Diamonds in the Rough

To the untrained eye an uncut diamond, a rough diamond, looks a lot like any other rock. People find them and sometimes don’t recognise their potential; they are cast away. It takes a keen eye and an expert polish to get the value out of one of these ‘Rocks’.

This was the case with our ‘other’ U11 team. The Under 11 2s. At the start of the year, they were just a group of boys thrown together having not played with each other before. They had no coach and no trainer. Before the start of the season a meeting was called with the parents and this bag of rocks was given one week to find volunteers otherwise, they would be folded and would not play.

From left field – out of nowhere, a coach and trainer emerged. They had no skin in the game they had no kids in the team. There was still a lot of work to do, but the team was saved! These rag tag misfit kids would now be a team – The Guildford Owls Under 11 2s!

Over the next 13 weeks it would feel like a training montage from a Rocky movie, with highs and lows, wins and losses. Maybe it was because they were formed in adversity or maybe it’s just their character who knows but this bag of rocks was starting to shine.

And all the time they were polished, all the time they were shaped by their coach and trainer. Until it became obvious that this bag of rocks might contain a few diamonds.

This week our Under 11 2s play Mounties at their home ground. Amazingly they are in finals contention. Like the plot from a Disney movie the paupers are about to become Princes.

The hardest thing in the world is a Diamond, the second hardest thing is Guildford Owls with their backs to the wall! You may doubt the outcome; but have no doubt about their quality, value, and determination.

Go get em fellas!