Thursday 13 April (D-24 hours)
As usual, the early toll on lesser mortals uncomfortable with the potential combination of more beer than hockey meant we had the best part of a ‘team’ (at least for the guys) but alas and alack, no women of our own. We would have to “hunt ‘n collect” as has been our normal form during all previous visits to Hong Kong. Eddie, Deny and Ken gathered in the city and headed for the first outlet that sold beer after an unusually smooth check in procedure (smooth until we found out we were all sitting in different seats !). Unfortunately this first drink also involved Deny smoking the first of about 4,000 cigarettes over the course of the weekend. Denis and Sal were traveling with another airline, and Cucumber and Alicia were presumably already testing the bed for squeaks. But it would appear that no matter what airline we choose for hockey tours, something always goes wrong. We sat in the Cathay plane for an hour while someone checked luggage tags, a thankless task probably made worse by burning ears as the Three Mouseketeers waited without beer (or cigarettes, in some cases) and roundly chastised anyone remotely resembling ground staff, cabin crew or air traffic control.
Arriving an hour late we charged straight to Carnegies for a heart-starter (after Deny had introduced himself as “the Brownest Cabrelli” and was duly initiated into the family). No doubt Eddie had to explain the 4 stitches in his chin earned the night before in the final 2 minutes of his last game in Jakarta when a ball popped up and gave him a kiss goodbye. Despite the melodious riffs that can only have been Abba, we tore ourselves away from the Bar dancing at Carnegies to Dusk Till Dawn where we sent out the ISCI homing signal. Pretty soon Katy Mountain turned up with Pearl and a small entourage that quickly diminished when Deny lit the 14th of his 4,000 Marlboro’s. Despite constant interruptions from people claiming to know Eddie from a pre-ISCI life, we managed to drown quite a few Heinekens and kicked on until about 3am, occupied purely on bullshit about how well we were going to play the next day and how awesome we had been in prior tournaments ! The Cush’s elected not to respond to SMS’s so we don’t know what they got up to, but as we think they are originally from Tasmania, we can probably guess.
Friday
A relatively early start on a cold and miserable morning (is there any other kind in HK ?), that soon turned into yawns as our first game was deferred based on the inability of Will Probert to book a Valley pitch. This was described to ISCI as being a Valley Hockey plot to upset the rhythm and hum of the tournament. Nevertheless this gave us a chance to do a roll call and assess the various elements of what would later be called a ‘team’. The Cabrelli Twins were there, so was Alice, Katy, Lorna, Cucumber, Denis, Dave, Ken and two Frog-speaking young ladies foisted upon us by an overambitious parent. Cerys, whilst there, seemed to be enjoying a little too much her losing games with the Mini-Me’s.
Game 2 v Mini Me’s 1-0
Playing against Organiser Extraordinaire, Will Proberts, Stevie McGraw and Cerys Southwood we were in control for much of the game with Deny cutting off all of their attacks but unfortunately we entrusted the goal scoring to Cucumber, who after a few fresh air shots eventually found the net for the only score of the game.
Game 3 v Shanghai B 3-2
Again we played all over them but couldn’t score, until Ken tapped in from a short corner, then Lorna Boag scored a good goal. The oppo got a consolation late in the game and had a few good movements forward but didn’t look like winning. That was about when they decided to even up the numbers and their full back lifted a ball straight at Ken who had time only to turn slightly so the ball did not remove an eye. But the impact was pretty hard and Ken went down. He took no further part in Friday’s games and had to have x-rays, antibiotics, tetanus shots, food that didn’t need chewing, and in-room adult movies.
Game 4 v Poli Jing Ying 7-1
An enigmatic team which had played well in other games but offered nothing in this one. Goals to Deny, Katy (2) and Alice Cabrelli sealed the deal. Cucumber decided he would play right side (so he could sub on and off quickly) and this worked quite well as he was not on the pitch when any of the goals were scored.
Game 1 v Ornithologists Anonymous 10-0
Playing our rescheduled 1st game against Banksy’s makeshift team, the side put on a hockey exhibition with Katy scoring 3 goals and Lorna scoring 2 in a dominant performance (diminished only by the fact that Banksy was not on the field having torn a calf muscle).
Game 5 v Accessorize 4-5
This was the team to beat, comprising Hong Kong nationals and half of the KCC A-team. However Deny really stepped up and took the game to them. We scored first with a goal to Katy which put them on the back foot. They scored two girl goals and guy goal before Cucumber scored twice then asked everyone to defend as he thought we were in front (well it was 3 goals apiece). A high quality game against the eventual winners of the tournament and no-one else pushed them as hard as ISCI did.
The evening’s activities involved a BBQ at the Club, where the Cabrelli Twins turned up late after catching a brief nap (for about 2 hours). By the time they arrived the Cush’s had demolished most of the food allocated to ISCI and after a few bread rolls the depleted squad headed for Lan Kwai Fong. The night went on until someone called it ‘morning’ with the only serious injury being to dented wallets.
Saturday
This was finals day and being in the Cup gave us extra sleep in time. A lunchtime time start saw Ken, still with a funny head (what’s new), trying to keep his balance, run and rub his stomach and pat his head at the same time. This proved too difficult so he elected to have a run for the first few minutes of the game despite being deaf in one ear. There were some other funny heads about, not the least being Eddie Cabrelli in a set of Dalmation ears, and Katy, Lorna and Alice wearing angel’s halo’s (acquired earlier at some ridiculous hour of the morning – for fun !).
Cup Qtr Final v Shanghai B 2-2 (5-3 after penalties)
Ken’s comeback against the team that had taken him out the day before was a pretty even affair in general play, although we had a couple of short corners, with Katy scoring first and them getting a girlie goal a bit too easy. Noting that the game would go to penalties Ken quickly claimed to be injured and this left Cucumber, Katy and Deny at the front line for the penalty shoot out. Deny Cabrelli went first (to put pressure on them) and scored, low to the right with a push that most dyslexic keepers could have stopped if he had not been in awe of “the Indonesian National Captain”. The oppo also scored. Katy went next and slotted professionally, as was expected of a National HK player at the top of her form. The pressure was on Dave, probably more to do a psyche-out rather than an athletic dive, and he duly delivered with the oppo missing the goals completely. Cucumber then stepped to the spot and with one of the dribbliest, kid-shots of all time, beat the keeper who thankfully had gone the wrong way (in truth he would have time to stand up and dive back if he had only seen how fast the ball was traveling). Scenes of great rejoicing, a little bit of hugging (not too much) and a very relieved Cucumber.
Cup Semi Final v KCC 0-4
To be fair the team seemed quite intent on playing the semi, albeit it was scheduled for well into Beer O’clock, with only a couple of ales consumed before the game. In truth it looked like our weekend had finished with the razzmatazz and excitement of the penalty shoot out and we were a quite lethargic lot that rarely challenged (only Katy really took them on). A bit of a fizzle but a couple of pies and a few Heineken’s later and all pride was restored. By late afternoon we had been awesome and were unlucky to be beaten !
The evening started at about 5pm when we adjourned to the Sportsmen’s Bar at the Club and learned that it was Stevie’s birthday at midnight. Devil’s Advocate proved to be just that, with vodka jellies in high demand and a Flaming Lamborghini courtesy of ISCI killed off any hope that Stevie had of seeing the sunrise. Katy scribbled a few notes on some toilet paper that would later be put to good and appropriate use and the fine session was held in the usual raucous and chaotic manner (her visit to the Men’s room for expurgation of sundry libations proving a memorable moment for some). The Cush’s once again failed to respond to SMS’s so we presume they stayed in (did they really only have the one room ?).
A bit of a pub crawl ensued through Carnegies (where Lorna started a rush to the bar – for dancing on it !), then to Mes Amis and later to ‘The Bridge’ (not ‘Stamford’, a much more down-market affair that the paler Cabrelli Twin seemed to know), with many requests to see ID (drinking licenses), which eventually resulted in the Shortest Cabrelli losing his passport in a bar or taxi at about 6am.
Sunday
The Cabrelli family (plus one) could only guess at what they were in for as Deny Cabrelli reported in re a lost passport – surely some nice person would hand it in. Alas this vain hope was eventually dashed and our local hero had to stay on an extra two days and apply for a travel document to get back into his own country. Doubtless the Cabrelli’s are now rethinking their open house policy, and shipping Eddie to the USA has become an imperative for family finances.
A small band gathered in Lan Kwai Fong (Katy’s kampung for the weekend as she was flat-sitting), for Sunday brunch although not a single malt/brewed liquid was sighted. Ken headed off to the airport alone with his ears ringing (nothing to do with the warm cherio’s, more related to the late night and the whack in the head with the hockey ball !).
A successful tour on and off the field, with silverware only a heartbeat away. We scored 30 goals for and only 19 against, played 7 games and only lost 2, and got to the Cup semi’s. Off the field we added significantly to Hong Kong’s economy and colourful nightlife (Katy also added some colour to the Men’s in Devils Advocate !).
Many thanks to the Cabrelli and Southwood families who supported us throughout the weekend, as usual. And to Katy Mountain, Alice Cabrelli, Lorna Boag, Cerys Southwood, Faical the Frog and her little sister, Denis Cush, Haesley (Cucumber) Cush, Katie from Valley, Deny Fahruddin and Ken Allan for playing. Also Andrea Cush and Alicia for ‘Retail Therapy’ support, and Jocelyn Southwood for banana’s. This tournament also saw the debut of the fashionable and highly sought after “ISCI on Tour 2006” purple t-shirt which will be used for all tours in 2006. Huge thanks to Deny for organizing this.
Team photo – Back L-R, Eddie Cabrelli, Ken Allan, Haesley Cush, Denis Cush, Deny Fahruddin, Dave Southwood; Front L-R, Cerys Southwood, Alice Cabrelli, Lorna Boag, Katy Mountain