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June 1993 Hull |
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Author Brian Finland
During the afternoon and early evening of Friday 18th June, eighteen of the 211’s finest gathered on Humberside for their now annual reunion.
They had travelled from as far afield as Newcastle in the north, Hampshire and Suffolk in the south and Merseyside in the west —— a clear indication of the social commitment of these fine warriors.
John Dunne had declared himself I/C advance party and had already established ( with one or two others) a base camp in the crown —– a local Bass house, which became our command post for the afternoon.
Following the intake of rations at the local Chinese chippy, we set off in the evening for a cultural tour of recommended inns.
In the windmill Dave wood ably backed by John Hughes and yours truly, was just about to take the microphone for a singalong, when the population of Hull were saved by the bell. It was time to move to our final venue for the evening —– The Ritz —– local hotspot and berth for a predatory minesweeper called Gwen.
After an excellent breakfast on Saturday morning, It was off to the crown greened arena of East park, to do battle for the 211 Old Comrades Cup … a bowls doubles competition.
At one point, the concentration and respectful silence was broken by the hailed question “What’s the score Geoff” …. Came the reply from the other side of the green …. “Fower Toooo, Fower Toooo”.
Dave Wood and John Hughes set about giving an extremely consistent display and henceforward will be known as “The Team Nu Pwa” (excuse the phonetics)
The competition itself was eventually won by Dixie Dean and Tom Fromson, who both played extremely well, but did need to employ some brutish tactics against Ken Pepper, in order to ensure victory in the final. Any suggestion that Dixie had been practicing for six hours per day on that very green are totally without foundation ( or so Dixie claims).
Anyway , many congratulations to Dixie and Tom for their fine display and ultimate victory ….. And commiserations to Ken and myself, who were only beaten by cruel, cruel winner from Dixie in the final end (Bitch!)
Saturday afternoon was spent in mixed activity, with some members exploring the surprising delights of downtown Hull, whilst others returned for a well earned session in the C.P. (Crown).
Candy Page sadly had to leave us late on Saturday afternoon …. Heading South to Participate in sponsored cycle run from London to Brighton on the Sunday. My intelligence sources tell me that the mission was fully accomplished, in true 211 Style.
Our Dinner on Saturday evening proved excellent in every sense…. A private room , superb food, plenty to drink and tremendous company. The informal mess meeting saw us reach agreement on a number of administrative issues and outline plans were drawn for next years battles and events past, tales which I fully expect will be recounted year upon year…. But isn’t that what Old Comrades Clubs are all about?
Reveille on Sunday was spent over a two hour period, governed by the state of individual heads …. Then, following breakfast, it was time for fond farewells and onto next year.
My sincere thanks go to Dave Dean for his excellent planning and organisation, but my biggest vote of thanks go to all who attended… and contributed towards making this a most memorable weekend.
To those who could not attend , I strongly urge you to make the effort next year ….. YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU MISSED!
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