Destination Dublin - UK

Rugby legend Grant Fox recounts the final leg of his tour with the Webb Ellis Cup - at the DHL gateway in East Midlands and a nearby DHL call centre.

After an overnight flight from Cape Town, we had an early morning start at the DHL hub in East Midlands. I was met by Lawrence Dallaglio, who was a member of the English 2003 Rugby World Cup winning side. Really enjoyed seeing Lawrence again.

We got right into the photo shoot out on the tarmac with the DHL plane. After the warm weather in the southern hemisphere, I was glad DHL supplied some jackets for this one!

After that we went into the facility for a customer and staff engagement event. Big operation here! The transhipment area is massive. I was told they load and unload seven planes a night, each with up to 35 tonnes of cargo. The place is pretty quiet during the day so we didn’t get to see it in action unfortunately.

I had the pleasure of meeting Alan Keegan, the “Voice of Old Trafford,” who MC’d the event at the hub. Alan is learning a bit about rugby now, and he’s a quick learner. He has a sultry voice - it’s clear why he’s been the voice of Old Trafford. He was very entertaining and between him Lawrence and I, we had a nice conversation with the crowd about rugby followed by a round of photos and signing.

Although I’m more than tired at this point, I still get a lot of excitement watching people react to the Webb Ellis Cup. That’s been one of the most moving parts of the trip for me.

My final stop was a DHL call centre here in the area. It was brilliant to walk through there and see all the staff who clearly work very hard for the company and are very passionate about what they do. I felt like I was going around the engine room of the operation. We took lots of pictures, signed everything from shirts to mugs and chatted to many people. It was a real nice way to end the trip.

Now the Cup stays in England for a couple of weeks before my good friend Sean Fitzpatrick hands it over officially to the IRB in mid November. I have to say goodbye to my travelling companion for now - but I expect to see it again soon. I slapped a DHL “Return to Sender” sticker on it and expect nothing less than the All Blacks to bring the Cup back home where it belongs in 2015!

Grant Fox