National Team 2013 - Phase 1 - Day 24

Day 24 and first phase is over 

Sleep in day today. Didn't have breakfast until 1030 am. Of course I couldn't sleep in. Up by 8 am. Got up and grabbed a shower then I watched some more film and surfed the web a bit.


Breakfast was the standard with no changes. Still very good.


After breakfast we had a video session to review Turkey and then we basically had a half hour to get ready for game.


We arrived at the gym and we had some extra time to wait. I went to the court and there were 2 young ball boys there that have been helping throughout the tournament. Out comes the coins and it ended up with a euro coin turning into a toonie which I gave to one of the boys. The smile on their faces was phenomenal. Throughout the game and after they kept looking over at the bench and smiling. Once again, a little sleight of hand and the smile on a kids face was worth it.



Game started and we were playing pretty well. Still struggled to score but the offence and defense were better than last night. After half we got a little flat and then managed to turn up the heat on defense. This sparked us and we opened a bit of a lead. They switched to zone defense and I thought we might get rattled. Took us a few possessions but we came together and hot some key shots to extend the lead. It tightened up a bit down the stretch but we held on for a 5 point win.

Great way to finish the first phase. Played much better and improved along the way. We played this trip without 7 of our top 15 players. Basically a lot of inexperienced young players including an 18 year old post player and a 17 year old, grade 11 point guard. I would say that we did alright.

We 
returned home from the game and went to lunch at 330. A little late for lunch but it was worth the wait.

 Salmon, schnitzel, rice, salads and potatoes. Quite tasty. I had some chicken and potatoes with a small piece of salmon. They also had these phenomenal small stuffed peppers in oil. Awesome. 

Quick turnaround after this one as both us and Turkey had to leave again at 4:45 to make it back for the end of the game between France and Spain and the closing ceremonies. When we arrived, France was beating Spain 40-14. YIKES. When it was all said and done, it was an awesome ending in a WILD environment with France pulling out a single digit win.


 The girls went out on the court and got a nice little trophy and some momentos from the committee. It was a nice little ceremony.

We ended up arriving back at the hotel between 7:30 and 8pm and they were ready to feed us again. Salads, lasagna, ravioli, quiche and some yummy desserts. I took a small bit of each as I was still pretty full from earlier. 

After dinner we had a bit of time to come back to our room and pack for home. I spent some time doing that and then we had a coaches meeting at 8:30. We were going to review some things but for about an hour and a half the coaches, manager and physiotherapist sat around and laughed our asses off. They drank a bottle of wine after the first purchase which was a beer and coke (small bottles) that cost roughly $14 Canadian. Yikes. Some of the girls on our team and some girls from Spain got together and played some very loud ping pong and our manager went and found bread and different cheeses to go with the wine. Some of the cheeses were quite strong but a nice touch to the end of our laugh fest. Eventually around 10:30 the coaches exited the loud area to go and make a few notes about the players to give them something to take away and work on for the next few weeks.

So here it is about 11:35pm as I sit and reflect on this first phase.

What did I think of the countries we visited?

Czech Republic – a new country for me. The people were extremely friendly and the food was great. Prague was BEAUTIFUL and I would have loved to spend more time exploring. Mark it in my book to come back.

Serbia – having been in Belgrade before I knew what to expect. The Serbian people are absolutely fantastic. They are so kind and friendly. They go out of their way to make things work for their guests. I knew the food would be a small step down. Not bad by any means just a small decline.

France – having heard so many times how French people are rude I wasn’t sure what to expect. What I can say is that stereotype was blown away this week. The people were incredible. So warm and welcoming. They made it a memorable part of the trip. The food was PHENOMENAL which I had heard before.

To all of the countries I would say Dekuji, Hvalla and Merci.

So what about my own learning. I am constantly trying to learn more and more about this game…or what some may call an obsession. I have learned that my strengths are definitely higher in certain areas and I need A LOT of work in other areas. I know that I absolutely love this level of basketball and I love the skills that are needed to succeed at this level. I have learned a number of things that can make me a better assistant in the future and I have learned a lot that can make me better as a head coach. I have learned that the coaches I am working with are WORLD CLASS and shouldn’t take a back seat to anyone.

It has been an awesome experience to say the least. From the challenges of the games to the emotions that stir in me when I stand and hear the national anthem before a game. I have soaked up every minute and have enjoyed it to the MAX.

Next on the horizon for me is about a week away when I leave again to coach my own team at this level and head to the FISU games in Russia. I can take all of these lessons and try to make them work plus learn new ones with that team. It will be another learning experience.

So tomorrow is an early wakeup. 6:30 breakfast and a 7AM departure for the airport. We depart at around 11am and then will land at around 1pm in Toronto. I have to wait until 7:55pm when I fly to Sydney. That will be about a 20-22 hour travel day but I am used to it by now. I can say that I have loved my international travels but as John Allan Cameron once sang, “one thing I know, wherever I go, my heart’s in Cape Breton, it will always be so”. Looking forward to getting home

So to anyone else who joined along, I hope you enjoyed it a bit. To mom, it has been another wild ride and fun to share it with you. I will have lots of pics and stories when I get home.

See you tomorrow…………