In an unusual but also welcome change, five of The Sapphires made an appearance at the annual NYC Etiquette Dinner hosted at the Canterbury League Club.
The Etiquette dinner was an initiative put together by the club in an effort to ensure that our NYC Players are armed with all the skills to behave as gentlemen, and Dom, Darcie, Madi, Renee and myself were there to help them test out their new found skills over dinner.
Initially we weren’t quite sure what the evening would entail but upon arrival in a brief but detailed lesson we were swiftly taught the do’s and don’ts of modern manners.
We learned many of the lost arts of modern society things like how to introduce ourselves, eat our bread and soup appropriately, and excuse ourselves to go to the bathroom. (Some of us anxiously avoided the bathroom and bread eating for this very reason).
After the lesson it was time to put our new found skills to the test over dinner.
From this point, the challenge was set- who would out etiquette whom? The boys had longer to learn however; the Sapphires had the lady charm.
Meeting the boys was by far the highlight of the night. Formal introductions were a nice alternative to colloquial language.
As we sat for dinner, we quietly observed our soup and had a good think of how to tackle it - not something one often does, we were asked to stand up and introduce ourselves to the procession and in turn we did.
We were impressed by not only the skill sets that were hidden amongst the team - budding sports physicians, future degree holders and qualified tradesmen - but also the polite and professional manner in which they presented themselves.
It was great to hear about their experiences with the Bulldogs and the nurturing they receive from the club. Most importantly it was comforting to hear that although they all dream to become first grade players they all have well-rounded skill sets on and off the field that will help them along in any aspect of their lives.
Much similar to any Sapphire get together, the night ended with formal photos followed by a selfie or two.
I think it is safe to say that neither the NYC boys nor the Sapphires Ladies could out etiquette each other, with such eloquent behavior from everyone on the night it was a great success with everyone passing.
Personally, since this time, bread eating takes me significantly longer and I now know the correct answer to ‘How do you do?’ This stumps people now and then.
