Short update

Coach Devine made me cry during the weekend! Although I think it was because of pure relief, as the hill I'd run up like a stubborn ass FINALLY ended and I could try to breathe again.

What will tuesday bring? Grubber kick football? Rugby basketball? New moves? Just got a text from a couple of girls who wants to come and try it out, so everyone - be at your best behaviour!

2012 - a brutal awakening

Yesterdays pre-season meeting was held to survey the troops and set our common goals for this year. It quickly became clear that a gold medal for the ladies would be a fata morgana like no other, and it would be futile to even attempt reaching it. I have counted 18 players in total, half our squad lost to the army, motherhood, work abroad, old age, injuries or even (dare I say it?) ANOTHER TEAM! More than one person shed a few tears down at the club last night.

So, this year is all about recruitment. Any ideas are welcome. We'll repeat the success from 2010, when the recruitment competition brought in 30 new girls to try rugby! At the end of that season Lisa proved most skillful in the art of persuasion. Are you the winner this year?

How you know pre-season is upon you

Back is still a bit sore after some manly dead lifts on monday

Yesterday you chose fruit salad instead of popcorn!

Your fleece training top is smelly

A royal pain in the arse

I can't help looking back at all the past seasons I've played for this club, one could call it being sentimental I guess... Throughout the years I've had sort of a mentor - not in the sense that she volonteered for it or even knew about it, but I had someone I looked up to in every way possible concerning rugby. She's basically stopped playing for Uppsala and frankly, I think it sucks!

First of all, she's an outstanding player. She will talk to you and tell you what to do, she will keep going when everyone else has weakened, she will tackle like a fucking gladiator and she will always, always be there in support. (If you're lying about in a ruck, she will pick you up and throw you out in defense - honestly, you wouldn't think someone so skinny could be so strong!) She will catch any lineout and outrun most other players. She makes it look easy too (which is well annoying).

Second: she has the attitude. The stoney winner-face on the pitch only radiates determination, no matter if we're in the lead or really struggling - but off the pitch she's the first one to tell her teammates what they did well, while being very modest about her own skills. All of the above has secured her place as Sweden flanker for several years, and as a royal pain in the arse for all teams playing Uppsala.

I guess my point is, I miss her. Come back and teach me how to own the flank like you do!

Gimme back my fat!

Getting into shape for 2012. Unfortunately, there's no shortcuts to this and my interest in strength and stamina during christmas has been scaringly close to an all time low (in fact, my goal has been to put ON some fat again. My clothes are too big and I'm always cold. Gimme back my fat!).

This attitude to workout hasn't been appreciated by other members of the household (clearly jealous) so yesterday I was dragged into a car and driven out in the woods with my running tights and flowery sweatband. Reluctantly realising that pre-season is right around the corner I was taken for a few kilometres of warm up running, then it was time for some romantic hill sprints before doing weights under a starry sky. Actually, not too bad (for a training session, I've been on better dates).

Back home, coach Devine decided I'd been good and deserved ice cream. Now that's what I call pedagogic!