Someone get me off this roundabout!

And off to Rustenburg we travelled. Some 1200 Australian fanatics loaded on to 20 buses departing HQ Durban at 23:00 hrs. I am not sure there were many looking forward to the long trek across Africa, but it was all worth it to watch Australia once again play on the world stage. I have to be honest, the amount of travel across this great nation we have done, I thought would warrant a place in the history books alongside Captain Cook...ok well maybe Burke and Wills?

It was a relatively restless night for most with the tossing and turning in the attempt to find the most comfortable position in your seat as you possibly could. Our party appeared to get a reasonable amount of shuteye, apart from Mark who has now apparently claimed the world record most amount of sleep by one individual on any bus ride from HQ Durban to Sun City....and Sun City would be the next stop on our wonderful journey.

Sun City is a famous resort in the North of South Africa. It boasts a Wave Pool and swimming complex, a Casino, Hotels, Kids water lagoon and two championship golf courses. For the golf enthusiasts, Sun City is the home to the Nedbank Challenge which is held in November of each year. The Tournament is an invitational only event where only 12 of the world’s top golfers are invited to attend and play off for the $4.3 million in prize money. The current holder of the trophy happens to be one of our own in Robert Allenby.

Sun City also presented the group and with the chance to experience some differing foods options and relax in the luxurious surroundings of the casino. We managed to discover a great little cafe where the group could indulge in a delightful coffee. But it was nearly lunch time so it was not difficult to persuade 3 of us to partake in the obligatory JD with our lunches. Speaking of which, I never in my wildest dreams thought a toasted sandwich would go down such a treat. That mince and Gouda sandwich was one of the most delectable meals I have ever eaten. That’s probably unfair to the local cuisine, as all in all it actually hasn’t been that bad, however the fanatics exposure to food convenience has seen a regular and consistent diet of Bunny chow, Borwoers and Roti’s.



And then it was time....a 1 hour trip saw the convoy arrive in Rustenburg. The most amusing point of the day was on the way through the main roundabout to town. For some unknown reason, the security at the turn off of which our buses were supposed to take, would not allow us to proceed to where we needed to go. Arguments between traffic police and fanatics officials saw the constant recurrence of buses moved on from the exit, only to see them all perform a circle of the roundabout eventually filling the circular road with approximately 10 buses and the point of no return for the security and the only reasonable solution of allowing us to pass. Of course, as the buses were allowed to progress, you can imagine the numbers of songs that were sung for the security and the amount of fingers presented in appreciation for their sincere understanding.

As we pulled in to Rustenburg, it was hard to believe that we were about to enter a facility of which was hosting a Fifa World Cup game. The Rustenburg stadium stands amidst a sea of dirt and barren country with a few small townships surrounding it. To describe to our Brisbane friends, it would be like driving in out to Gatton to watch an ashes test match in a world class facility. (of course no offence intended to our Gatton friends). It was quite a strange feeling, and if it wasn’t for the flow of green and gold you wouldn’t have believed you were at the world cup.

Sadly once again the result was not ideal, and sadly for mine another game has been influenced by a referee’s contentious decision. In my humble belief it was a penalty however we should never have been left to play with 10 men on the park. Mark Shield, you should have never retired as an international referee...you would have gone a long way in this tournament! Decisions aside, I thought the intent of which Australia played in the second half was a credit to them, and having a go was what all of us wanted to see in true Australian spirit. In would have been boosting for the aussie lads to see Ghana continually shoot from long range, and for us in the crowd, we could feel that chances for us were going to come. I actually thought that Mr Verbeek’s substitutions were good and both Chipperfield and God both influenced the game when they came on......unfortunately 1-1 would be the final standing.