It’s already been over a month since my last post and I really don’t know where the time’s gone. The only reason I’m sat on the sofa typing now is by virtue of the fact that I’m recovering from a routine hospital operation which I underwent yesterday morning!

My hard “pre-season” has continued relentlessly with session after session logged in my diary and hour after hour banked in my arms. It’s eight weeks since the start of the year and it’s been a pretty hard slog but I’m more than happy with the results.

The GB squad have started meeting on a regular basis again. At the moment there is a mixture of veteran players and very new faces attending the weekly scrimmages at Stoke Mandeville. Meanwhile our up and coming stars keep us from idling as they continue their intensive training camp out in Florida. You can read all about their exploits by clicking on the link below…

http://gbwrinflorida.wordpress.com/

Elsewhere another GB squad member, “Mandip Sehmi”, is making a name for himself by being short-listed for the Outstanding Achievement Award at the British Asian Sports Awards (BASA). Many of you who read this blog regularly will have heard of Manny’s progress including his debut in the US league this season for the “Phoenix Heat”. The Awards are on Saturday 5th of March and you can see a full list of nominations at…

http://www.basauk.tv/ba/nominees

You can also help Manny by voting for him but be quick because lines close on Monday 28th of February. Call 09050 260314 or text BASA 14 to 84555.

Away from the court, Alison and I have managed to find a house we like and are going through the lengthy process of making it ours. For those of you that have done this, you’ll know that that’s about as interesting as it gets so I won’t waste your time or my words on it! I’d far rather tell you that we’ve decided to get married sometime in December 2012 and that we’re one meeting away (this Saturday) from nailing down an exact date. Obviously we’re both hugely excited about this so rest assured, you’ll be hearing plenty more about it in the coming months.

As well as all the work, there has to be some play (that’s my justification for it anyway!) and I’m glad to say that I’ve been able to crowbar a couple of things into my schedule over the last month. At the end of January I managed to wangle a meal at Gary Rhodes’ restaurant in London’s “Nat West Tower” under the guise of a Christmas gift to mine and Alison’s parents. Valentines weekend gave me a great chance to go and see “Phantom of the Opera” before enjoying a steak dinner and a night at a plush hotel in Piccadilly. Finally I have no excuse for seeing “Usher” at the O2 Arena last weekend but he was very good!

If I haven’t already done enough to tarnish my image as a “tough Rugby player” in the last paragraph, the kind people at “C4 Paralympics” have stepped in with this great piece on their website…

http://paralympics.channel4.com/the-athletes/andy-barrow

Careful what you say in interview folks, it never quite comes across the same in print… Andy Barrow in hugs over winning shocker :). Please check back soon, when I’ll be previewing GB’s main domestic competition; the “Super Series 2011”.

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Readers who submit articles must agree to our terms of use. The content is the sole responsibility of the contributor and is unmoderated. But we will react if anything that breaks the rules comes to our attention. If you wish to complain about this article, contact us here