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It all started out on an enigma: how do you get to Jouy en Jossas? According to Daz, this normally implies driving up the Jouy en Jossas exit sign on the highway, cruising an additional fifteen kilometres down the road and then back to the initial exit sign...
What a lovely scenery we found once we got to HEC pitch, though: a small forest, a lake�one could have come across Bambi had we not run him over with the leading Lexus on the way in.
A question added to the enigma: where the hell are the jerseys, shouted our Dear President in the spotless locker-room HEC had provided? Wellllll�we might have left them in Meudon after last game�how about we check with our HEC friends whether they could provide us with a set of jerseys?.. The answer to this dreadful question was �yes�.
We were cursed for good: it was crystal clear a Christmas Ball game could not possibly be won under the colours of a foe.
The thing is we did not perform that terribly. We actually stood rather firmly until the end of the first half, and even led by a thin 3-0 margin for quite a while, against a team that was obviously better trained and organised than we were. HEC actually started demolishing us when they decided to demonstrate their know-how with respect to rolling mauls; despite excellent tackles, spirit and aggression from both a number of backs and forwards alike, we slowly yet surely succumbed to the repeated assaults of the business scholars. Meanwhile, we missed cohesion, tenacity and...brains on our scarce scoring attempts.
We most definitely could have won that game based on individual skill and physical ability. Rugby is a collective sport, though, and we were taught yet another good lesson on our visit to Jouy en Jossas: we must play together, train together, be ready to dedicate ourselves to one another if we are to succeed in the future.
The HEC lads were kind enough to invite us to their wonderful bar/club house, where a few draft beers helped us swallow the bitterness of defeat. We then headed back to our homes and got ready for another splendid Christmas Ball.
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