Nottingham 2007 - Tournament Report
The weather didn't look promising as I stepped out of my tent to check the site. Widmerpool greeted me with a wall of fog as I stumbled forward with torch in hand. Eight more teams than the previous year meant that extra nets had to be provided. Site checked, I headed for the clubhouse to the fresh smell of breakfast as the rest of the campers stumbled out of their tents. The bar had been available the previous night and a few looked like they had taken full advantage of the facilities.
Eight o'clock approached and it was time to test the sound systems. The horn worked, waking up the remaining campers and it was time to greet them with the gentle sounds of rock. The remaining teams started to turn up and register. Bacon buttie in hand, team rotations and rules were handed out. Hosting a junior section to the tournament also meant obligations to register all cameras on site, which all players were willing to do.
After a few last minute team adjustments (they were a few players short) the tournament kicked off at 9:30. By this time the fog had dissipated to reveal a cloud bank surrounding the site. Carry on regardless. The first few matches went without hitch thanks to the Bangor team who stepped in to referee two matches instead of one as I frantically tried to figure out what I had done wrong. One spreadsheet corrected and we were back on track, the rotations were correct and I felt like the bar should have opened a little earlier.
It was around this time that the junior tournament started to get on its way. After a little last minute organizing the juniors were placed into teams and the action began. Thanks to Jon and the team for organizing this event.
Around eleven o'clock saw the might of the sun burn off the surrounding clouds to bring blistering heat. There was little wind, so the teams sought shade between matches. Suntan lotion applied they were ready to continue till lunch.
The lunch hour arrived with teams piling into the clubhouse and my time was spent reorganizing the teams for the afternoon session. As the new rotations were distributed a few queried the groups they had been placed in, if only they had read the rules to discover that points do mean prizes. Representatives from Volleyball England (who had pitched a stall) took advantage of static players to gauge their opinions - thanks guys and gals.
The afternoon proceeded without hitch, as the sun baked the teams at gas mark 7. There were quite a few pink faces out there, plus a couple of weird marks where knee-pads had been. The junior tournament finished around three o'clock and they presented trophies and medals to all the winners. Well done for surviving the heat, I hope you'll return next year.
As the last adult matches were played, the scores were collated to provide a final team ranking. I announced in reverse order to reveal the two teams to play in the final: Szczebrzeszyn and Ball Busters. Avoiding last year's mistake where the last team was to referee the final, I stepped up to the mark, and with the help of my local team (Casualties) we started the final match for the 2007 Nottingham Volleyball Tournament.
By now it was just past six in the evening, both teams had played four hours of volleyball in scorching heat. There were some tired legs out there, but they continued and produced some excellent volleyball. Ball Busters won the first set only to lose the second by a rallying Szczebrzeszyn (nope, still can't pronounce it). The final set was close, but the polish team (from the Birmingham area) prevailed in the end.
As the trophy was presented half the teams retired to their cars for the journey home. The remaining teams showered and then piled into the club house to feed their stomachs and nurse their wounds (or at least laugh at them). The evening was serenaded by a local singer (Jennifer James) and complimented by background music. Everyone looked exhausted and seemed grateful to sit there and not move.
All in all, the tournament was a great success, with some great volleyball and atmosphere to match. My thanks again to all the teams that competed for without you there would not be a tournament. I hope to see you again next year - I'll be paying homage to the sun-god beforehand.
Adam