Euphoria, epicness and emotiveness in Mataró during a waterlogged Santes
The Greens recover the 3d9fa, which they had not unloaded since Sant Fèlix in 2019
MataróThe Santes festival in Mataró this Saturday has once again demonstrated why it is one of the essential dates on the casteller calendar. It did so with all possible ingredients: top-level castells, torrential rain that forced the performance to be interrupted, and an emotional tribute to Mariona, the young woman from Capgrossos who lost her life twenty years ago after an accident at this very festival.
To adapt to the start of the main festival's call, the day exceptionally began at five in the afternoon and, for the first time, had a set finishing time. Despite this constraint, the three teams offered a high-level performance.
The Capgrossos de Mataró opened the square with a 7d8 that has already become one of their trusted castells. The third of the season showed a very solid structure from the first few moments and particularly determined children, who injected speed into the unloading without leaving room for doubt. In the second round, the Mataró team opted for the first 5d8 of the year. After a dismantled foot, the cathedral rose with good dimensions and, despite having to work on it at times, they were able to complete it without too many complications. It was a structure they hadn't unloaded since All Saints' Day last year, and the celebration was proportional to the value of recovering it.
The great explosion of joy, however, arrived in the third round. At the moment the enxaneta crowned the 4d9f, an intense downpour fell on Plaça de Santa Anna. Far from falling apart, the Capgrossos maintained control of the castell and completed the first 4d9f of the season under extremely complicated conditions. A very meritorious unloading that ended up tinged with epic under the rain.
The Vilafranca team continues to expand its repertoire
For their part, the Castellers de Vilafranca once again demonstrated that they continue to expand their range of structures. They started with a very solid 4d9f, the fourth of the season, resolved with authority.
The second round left the big headline of the day: the greens recovered the 3d9fa, a construction they had not unloaded since Sant Fèlix in 2019 and which had not been completed in the square since then. After in the last attempt, in October 2019, it remained only that, an attempt, the Vilafranca team once again dominated one of the most demanding structures in the casteller scene. The three presented very tight dimensions and worked with solvency until leaving the protagonism to an interior pillar that evidenced the potential of the new lineup. A recovery of great value, both for its symbolism and for the moment of the season, when the top-level objectives are already beginning to take shape on the horizon.
Despite the rain, those in the green shirt did not alter the script. They completed the 3d9f in the third round and closed the performance by unloading the pd8fm, the fifth of the year, confirming once again the excellent form of their espadat.
High-level performance from the Terrassa team
The Minyons de Terrassa also signed off on a high-level performance. The 4d9f, the second of the season, had an almost perfect execution: firm in size, very stable and resolved with a serenity that conveyed confidence from beginning to end. In the second round, they faced the 2d9fm, also the second of the course. The folre and the manilles had to work throughout the execution, but the structure never lost control and the malves added another extra cast to their record.
The rain, however, ended up modifying their plans. With their shirts completely soaked after a fifteen-minute break, the Terrassa-based team assessed that the optimal conditions were not met to face the 3d9f they had prepared. Prudence prevailed, and they opted to finish with the pd7f,renouncing the completion of the tripleta.
The day concluded with the most emotional moment of the afternoon. The three teams simultaneously raised a pillar in memory of Mariona, twenty years after her death. A sober and symbolism-laden tribute that closed a performance marked by a high level of casteller skill. And with a soaking included.
