|
IGF News |
| Go tour of Brisbane by Keio OBs |
A party of 17 persons (13 go players) under the leadership of Mr. Kanazawa (president of the tour company) and Mr. Kiga (leader of the go players) arrived in Brisbane on 2nd June and were met by me and escorted to their residence. This was the culmination of many earlier contacts by email and telephone. The general programme for the visitors was to enjoy golf and sightseeing during the day and play some friendly go in the evenings. On the final day, Sunday, 6th June, a two-round friendly match was arranged between Keio Old Boys and the Brisbane Go Club (BGC). Accordingly, a number of BGC members attended the residence known as Good Hope Residence on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings. The visitors, of whom 11 were 4-dan and above (including a 9-dan sensei Mr. Nebashi), kindly played teaching games and friendly games against us. Mr. Nebashi also gave a go lesson on the Saturday evening, followed by a game of rengo, which was a lot of fun for everyone. The visitors were clearly relaxing and enjoying themselves on these evenings, and the BGC club members also had a good time and the rare opportunity to play against stronger players. We all learned something to improve our go strength. On the Sunday, the day started with friendly go games, followed by a light lunch. We then started the team match, with 13 Keio players against 13 BGC players. This was a close contest, with Keio pipping us by 7-6. BGC made a few substitutions in Round 2, which was won by Keio 8-5, for an overall win by Keio by 15-11. I must add that this match was played in a friendly spirit and not really in strict tournament style. BGC has provided a Cup, and, although Keio has first place in 2004, we at BCG are hoping that the event will be held again next year, and we will be trying hard to win that one. A very enjoyable day closed out with the visitors treating everyone to a sukiyaki party by master chef Mr. Kobayashi of Brisbane. The bottles of wine, which had been the prize donated by the visitors, all magically disappeared during dinner, and this also helped to cement a growing friendship between the two groups. There is no doubt that the visit has been a great success from BGC's viewpoint, as a learning experience but also as a social event for making new friends. It remains for me to thank the Nihon Ki-in for referring this group to us. I also thank Mr. Kanazawa and Mr. Kiga for their excellent organization, and Mr. Nebashi for kindly teaching us how to improve our go. Thanks also to all participants for just being helpful and friendly, which made for a relaxed event. Everyone at BGC wishes the Keio members all the best and hopes to see them again next year. (Report by John Hardy, Treasurer, Brisbane Go Club) |