Under the stars

On the last weekend of term [2], the dorm boys and a few others, camped out under the stars. Sunday afternoon was spent making the cooking stoves from a 3kg fruit tin, packing essentials and preparing for a cold night out by collecting firewood and bringing enough bedding to keep warm.

There were lots of new boys this year venturing out into the unknown, some excited, others omewhat cautious having finally built up the courage to give it a try, all I am sure had heard the stories of previous year's outings and many wandering if they would be the next legend following on from Mwansa and his rock incident. What would Mr Grove have us do this year?

We were delighted to have the company of Mr Boatman this year, who came all the way from Kitwe on his motorbike to share with us his expertise in camping, the night sky and his experiences as a Bible smuggler in the old Eastern Soviet Bloc countries. As our special guest we allowed him a night in his tent.

First activity of the night was "Monster Trucks". The challenge was to roll a set of four tyres about four kilometres, through the night, along the bush tracks. 2 teams of 8 set off into the dark to find their 'truck' and begin rolling. Unfortunately the first team hit a tree at full speed and split their truck in two! This gave them a great advantage with less weight and improved mobility. They finished in 40 minutes even though they were the weaker team. They worked better together and had more drive. The others floundered about at the first river crossing  with no-one wanting to get wet till Mthunzi and Justin just got on with it. Though last by a long way, 1 hour, they were easily heard chanting their way through the bush keeping up their spirits.

"Monster trucks" Sniper team

Next came the longest game of capture the flag I've ever known. I think an hour and a half, ending in a half victory for Mark's team. They did at least get their opponent's flag, even if it never quite got back to base. For Mark, Ilunga and Philip stealth was the key. They were almost unseen the whole time, slowly but surely... the Ferguson way. Justin, Daniel, Tarisai, Yarel, Xavier and Mthunzi decided quite the opposite approach would work, and indeed it met with much success. The 'Snipers' hid till an unsuspecting Musonda would approach. Just when Musonda was thinking he was against one opponent the whole team arose in ambush blinding him with light from all directions. He turned to flee, but in which direction should he go? His decision took him straight into three small rocks! The next legend was to be formed by none other than Mwansa's twin brother! Then distinctive moans of pain reached my ears at the camp fire and upon arrival the now famous excuse of "they were over dazzling me" was uttered in defence of his calamity. Many of Mark's team succumbed to this tactic and all seemed to be going well as Peter presided over a full prison. Their flag also had another deterrent, 'mpashi' or the red biting ant. A significant area of ground was covered by these guys and they enjoyed covering Cholwe and Dalitso from head to toe, amazingly in that order. Somehow these guys get to where it hurts before you know it, but then it's too late! A strip down at the camp fire is in order! Anyway the Snipers approached their opponent's flag but here their success dried up. They spent 30mins walking in a pack around the flag yet never thinking to check up the anthill. In the meantime Mark had finally located the Sniper's flag and was on his secretive way back when time was called.

With the night fading fast we moved onto a short game modeled on a Bible smuggling theme. Everyone was to find their way to the car from the river without being spotted by Mr Boatman or Mr Grove, in 20 minutes. Nothing too dramatic occurred and a number we able to make it through the net. The aged duo were able to detect quite a number though, 10, I think.

Following the games we had Mr Boatman recalled his days as a smuggler and presented the dangers and thrills of getting a silent photocopying machine into Russia. A graphic reminder of the price Christians pay when they do what they believe God has called them to do in places where Christians and the Bible are hated or feared. He read Scriptures from Romans and Acts where we are taught to honour our rulers and yet where Peter defies the rulers upon his release. We are to obey the higher calling of God and honour him. Perhaps 1 Peter 2 v 17 would sum up the thoughts well - "Honour all men, love the brotherhood, FEAR GOD and honour the emperor". What wonderful freedom we are given in Zambia.

Mr Boatman then gave a short show on the stars with his notebook and green star gazing lazer beam. It is incredible to see light that emitted from a star at the time of Joshua and Samuel! The constancy of the cosmos that we can navigate from it and the depth of mystery hidden there. God's creation is truely amazing when we think about it.

After a pretty rough nights sleep, having endured Peter's lion impressions and Mwansa periodically waking everyone up because he was cold, we got going a 6am to start our hobo stoves. Breakfast was bread, bacon, eggs, sausages and beans, all to be fried on the stoves. It is slow going and patience is required. Mr Boatman demonstrated how to start fires with homemade charcloth or Elephant dung (not homemade but still a local product) and a magnesium stick. This proved difficult for some and so cotton wool which is somewhat more explosive was resorted to. So finally Yarel and co could start cooking. Most stoves worked with good efficiency and proved a success. It's a great activity to show the boys what can be done with everyday things around us.

"Charcloth and striker"

Justin doing a great job as chef

I think the boys enjoyed their time and it is a great way to break up the monotony of boarding life. My thanks to Mr Boatman for his interest in the boys and bringing a wealth of experience to us to learn from.

Report by Mr Grove

U16 Boys Hockey

On Saturday the 16th of July, Amano took an U-16 boys team to Chengelo to play hockey. We were supposed to play three games but because of our late arrival we only played two.

Amano's Players

Our first game was against Simba. Our heads weren’t in that game and we were a bit too laid back in our defensive formation. Simba pounced on the opportunity to score four goals where as we only managed to score one goal. Our striker, Yarel, scored an easy looking goal.

Amano v Simba

Our next game was against Chengelo who beat us last time 6-0. So we had some room for improvement. The Chengelo team had a good attacking unit who managed to get four goals past our goalkeeper. But by the second half adjustments were made in both our attacking and defending units and we managed to avoid conceding further goals.

Overall I was very pleased with my team’s efforts and I’d like to commend Philip on his defensive performance, Mwansa on his attacking performance and everyone else because they all had their moments of great skill.

Report by Kurt Fernandes

U19 Girls ISAZ Hockey

On the 16th of July, we took a U19 girls team to play hockey. We had an early start for a hockey tournament at Chengelo School. We were a smaller team because we lost two substitute players due to sickness. That actually showed the endurance fitness levels in the team.

 

Our first game was against Simba girls’ team. We had a strong attack and a stronger defence. They could not penetrate through the defence structure. The attack was also pretty good; we had many possible shots on goal. Diana scored the first goal in the first half of the game, straight after that Natalya scored another goal, followed up by that, Diana scored another goal. We finished the game well, and were off to a good start

The second game was against the home team, Chengelo. We were so determined to not lose against them. We picked up our game, strengthened our defence and attack. Our attack wasn’t as strong as our defence but we didn’t let them beat us. We couldn’t get any goals during the game and ended that game, a draw 0-0.

Our final game was against Trident College Girls. They were sharp and fast. They took advantage of our area of weaknesses and, unfortunately we let in two easy goals. In the second half, we strengthened our attack and cleaned up our defence. Natalya managed a clean and fast goal. We were managing to catch up, but it was the end of the game and we lost it 2-1. It was a very close game.

Janki regaining the attack against Trident

  

Overall the team ranked second place out of four schools. It was the last hockey tournament of the season and it was a good end to it. All the girls pushed through to the last minute of the final game. Every single girl who participated played contributed immensely to the end result. Without the effort and hard work put in during the games and during the training sessions, it wouldn’t have been a successful outcome

I was very impressed and delighted with the effort and hard work put in by the girls. It was my last tournament where I would get to represent the school, and I am very thankful for the opportunity to work with and lead a wonderful girls’ team. 

Report by Janki Desai (hockey captain)

U19 Boys Hockey

On Saturday the 16^th July U19 boys went to Chengelo to play hockey. Three other schools were present on the day and these were Trident, Simba and Chengelo. Our first game was against Trident and it started off really well; we took the lead in the first few minutes of the game with a goal by Daniel Weiandt. As the game progressed the team became a bit disorganised and gave away 3 goals by the end of the second half, in the end we lost that game 3-1. 

Our second game was against Simba and the team was willing to put all their effort into this game. In the first few minutes of the game Simba scored the first goal to give them the lead. Later on in the first half Daniel equalised to make the score 1-1 and then another goal by Daniel Weiandt assisted by Cholwe Muleya gave us the victory in that game as we won it 2-1.The defensive play in that game was really good from the back players who showed a great amount of effort and hard work.

Our third and final game was against Chengelo School and most of the boys were tired in that game but we were willing to play to their best. The game started intensely as both teams were fighting to get the first goal and at half time the score was still 0-0. Cholwe and Daniel had a few shots on target but still didn’t manage to get the ball into the back of the goal. Later on in the second half Chengelo school managed to score 2 goals against us but still continued to put in countless effort and played with a very good attitude. The game ended 2-0 but I think we played our best in that game and I would like to thank the team for the effort they put on that day, and for everyone else who made the trip possible, and most of all I’d like to thank God for safe travels on the day and no serious injuries.

Report by Tarisai Lufunda

Athletics Qualifiers - Girls

On the 28th May 2016, the northern region’s qualifier rounds of athletics were hosted by Mpelembe School. There were 7 schools competing from the region: Simba School, Mpelembe, the hosting school, Lechwe School, Kalulushi Trust School, Chengelo School, Trident College and Amano Christian School. It was a long day packed with many different track and field events. Amano had three sets of girls’ teams to participate in all age groups. There were the under 14 girls that consisted of five girls, under 16 girls and under 19 girls that consisted of 4 girls each.

A few of the girls were new to the team and to the sport so it was a new experience for them. The majority of the girls that were participating qualified in the events they were assigned to do. A lot of effort and hard work was put in all the races, throws, and jumps done, which earned us the points that contributed to the final Amano team’s score. Many different talents were showcased and many others were revealed through the long day.

With all the effort put in by each member of the team, the Amano athletics team earned 516 points and came 4th out of 7 schools. [Chengelo 650pts ; Mpelembe 554pts; Trident 531pts ; Lechwe 482pts; Simba 334pts and Kalulushi 319pts.]
Even though it was a long event, what made it memorable and a day packed with enjoyable moments, was having a good time in competitive sport.

I would just like to say a big thank you to the girls that put in the immense effort. I’d also like to thank Mr Grove for organising and putting together the entire event.

Reported by: Janki Desai (athletics captain)

Regional Athletic Meet - Boys

On Saturday the 28th of May we traveled to Mpelembe Secondary School for this year’s 2016 athletic qualifiers. We started off early and arrived there on time, most of the schools had already arrived. It was a sizzling morning and you could feel the excitement and adrenaline running through the air. We had three age groups, under 19s, under 16s and under 14s, all divided into girls and boys groups. Due to the number of schools there this year we only had 1 heat in races, rather than two like last year. For the first event we had the boys 1500m which comprised all the age groups of boys racing together. For that event Amano came out first followed by Chengelo, Mpelembe and Lechwe. For the under 16 boys first was Mpelembe followed by Amano then Simba and Chengelo. For under14s Amano came out 4th with Chengelo 1st. The second track event was 200m, for under19s Amano came first after a thrilling race [by James]. In under 16's Amano came out 4th with Chengelo in first place. Sadly in under 14's after a valiant try by Xavier he failed to qualify because slipped just at the end. This was then followed by 400m, for under 19s and Amano came out 1st [Fungai], for under 16's sadly even after a 'burn out' run Mwansa he was still enable to qualify. For under 14's, sadly just by a few inches, Amano lost its place in qualifiers. Then the next track event was the 100m, which was exceptional, for under 19's, 16's and U14's sadly failed to qualify. Then for the last individual run 800m in under 19's Amano came out first, but for the under 16's and 14's we failed to qualify.

Then went on to the relays: 4 x 100m Amano came out 5th but, due to 1 school above dropping out, we went up to qualify. For 4 by 400 after a thrilling race Amano came out 3rd. [The U16's also qualified in the 4 x 100, to the national ISAZ event, due to a late withdrawal of a team]

When it comes to the field Amano also performed well, as it came out second in the U19's long jump [Paul], second for U19s triple jump [James] and 4th for under 16's [Kurt]. We then came out 1st in under 16s high jump [Jackson] and 4th in under 14s [Xavier], then for U19 discus we came out 4th [Daniel]. In the shot put we came out 4th [Fungai] for under 19s, under 16s [Musonda] and 14s [Xavier].

Overall I believe it was a brilliant event which showed both talent and hard work. It was great to see that a lot of effort had been put in by both staff and students. I also believed that everybody tried their best and sadly for those that failed to qualify, I wish them better next time. Thank you.

Overall I would like to thank Mr Grove jr, the fellow staff and pupils for organising and helping and to God for making sure that everything went well.

Report by: Fungai Chanda


Some pictures of the event by Mr Pflaum

U16 Boys Hockey

On Saturday the 21st of May the Amano U16 boys went to Simba School to play hockey. There were three U16 teams. Amano, Chengelo and Simba.
Our first game was against Simba. During the first half we were sleeping and Simba scored 2 early goals. That meant that at half time we were losing 2-0. During the second half we woke up and got a goal early in the half from Musonda, but we were not able to score another and we lost 2-1.

Kurt hassling Chengelo and Damon in support

Our second game was against the Chengelo. They also started strong and caught us while we were napping and again by half time we were 2-0 down. At half time we decided that we should go and try to win this game by attacking as much as possible. However our risks did not pay off and so we conceded 3 more goals and we ended up losing 5-0.

Captain Samuel dribbling Chengelo

I want to thank Mr Grove for taking us and the team for playing so well despite not winning. My man of the tournament was Kurt Fernandes who played the full 20 minutes for both games and played outstandingly well.

Report by: Samuel Kirk