The feeling of anticipation filled the air as we all stood outside the bus ready to depart for the airport. Loaded up, we boarded the bus for the start of the journey.
Through check in and photos at the other side of security. Take off! A movie and a good breakfast on the plane.
Melbourne, and the Space Hotel, the boys all excited and pile into their rooms. Team meeting and then off to the shops for food for breakfast. A sea of Carine Junior Football Club jackets pour up the street from Woollies with bags of groceries. Dinner at the Space Hotel, banter, fines and laughter.
Breakfast! A mass of arms and bodies grabbing cereal and toast, a packed lunch and off to the 'G'. I took a photo ahead of the boys looking back and you can see the excitement as we walk to the stadium and over the William Barak bridge.
We are greeted by Dennis Lillee, Shane Warne, Shirley Strickland and Don Bradman, all in bronze like a welcoming committee.
Our host provided a tour and we walked onto the podium in awe at the size of the stadium and how close the pitch was to the spectators. He indicated the lights helping the grass grow, where the new stand stops the sun and took us through the members area which is usually out of bounds. We looked at the paintings of the first committee, crickets bats and balls of the Melbourne Cricket Club the history oozing out of the walls.
Down underneath to the practice nets and then the changing rooms where we bump into two Collingwood players.
The MCG museum is a must, it has a lot of interactive parts where you can try some sports. Amazing sporting memorabilia of all sorts including cricket, football, Olympics and Warnie has a hologram where he comes alive and talks about his cricket career; definitely a highlight.
Sadly we leave the MCG on a bus but our disappointment is short-lived as we hit the race track and drive gokarts as fast as they can go, flat out! We spin, we slide and we bump. An adrenaline-filled afternoon sees us all back at the Space Hotel, exhausted.
A short walk to an Italian restaurant in LygonStreet, Carleton where we are well fed and watered on our first full day in Melbourne.
After breakfast we all 'Ubered' to Princes Park (IKON Park) to watch Carlton training, before training ourselves on the oval next door. We were met by Simon White who started football at Carine Junior Football Club. He gave us an insight to footy as a kid and moving in to Colts and WAFL then getting picked up by Carlton. We toured the changing rooms and ice baths before heading back to the Space Hotel.
We had lunch then caught the bus to Greensborough to play the Lew Hall Memorial Game. It's quite a drive from the city and it was a cold afternoon. I don't think the boys have ever played on such a cold day; we were short due to injuries so they gave us three players which alternated.
Off to a cracking start, the first quarter up by seven goals. They had a few more players arrive and came back to an exciting nail-biting finish of winning by one point. But the game wasn't about the winning, it was a game of true sportsmanship and one of the best game of footy I have ever seen.
In the club house we were welcomed with great food live music and a few drinks. The warm welcome received and the hospitality felt like this was our home club. The football game and the night in the club house was definitely a highlight of the trip.
The following day, Callum and I went to the old Melbourne Gaol, Queen Victoria markets, several hours at the Museum and then the DPO. A great father - son day, chilling out but we did a lot of walking before dinner in Chinatown.
Saturday afternoon and we're of to the 'G' for Collingwood and Essendon. A sea of Carine jackets again swarm in but the weather has turned to freezing. Some hot pies to keep us going and ponchos for the shower of rain.
The atmosphere at the MCG is second to none, the banter, the opposition calling at each other and a final score for the Bombers made for a great match before heading west on a tram to Etihad stadium for our second game of the day. The Saints all over Richmond, a good game and a much warmer stadium with the roof closed.
Sunday. A cooked breakfast before boarding the bus to Mt Buller. Passing through Bonnie Doon and oh the serenity! Short stop in Mansfield for supplies and a slow winding drive up the mountain. And we're not disappointed by the snow - lots of it and such a cold wind.
We settled in to our accommodation and then all walked down through the snow to get our ski and snowboarding gear. It started snowing after dinner which was great. Ajax is a warm and comfortable place and every night we had three courses of 'cold weather food' with soup to start - we certainly did not go hungry.
A mixture of ski and snowboard lessons in the morning and we met for lunch in the restaurant at noon and free time on the slopes for the afternoon.
The days were spent carving up Shaky Knees, Wombat and Little Buller Spur. Up to the top of the summit although it was better on the clear days where you could see for miles. Run after run down Abom but it did get a bit busy mid-afternoon. Evenings with cardboard suitcases, scrabble, pool and tobogganing to wear us out for the next day.
I think it is safe to say that we were all very sad to be leaving on our last day. We had so much fun as a group, everyone being so tight-knit, we all gelled so well and looked out for one another and shared our experience well. I stood on top of the summit with my son and took a deep long breath of freezing cold air, looking for miles over the country below thinking how lucky we all were to share this special place - we will never forget this time together.
A few words from the Year 10 players about the 'best thing about the trip':
Spending time with their mates - everyone became closer and got to know each other better over the ten days.
They bonded as team mates and friends.
Skiing and snowboarding at Mt Buller was a highlight - great fun and it was a good experience all round – snow fights, tobogganing and the food was excellent!
Winning the Greensborough game by one point – really exciting, everyone was pumped!
Going to the footy at the MCG and Etihad, plus doing the MCG tour together...you can never have enough footy!
Funny moments on the trip…Adam ‘ Wormy’ Pretty giving the boys a lesson in bovine matters and Assistant Coach, Luke ‘Richo’ Richardson sharing his cravings: "Give me the Cheeezzze Baaalllzzz"!!
Thanks to guest blogger and Dad, Steve Duncan for documenting the trip and to Team Manager Rod King and the parents and players who posted photos and stories of their time together. We loved following your trip on social media and It sounds like you had a fabulous time. If you'd like to know more about our Year 10 Melbourne Trip, visit our dedicated Melbourne Trip page. The terrific slideshow was put together by Rod King - great work Rod!