Our first Australian Rules Football game and we felt like we
had the best seats in the house. We were literally about 10 rows away from the
players and by looking around the stadium I could tell that we were lucky. This
stadium, or the Sydney Cricket Ground, was huge and pretty full. We were
supposed to be in for a good game between the Sydney Swans and Geelong Cats. We
would be cheering for the Sydney Swans, no surprise there and their colors were
red and white. We didn’t find that too hard to support considering those are my
college colors at NC State so we were excited to be cheering on another Red and
White team. However, with the weather getting colder a lot quicker than we
expected we had to get somewhat bundled up for this game. That meant breaking
out the sweaters and jackets and unfortunately covering up the team spirit. We
got smart this time and walked to the Cricket Ground which was only about a 20
minute walk. We were supposed to meet our teacher at the pub on the ground to
collect our tickets, so I ran in to get them while Lauren waited outside. When
I finally found our teacher among everyone else in the pub I was somewhat
shocked to see that students were casually having a drink with him. That would
never happen in the United States, so I think that’s a little outside of my comfort
zone. I also think its very unprofessional, but that’s just me. With about 20
minutes to kill before kickoff we wandered around outside the stadium to look
at all the booths that were set up. A lot of companies had venues that were
providing either free pictures with lifestyle ARL players or competitions to
try and catch a football in the air. We had a lot of fun watching the crowd,
seeing all the red and white as well as getting a free few pictures! Soon we
were in the stadium and at our seats, after getting a little mixed up by the
bays (that’s what they call sections here). We were soon surrounded by some of
our classmates that were already halfway drunk at this point. Of course, three
of the guys sat right next to us and we knew immediately it was going to be an
interesting game. While I was away at the toilets (they also think its
hilarious how we call them restrooms) Lauren thought to tell the guys behind us
that we were an American crowd and this was our first game as a warning, but
she thought better of it. In hindsight – she definitely should have. The game
started off with the players from each team running through a banner, similar
to high school homecoming games. Within minutes the game was on way, started by
the head referee slamming the football into the ground, making it soar into the
air. I think this is somewhat similar to the start of a basketball game.
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| Note: The ball is at the top of the picture.. and still going higher! |
In
fact, we have come to the realization that ARL (Australian Rules Football) is
just a mix of all American sports. Australians like to claim it as their own
sport since they supposedly made up the rules, but really is just a combination
of all the American sports rules. The Cats got the ball and started the
handball it to their team mates. Rule No. 1 – you cannot throw the ball, you
must handball it out of your hand similar to middle school volleyball serves.
This was actually a lot more beneficial to the players since the Cats advanced
up the oval pretty quickly. As you can see from the pictures it really is
played in an oval field. There is seating all around and we were pretty up
close and personal.
Rule No. 2 – If a ball is kicked forward and a player from
that team catches the ball then the play is frozen, no one can touch them and
they can start the next play from there. If they are within the 50 meter line
then they can have a try, which would mean kicking it in the goal.
However, the
goal is actually four rods sticking out of the ground. If they get in in-between
the middle two rods then it is 6 points, if they get it between the outer 2
rods on either side, or they kick a rod then it is 1 point. I think this is the
only sport ever that rewards players for missing the goal. Because of this
scoring and the fast nature of the game, the scoring can actually get really
high and oftentimes go over 100. Rule
No. 3 – If a player gets a goal (6 points) then the game is restarted in the
middle circle, similar to soccer.
If a player misses a try and gets a point
then the other team gets the ball and tries to advance it all the way down the
field. Rule No. 4 – You cannot slide tackle anyone but tackling someone is free
game as long as it not over the shoulder. Rule No. 5 – You can advance the ball
by running forward but you must bounce it on the ground every 15 steps you
take. Rule No. 6 – You can only score a goal by kicking the ball with your foot
between the two middle rods. If you catch a catch in the 50 meter mark then you
get a free shot at the goal from the spot that you caught the ball. Rule No. 7
– There are no other rules.
The Australians take pride in not having a lot of
rules for this game but I beg to differ. There seemed to be another rule every
single whistle blow, and oftentimes we had no idea what was going on. I can
tell you one thing though- Australians get into their sports!
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| Worlds largest pom-poms |
The stadium was a
mixed crowd, some were going for the Cats and some for the Swans so tension was
obvious. The Australians behind us were particularly rude Cats fans and did not
like our cheering for the Swans. We were given these banner clappers when we came
into the stadium that surprisingly makes a really loud noise. One guy dared to
try and grab it out of my hand! We were definitely not too fond of them and
unfortunately didn’t have the best game because of them. However, we didn’t let
the good seats go to waste! One of the Australian guys that helps out with our
class fieldtrips sat next to Lauren so we were able to ask a lot of clarifying
questions throughout the game. The Swans were in the lead by about 20 points
when halftime rolled around but that didn’t last for long. The Cats continued
to score over and over again.
Unfortunately the game ended up being a blow out with the Cats winning
by nearly 30 points.
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| Although they lost, they still came together as a team in the end! |
Lauren and I have decided that the Sydney teams have not
won at any game that we’ve attended. We think our professor is a bad luck
charm, but maybe we need to start cheering for the other team!
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