“We
laughed, we cried, we got fit, but most of all –
we had fun.”
“Captaincy is 90% luck and 10% skill. But don’t try it without that 10%,” said the late, great Richie Benaud. The only problem with the idea to introduce captains for team sports was that every Participant wanted to prove they had the magic 10% every single game. Emotions ran high, but this didn’t detract from Lifeskills’ general sporting prowess.
Each Participant has their individual talents: Vasi, who occasionally blew into this class, makes an assured umpire, Max’s batting skills have improved hugely on the cricket field, and Robin is not called Robin the Wrecker for nothing, which is why he has been instructed to bowl underarm at all times. Nicholas enjoys fielding at deep square leg and is excellent at gee-ing up his teammates, Lauren and Laura are always full of beans and are brilliant allrounders, and Eki loves his basketball. George brings the comic relief when things get heated on the field, and Ben is starting to display good leadership skills on and off the pitch. Meanwhile Peter G and Stuart combine to create a dynamic, high-scoring duo who left this writer gasping for her Ventolin in one particularly spirited game of soccer. Aside from indoor cricket and football, table tennis and racquet ball have also been popular choices. But perhaps the most fun we had all term involved an impromptu game of tennis, when a dismal Autumn day suddenly turned warm and sunshiny, making the idea of staying inside seem like a crime against well-being and general happiness. We laughed, we cried, we got fit, but most of all – we had fun. I look forward to running around like a mad thing with the Participants next term too. And yes, we will work on those captaincy skills…
Alison Grinter – Instructor
