The Great Northern Escape!
What do 5 young men, 4 of them single, do to stop climbing the walls during this Covid-19 debacle? Head North that's what! Jarrod Fisk, Harri Dekleuver, Nick Rutherford, Joel Wisken and Ethan Smith had their sights set for Port Douglas to get their footy fix for 2020.
Joel, Nick and Ethan drove up in two cars and left in an almighty rush on a Wednesday afternoon as they needed to get to the Queensland border by Friday.
Their journey was off to a shakey start, with Nicko's car low on oil and water, with 2 push bikes thrown on top of his mattress in the back of his van. After some divine intervention, Nicko sorted a bike rack, one of those bendy funnels, water and oil and just like that, the boys were good to go.
With a strict deadline hanging over their head, reports back home were that the trip had taken a turn for the worse due to a couple of long days on the road with not a shower in sight. Raising of the arms late in day 2 was strictly forbidden.
In true Cribby spirit, the boys not only made their deadline, they smashed it and got through the border to Queensland on Thursday, ahead of schedule. The next day they made it to Port Douglas where they met up with Harri and Jarrod, who took the wiser option and chose to fly into Cairns and have a much shorter road trip into Port Douglas.
The boys had managed to snag some pretty good accommodation for their time up north, staying in a resort with a pool and tennis court. This made their 2 weeks in isolation bearable, but with Nicko's snoring (even when he's awake) and the lack of take-away, there were some low points. Thank god for alcohol!
After getting the all clear by the local police, the boys were let loose in Port Douglas on a Wednesday and were keen to show everyone that Hammer's tingle isn't just restricted to the state of Victoria. The boys impressed in their first training run, but unfortunately for Joel, he tweaked his hammy, an injury he got before leaving Victoria.
With a bye in round two, Nick, Ethan, Jarrod and Harri all made their debut in the reserves in round 3. The boys made a good impression and were all among the best.
Fast forward a few weeks and we can report that the boys are flying up north. Port Douglas are on top in the seniors and reserves, both undefeated. Nick, Jarrod and Ethan have all played in the ones and Harri is knocking on the door with a BOG performance in his last game. Joel has also played his first game back from injury managing to snag a couple of goals.
The lads are going to be joined by Liam O'Connor who has also made his way up north and is currently self isolating in Brisbane.
In a year that has given all of the Cribby family little joy, lets get around these boys and hope they can have some success with the Port Douglas Crocs. If you want to see them going through their paces the senior game is streamed live on 'livestream'.
Go Crib and Go Crocs!
