After spending long hours at the airport waiting for our rental vans, we eventually were able to pile in and head to the hotel. Once there, we didn’t have much time to relax, as we had to prepare for a much-needed practice. Having to get used to the new rules, field dimensions, and flag pulling, we could have used 30 more scrimmages. Once the practice was complete, we went back to the hotel to consume an exorbitant amount of alcoholic beverages. While some of the players eventually went to Miami’s infamous South Beach, some of us had enough and hit the sheets.

"Oh Where Oh Where Has my Finner Gone"

Saturday morning came early for some as many players partook in the 4-man competition. This series of matches, coulpled with the fact that it was a very late night for most of us, may have explained our round-robin results later that day. Struggling with the rules, flag pulling, and player chemistry, the two games we played that day are best forgotten.

Spending five minutes after every play trying to figure out what the rules were didn’t help the flow of the game, and hindered our ability to get into any kind of groove. Seemingly, the referees didn’t know the rules either, as they were thrown into the fire on that weekend. As an official myself, I must say that the crews handled the mass confusion admirably.

Once we picked up our dismantled egos and crawled back to the hotel, things looked a little brighter after a few/many pops. As well, with Touch Football Ontario and Quebec footing the bill for a team dinner that night, smiles were abundant. Garth Bell and Russ Henderson would iron out concerns on the defensive side of things, while the rest of us stuffed our faces and laughed uncontrollably at the non-stop jokes offered by Rob Houston and Don Gerry. Tony Stewart playing host, was quite funny as well:)

Being able to order pretty much whatever we wanted without having to worry about paying money ensured that our waitress was in for a sweet tip. The food was excellent, the atmosphere was friendly, and the camaraderie and team building was invaluable. I would consider the dinner as the catalyst behind our incredible on-field performance the next day.

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