Staying in a large cottage near Cornwall's ancient
capital Launceston, next year's pasty fuelled tour
will be from Friday 30th July- 6th August, again
outside of term-time for all those teachers ( and
teaching assistants).
The cost
for the week is £200 (£170 for concession members), although
Travel, Food/drink,
match fees are not included.
If you
can't make the whole tour part tour will be £35 a
night (min of 2 nights) - and will only be
guaranteed selection for one fixture.
To pay
for tour and confirm your attendance let Wacker
know.
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Matches against Tavistock are engraved in Palmers history,
a fixture dating back before the birth of some of the
colts. The scene of Nigel's finest hour. The ring is
an isolated ground to play at, with ferocious winds
and an undying potential for downpour. However, this
is made up for by a standard clotted cream ice cream
on the way, and perhaps the best tea most have Palmers
have experienced. Tavistock is home to the legendary
Geoff Husband and his leg side preference (Cal's got
his number), Loopy Loo with his extreme run up, and
also Palmers legend Mike "the founder" Sainsbury.
In
addition, a visit to The Ganges in the evening
provides the desperately needed curry.
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The Chagford fixture is generally played later in
the week when the effects of a mixture of curry, alcohol
and sleep deprivation are taking their toll. It is,
however, a ground in the middle of Dartmoor, and the
wicket is of Minor Counties standard.
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This fixture is relatively new, the first match being
played in 2005. The small town of Perran-ar-worthal
is past Truro, and the home of Palmers players Chris
Andrews and Phil Rees. The first match was played
in good spirit, although hard fought, and one that
Palmers eventually won. When Nigel was bowled, one
of the bails was split in two, and this was later
cremated and put in an urn. One day this will go down
in folk law similar to the Ashes.
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The matches on tour are usually accompanied by chaotic
occurings throughout the week. Nigel's fictitious
reporter Spunker in the Bunker keeps the troops in
the know with daily reports of the day's happenings,
and most importantly, who are the current holders
of the tour ducks.
The serious cricket, however, occurs in the evening
- indoor cricket.
Played with a bat called Caruthers, the game has
everything; uneven wickets, the surprise bouncer and
unplayable Warne-esque turn from Nigel. The newest
feature to be added was the mystery ball, featuring
an array of strange missiles, Notably a loaf of bread
which never reached the batsman, hitting Bance on
the back of the head.
Days without matches are either spent recovering
or at the beach. Trebarwith and Bude being favoured
destinations. A pint at the Port William on the cliffs
of Trebarwith is the perfect conclusion to such days,
when the sunset is quite spectacular.
View
from the Port William
