…but only briefly.
Following our – myself and Adrian Henry (Rugby People) – coverage of the rugby match in Villeneuve d’Ascq on Saturday, we arranged to meet up with the three Scots players on the Sunday to do a short photo shoot with them at the stadium.
After we crossed swords with the, key wielding, security presence – ‘Non! Impossible!’ – the girls arrived near enough on time, accompanied by the club President, Laurent Vitoux – who was an enormous help easing our way through the weekend and said that, with the fellow who intercepted us, ‘Everything is impossible! But I will make it possible.’ – and we shot a few set ups around the ground before they had to leave for another engagement.
We spent the rest of the day doing the eternal task of editing and, in Adrain’s case, organising the various accounts and contributors around his ‘media empire’ (sic).
Job done, tea, ‘refreshments’, put the World to rights, sleep……
Monday morning was home time and the weather, instead of the forecast heavy rain, appeared to be on for a very pleasant day, so, virtual, map in hand, we decided that we should do ‘the right thing’ and visit Ypres, the Menin Gate and, at least, one Military Cemetery.
This was, for me, a hugely evocative visit, not only in light of the sheer horror of war embodied in the monuments and grave markers, but bringing back memories of my grandfather who worked in Edinburgh as a Monumental Mason, carving the lettering in innumerable head stones, allowing many, many families to remember those they had lost…….
Poignant duty done, it was off, up to Zeebrugge for the ferry home, closing another chapter of ‘ER Sport goes Abroad’.
