Mr Dean, Miss Fellingham, Amy Marshall (Head Girl), Derek Johnston (New Milton RFC) and Chris Culleton (East Dorset RFC) alongside 40 Students (consisting of 23 Boys Rugby players and 17 Girls Football Players) departed Highcliffe School at 3.30am for what was going to a very busy 5 days in Italy. The teams were due to play Cus Verona and Valpolicella RFC, and Mozzecane FC and Vicenza FC respectively, as well as visiting Verona, Milan, Venice and villages around Lake Garda.
Milan, in Italy's northern Lombardy region, is a global capital of fashion and design. Students had the opportunity to visit the Gothic Duomo di Milano cathedral, which is quite spectacular and the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II - one of the world's oldest shopping malls. Housed within a four-story double arcade in central Milan, the Galleria is named after Vittorio Emanuele II, the first king of the Kingdom of Italy.
The Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, commonly known as San Siro, is a football stadium located in the San Siro district in Milan. It is the home of AC Milan and Inter Milan. Students enjoyed a full stadium tour taking them into the museum (to learn about the history of these 2 great clubs), the changing rooms (where players such as Vidic and Balotelli change) and the media areas.
Cus Verona RFC are a very well established rugby club whose history starts at the end of the 1950s. In 2005, the club’s first team was promoted to Serie A, and it was interesting for the students to see the difference regarding the facilities between a Serie A team in Italy and a Premiership team in England. Cus Verona RFC boasts a number of teams in Series A, Series C, Team Female and youth. This was a tough physical encounter, the Italian side playing direct, physical rugby. Sadly, we were on the wrong side of the scoreboard but those that had taken to the field could hold their heads high in the knowledge that they hadn’t taken one backward step - a true testament to their character. After the final whistle, we had a number of knocks and injuries to attend to after a bruising encounter. The players and supporters then enjoyed a Pizza night, in a fantastic Italian restaurant in Bardolino, Lake Garda.
Wednesday morning found the girls fresh and eager to go training at the Hellas Verona FC facilities on site, whilst the boys enjoyed some relaxation in the hotel’s spa facilities after their fixture the previous night. The afternoon was spent on the Eastern shores of Lake Garda, where we visited Peschiera and Lazise. After some delicious Italian ice cream, and some wonderful views across the lake it was time for the girls to play their first fixture and for the boys to play their final one.
Thr girls played Mozzecane FC - an excellent, fast paced game of thrilling football ended with a result 6-2 in favour of the Italian side. A big positive for Highcliffe was Emma Whall scoring 2 international goals on her debut!
The boys rugby team played against Valpolicella RFC. With a full squad rotation, and some additional Italian players put into the mix, the Highcliffe team battled gamely and were unlucky not to score on a number of occasions, stopped by perhaps rather harsh refereeing decisions. After the game, the girls and boys were invited to Valpolicella where all the students experienced a meal in what can only be described as one of the friendliest rugby clubs in Earth. The students ate, sang and made speeches throughout a 3 course meal. Certainly, a highlight on the trip.
The following day saw a trip to Venice, capital of northern Italy’s Veneto region. It is built on more than 100 small islands in a marshy lagoon in the Adriatic Sea and it is a unique experience. Its stone palaces seemingly rise out of the water. There are no cars or roadways, just canals and boats. The Grand Canal snakes through the city, which is filled with innumerable narrow, maze-like alleys and small squares.
The students experience both sides of Venice – one where Venice was under water (rain at high tide), and one of Venice under blue skies. We took a water taxi to St Mark’s Square, and walked through the main street to the Rialto Bridge over the Grand Canal. Students had the chance to explore the markets before eating alongside the Grand Canal to rest their feet.
Unfortunately, due to the heavy rain over the previous days Vicenza’s pitch was unplayable. This meant that the girl’s second fixture was called off. There were some very disappointed girls when they were told the news, so we had to think on our feet and look for something else to do. Miss Fellingham and the girls remembered that they had been invited by Mozzecane FC to watch a Women’s Champions League Match at San Sira Stadium, Verona. So that was the group’s decision. As a result we found ourselves at San Sira that evening watching Bardolino Verona v Spratzem in the last 16 of the Champions League. Our new- found allegiance and vocal support was clearly the main factor that led to Verona scoring in the 89th minute and going through to the next round 7-6 on aggregate.
Once we had checked out of our hotel our final day involved visiting Verona, a city in northern Italy’s Veneto region famous for being the setting of Shakespeare’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’. Verona is also famed for its grand Arena, a 1st-century Roman amphitheatre still hosting concerts and an annual opera festival.
As part of exploring Verona, we ate on the main square in an Italian restaurant. It was here that we held our biannual Highcliffe Sports Tour Awards celebrating the achievements and funnier moments of the tour. The main winners were:
Best Players: Tobias Budge & Stephanie Fletcher Jones
Best Tourists: Marc Harburn & Charlotte Finn
Sadly, after our visit to the Grande Mela Shopping Centre it was time to return home, and after our flight and a coach journey back to school some very tired faces were greeted by their families at 3.30am.
We would like to pass on our thanks to all the parents for supporting their sons and daughters. Also to Amy Marshall, Chris Culleton, Derek Johnston and Simon West for their expertise and time given to coaching and developing the players. Finally, the students – you have come a long way in the past 2 years both on and off the pitch. We look forward to seeing the impact of this tour on your GCSE PE practical grades, the success of your school teams and your leadership and confidence. We hope this was not only an amazing experience for you, but one which will focus you on your aspirations.
Owned by: JDN | Last Published: 24/11/2015 16:26:18 | Next Update: NA
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