You know that feeling when you love something but you are frightened to share your passion with others in case they just don’t get it! This was my 5th trip to US Nationals and the one I felt the most uneasy going into, with a new location in California and having persuaded half a dozen of my compatriots to embark on the journey too. Having been away from the European scene for 4 years it is hard to know where the standards are at in the different regions, so would they be disappointed? I’m used to looking like an idiot (just check the photos!) but I never like disappointing people, so I was more worried about people not having a good time. I know, a break from the Irish rain for a trip to California for 3 days of Touch – what could possibly go wrong!!

We all made our way over with different agendas; catching up with family, checking out air shows and taking in the like of Kings of Leon and Coldplay, generally enjoying some of what San Diego, San Francisco and LA has to offer. The real tone for the trip was set on Tuesday with a bout of Wedding Crashers – something to scratch off the bucket list! Wednesday night, less than 12 hours before we face a fit, fast, organised and drilled Chile team, we finally get to all meet each other as a team for the first time!

Our hopes of an early morning training session were somewhat hampered by a 7:50am referee duty, so we would have to hit the ground running and learn as we go! Unsurprisingly Chile were too strong and, just like last year, gave us a good hiding – Big Brian getting us off the mark with our first try of the tourney!! We had a lot more fun playing against Florida and it was more the kind of game we hoped for last year. An honourable draw was the final result although we all know Stroebs’ decision to score ‘under the posts’ should have cost them dear as the Happy Dragon got to him before he grounded the ball 🙂 Dylan (‘Joe 90’ or ‘Wheels’) clearly forgot how to pass and notched up all 4 of our tries to get his account under way. The final match was again against familiar characters as we disappointingly lost a close one to Cayman, knowing that we could and should have done better – Brian and Dylan adding to their tallies and Tonka getting in on the act too.

The hunt for a good meal proved almost as illusive as our quest for victory as the intended ‘cosy little steak house’ turned out to be in a fancy resort with the steaks starting at $50! Luckily stopping for gas uncovered closing pizza and Thai restaurants so we could sit outside and enjoy our impromptu ‘feast’ in peace!

The next morning the real lessons began with our run out against Galaxy New Zealand, with the legendary Walters family and the impeccable up and coming talent NZ has to offer. Joe 90 bagged himself a couple more tries, and the Broken Dragon (proving to be very unbroken) was unlucky that the attempted assist was called back for a touch pass (that way we don’t have to mention that she scored on the 5m line!!). The lunchtime game was another one that got away as we threw away an excellent first half performance to a resurgent Portland. When decisions appeared to go against us, the tiredness and heat took over with us losing control and shape at crucial times. Dylan bagged himself another hat-trick and Kerri notched up our first Ladies try sneaking in a well worked gap in the corner. With the cancellation of the late round most were free to go to the beach to soak in the sea and have some fun, whilst the twins and I stayed on to do some more reffing.

A delightful BBQ at Brian’s cousins in Carlsbad was a much appreciated refuelling evening, especially as they were kind enough to do our laundry too!!

Day 3 was looking likely to be a repeat of Day 2 with a semi-final against Galaxy and a probable 3rd place play-off against Portland. The prospect of another Pete Walters manufactured lesson (even if he is only still at 60%) was a bit much for our 10 player squad with probably the highest average age of all the teams (including the senior division) at just over 40! Thankfully the understanding Kiwis allowed us to forfeit the result and give a chance to get our friends a run out, as everyone really wants to play for Jamaica 🙂 Gary was able to take a break from Coaching duties and show what his old friends Patti and Jam were missing out on! Tilly got a change from playing Ladies and enjoyed a mixed run out, but Flip passed up the chance to play, choosing instead to rest up from his busy ref schedule. Florida brought way too many players (18 – that’s 3 teams Jamaican style!) so were able to give Anton another ‘cap’ for Jamaica, as well as debuts and pitch time for Max, Angel and big Double D. Not quite as star struck today we were able to enjoy the match a lot more, hopefully the Happy Dragon will long remember her try scoring moment as she breezed past the NZ defence with ease! Laura also got off the mark thanks to a lovely weighted pass from the Plank that I did well to avoid.

Our last match was a real hum-dinger and undoubtedly our best performance of the tournament, sadly going down 3-2 in the end to Portland with several opportunities going begging, justly and otherwise, in an enjoyable match. In many ways the best thing about it was myself, Tilly and the Twins rushing off to ref a kids game straight after, not leaving time to dwell on what could have been. The young whipper snappers rushing around all over the place having fun, then shooting over to another pitch to play a drop off, reminding us that this is an amazing sport and is there to be enjoyed by all.

The few of us that stayed on to watch the finals were treated to some great action. Galaxy NZ narrowly holding off Chile in a well fought contest leading to a memorable Haka (Chile saved their infamous dance for the medal ceremony!). The Ladies final produced the best match with Portland winning against last years champs San Diego in a thrilling drop off. We like to think that showing Juanita the Galway flyer boosted her confidence enough to get them over the line!! Cayman did well to get a couple of 2nd places with Galaxy DC and LA proving too strong in the Mixed and Men’s categories in the last games before relaxation could commence.

The last night was a subdued affair for us with the US drinking laws meaning our Joe 90 try machine couldn’t enjoy a drink at the after party. It was more of a prize giving than a kangaroo court with the food, sun and exertions all taking their toll on several players, the explanations for things like plastic cacti, a jar of erasers and porridge yogurt will remain with us, and after a quick drive to San Diego and back the reserves were drained to put the lid on a memorable week or so.

Was it perfect? Not quite to be honest. The choices of hotels may have been more affordable (and much nicer) than Disney, but the separation of the teams meant there were several people we barely saw. USA Touch is a rapidly growing organisation, with a lot of people working very hard to move it in the right direction. One of the big initiatives this year has been the efforts of people like Miah Williams and the ref clinics all around the country, that will help establish a base for the future. Sadly it meant for a lot of new refs that had to hit the ground running, who could often have benefited from more understanding players, but will hopefully stick with it and come back stronger. Hopefully the scheduling can be fine tuned for next time as well as 6am in a hotel 25 minutes away is not the best time to find out you are on the pitch to ref at 7!

Was it worth it? Definitely yes! It’s a fantastic opportunity for the Jamaicans to play a great game that they love but sadly don’t get to play at home, especially as I have now moved away. I know the 3 girls, and several others back on the island that would have loved to come, would be real assets to the game given the opportunity to play more. As for the Irish experience it was a rare chance for the old farts to play competitive mixed games, the girls had a blast and Joe 90 scored 11 tries! It’s funny the twins have been playing Ultimate Frisbee in Jamaica for about 4 years and most of the other players till call them Twinnie 1 & 2 as they are too lazy to learn their names. During this tournament I never once heard the Irish players mix them up – sadly though they couldn’t tell the difference between Louise and Emily!!

Will we be back? Hell Yeah!! Hopefully next year we can get some more Irish players and teams and come over to keep supporting our American cousins and next time more of us will know what to expect!

So thanks again to the likes of OJ, Jean, Pam, Jay, Allyson, Miah and all the others for their tireless efforts to put on a good show, the staff at the Hyatt Place, Vista (especially Yolanda and Tasha) for putting up with us, and to the fellow competitors that share in the fun of the game and make memories that will last a lifetime 🙂

For more pictures from the event click here to check out our Facebook album