20 Not Out

Welcome to players, officials, sponsors, spectators and casual readers to the 2009 AMEC/Cape Manila 10’s and, of course, to the tournament’s legendary home, Nomad Sports Club. It is once again an honour for me to be CRAFTing this introduction in my third year as Chairman of this wonderful event.

The Manila 10’s was created back in 1989, so we are celebrating 20 years of “Asia’s Best Social Rugby Tournament”. In order to mark this occasion, we have delved into the archives of Nomads and some of those that were around two decades ago and brought a touch of history to this year’s official programme – I hope this brings back some memories, some smiles and possibly a few winces!

I was determined to put together a list of the M10’s Chairmen for the 20 years and assumed this would be a relatively simple task… of course it was not! I think I have a good idea of most of the names involved, but allocating years has proven to be beyond most memories. David Hodges has kindly contributed a fascinating article (page [ ]) on how it all began and the characters involved. After that, in some form of chronological order, the following have chaired the M10’s: Rob Guest, Dave Wallace, Jay Savage, Ross Schirmer, Peter “Warnie” Young, Chris Hartley and myself – a big thank you to all of you for making this event possible and carrying the torch for 20 years.

For 2009, we are back to our traditional “spot” on the weekend before the Hong Kong 7’s. Last year we were forced to move due to the early occurrence of Easter. This caused some consternation, but did enable us to get some new teams involved. This year we see the return of some old favourites (Ligers, Pot Belly Lites and Flying Elvises) and, importantly, some M10’s virgins in the shape of NSW Crows, Pyrenees Barbarians, Dubai Multiplex and Wagga Wagga Waratahs. On paper, the quality of teams looks to be exceptional and I think we can all look forward to some fantastic rugby over the weekend.

I had the privilege to watch all of the 2008 finals from the elevated officials’ area, right over the half-way line – and what finals they were! No-one can remember when the quality of rugby was so high at “the death” from the Cup all the way through to the Shield. Cup winners were Black Watch and we are pleased to welcome them back after some doubts over their future participation – they beat Singapore Barbarians (three times reigning champs) literally on the sound of the hooter with the entire crowd roaring the teams on.

My introduction could not be complete without mention of our very own Nomads and their performance in the 2008 tournament. Perennial bridesmaids since winning the Plate in 1999, the home favourites proved the punters wrong as Sam Chittick led his men to a stunning victory over Taipei Giants to take back the same trophy some nine years later. Congratulations once again to Nomads and best of luck this year – they will need it having been promoted to the Cup!I must take this opportunity to say a few “thank yous” to the people that make this tournament happen:

• To our sponsors and, in particular, to AMEC/Cape who are now entering their fourth year as title sponsors – your support is very much valued and appreciated;
• To the staff of Nomad Sports Club, ably led by Malou Lopeña – these guys really put their backs into the M10’s weekend and it is an absolute pleasure to work with them;
• The Board of Directors of Nomad Sports Club, once again under the Presidency of Jonathan Thorp; and
• Last but not least, the Manila 10’s Organising Committee, to whom a page is rightfully dedicated in this programme.

Our former General Manager at Nomads, Bert Gopez, moved on during 2008 and I would like to personally recognise him and the huge impact he had on this tournament during his tenure.

It just remains for me to say wish you all a great weekend at the Manila 10’s and I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible.

Yours in Sport
William D Bailey
Chairman – Manila 10’s 2009