Monty Toseland blogs on the Summer Rugby Trip to Japan.

 

In the summer, myself and 43 other fellow Stamford school boys were lucky enough to go on a 2-and-a-half-week rugby tour to Japan. On the rugby front it was a very successful tour, with the A side winning all 4 of their games, despite a few of us still feeling the effects of jet lag in the first game against a Yamanashi county side! The B side battled well, finishing the tour with 2 wins, 1 draw and a loss.

It is fair to say a few of us were put through our paces on the pitch, particularly whilst playing in Kyoto against Doshisha High School during 37 degree heat and 90% humidity. After 2 of the matches we were lucky enough to have the chance to billet with Japanese families. While some were nervous about this for obvious reasons such as the language barrier (nothing google translate couldn’t solve), we all came back with smiles on our faces and plenty of food in our stomachs. Many insisted that billeting was the highlight of their tour, and we certainly all discovered how lovely and welcoming Japanese people are.

Towards the end of the trip we took the Bullet Train to Hiroshima, the first thing I noticed was how new all of the buildings and structures were due to the whole city having to be rebuilt. The old industrial promotion hall – now the Hiroshima Peace memorial – is one of very few things to have survived the blast. Seeing this ruin brought the whole event home for myself and many others, and the museum certainly gave us something to reflect upon. After being in the country for a week or so and getting to know its culture and its people it made the idea of decimating 2 of its cities even more horrific.

The tour gave us all some memories we will never forget.  It’s a highlight of my time at Stamford School.

Monty Toseland.  Head Boy.  September 2017