This year the Brussels Barbarians have been able to register a 2nd team in the Flemish regional league, which shows there is strength in depth in this club!

Admittedly it’s not been easy to assemble a full team for each game, but the ‘squad’ (a big word maybe…) is getting stronger and stronger Sunday after Sunday, with a good mixture of youngsters and oldies.

We had the perfect blend for last Sunday’s game against Schilde, with complete newcomers to the game mixing up with Babas’ veterans to form a full team! Due to a clear lack of cohesion the Babas had a difficult start, and Schilde managed to score several tries following well-rehearsed back moves. The rest of the first half was much more encouraging, as the Babas’ defence got better organised and more agrrrrressive (thanks Bruno!). Henri was the perfect playmaker at number 10 and several attacks from the Babas came very close to Schilde’s try line – to no avail unfortunately.

Unfortunately the Babas were unable to keep up that good work during the second half, as substitutions and injuries completely altered the face of the team. To be honest, Schilde’s players also looked marginally fitter than your average Barbarian, which may have played a role in the last minutes of the game. But in true Babas’ fashion the home team got its revenge during the post-game celebrations, when the beer offered by Ben was declared a winner by all parties involved.

Many thanks and congratulations to all those who took part in this brave effort, from the most ‘experienced’ (Kunteel, Simon, Dave) to the new kids on the block (Kenneth, Jeffrey).