edge of the field. It was quite funny, except for the player committing the foul, and got quite the chuckle out of the crowd. It was late in the second half when Billingham Town was able to take advantage of a corner kick and scramble in front of the net to score. The game ended at the same score, 1-0, and the teams changed before heading into the clubhouse for a friendly social gathering afterwards. Sandwiches, crisps, and a handful of other snacks were plentiful, courtesy of Billingham Town. Pints for the adults and sodas for the players were enjoyed by all before heading back to Durham.
After a long day of touring and soccer, everyone retired to their rooms to rest for the next day's activities.
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