Plenty of news, plenty of drama
As you can see by my MMS section there has been a lot happening in the life of Nathan Hindmarsh of late. I followed up my trip to Rwanda with a family holiday to Bali and then, once I got home, I found the club with a new head coach in my former SG Ball mentor Daniel Anderson. Also I should mention Bonnie and I are expecting child number three in February.
Bonnie is handling the pregnancy like a trooper and as we expect the arrival of our new baby I welcome anyone who has a name suggestion to make one here on the blog for a boy or a girl.
Archie wants a baby sister, but personally I would like another baby boy, as I reckon I have boys under control now, but it will be a welcome surprise either way.
I thought Rwanda was amazing and some of the experiences there were unforgettable. The local lager wasnt too bad either.
A huge highlight was trekking in the forests with gorillas. To get as close as we did to those majestic animals was a truly amazing experience and something most people never get to do.
The closest we got to a gorilla was about three metres away from a young one. For the most part the Gorillas were around 10 metres away, playing and eating. There were three silverbacks in the family and of those the dominant male was a lot bigger than the rest.
I dont think any of us wanted to tackle him!
Aside from the scenic trek into the mountains there actually was work to be done helping out the local kids and we felt a real sense of achievement bringing joy to underprivileged kids in a third world country.
Just getting to kick a soccer ball with them and seeing them run around after it brought a huge smile to all our faces.
The sad part for me and the part which really hit home was venturing to the Genocide Museum. Its not a nice place to see, especially the room full of baby photos and then hearing some people recalling the event. No one should ever have to experience the murder of their children, but as a parent the experience really struck a chord with me.
Overall I enjoyed my African adventure and was happy to help some people less fortunate than me. Were actually thinking of going back to Rwanda next year.
After Rwanda I flew to Perth and then on to Bali for some family time, but after getting sunburnt on the first day of the holiday I was a bit sore for the remainder.
Even the pools didnt cool me down. It was so hot there that the pool temperature was warm and I was struggling. I didnt even have too many Bintangs. The only time I really got to the bar was with Bonnies dad.
We spent it watching the races, not that I went any good over the Spring Carnival and I dont think many people can claim they did, except for JB Cummings.
Now the holidays are over and Im back in training. Well, sort of. I had surgery on my toe and am not doing any running as yet, just gym work and conditioning.
Our new coach, Daniel Anderson, wants me to remain at or under 102 kilograms for the entire season, which will be a challenge for me. I havent played under that weight for a long time.
I think having Daniel there will be good for the club. He makes a point of getting involved at coaching sessions and a few of the boys had him as coach during his last stint at Parramatta.
I had Daniel when I was playing SG Ball, Eric Grothe had him in Harold Matthews Cup and Luke Burt played reserve grade under him.
I knew about a month before the official announcement that Michael Hagan would be leaving. He gave me a call said Hindy my wife and I have our two daughters at an important stage of high school and my hearts not in it (coaching) anymore. I then gave Hages my best; he did what he had to do.
Continuing along the Parramatta train of thought and I thought I would discuss the current board battle. As far as I am concerned Dennis Fitzgerald has not done anything wrong.
Dennis runs the administration side of the club and doesnt interfere with the actual playing side of things. So I dont have a problem with Dennis Fitzgerald staying put as CEO.
The man who has been buzzing at the club is my old buddy Nathan Cayless. The big fella has a real pep in his step since the Kiwis lifted the World Cup trophy and I still cant believe it.
Ive never seen Cayless happier, but I went to the game expecting to see the Aussie boys win and then the unthinkable happened, New Zealand won.
A lot of people have given Wayne Bennett a lot of credit but Steven Kearney is pretty cagey as well and I would say he had a lot to do with the NZ triumph.
As for Cayless, I would hope he would be even chirpier after a Parramatta premiership.
Christmas is fast approaching and Im getting the lights set up. Archie now knows who Santa is and is fully expecting the man in the red suit to bring him a swag of Thomas the Tank Engine toys. Hell have to be a good boy though, as will Buster.
Kids really make Christmas special and spending the day with them makes me feel like a kid again.
Hindy
