Saturday 20th October 2007

A nervous awakening of the day of the big match. Walked around the bay to a marina that we could see from Henrietta and had an excellent view of Stobrec and the campsite. Once again the wind was very strong and we arrived back windswept and weathered. I had bought some frozen Red Snapper earlier and we had that for lunch – not the greatest success, fresh fish is so much better.
In the afternoon we set off for Split and headed for the Ethnographic Museum but, being a Saturday, it closed early. We then headed for a nature park called Marjan, north from the centre of Spilt. The path climbed up and then followed the coastline with views down and over the sea to the Dalmation Islands. It was beautiful but the temperature had dropped considerably and with the wind-chill factor, it was very cold. We headed back into the centre and were lucky to find a wedding happening in the Cathedral of St. Domnius (the former Roman Mausoleum). The doors were wide open and photographs were being taken, so I joined in. This was a real bonus as you are not allowed to take photographs when visiting the church. We then found a nice warm café and killed time.
Walking on towards the Rugby Bar, we found a pizza restaurant very close to it – excellent value and Jane's Spaghetti Carbonara was enormous! On then to the Rugby Bar expecting a large crowd, only to find that the room with the screen was totally empty and it was only 30 minutes to kick-off. We thought that we were going to be on our own but, as kick-off approached, the numbers increased – English, a few South Africans and one or two Croatians. What can I say about the match – the best team won and SA were excellent at the breakdowns. The way that they rucked and the speed at which they hit our mauls made all the difference. We played with pride and came the nearest to scoring a try. Nobody expected us to get to the final, so we should be really pleased but it would have been so good to be the World champions again.
Photos: Split Promenade and Diocletian's Palace; Wedding in the Mausoleum; Clock tower from Peoples Square.