So I think if one wants to get a real feel for the Sydney pop-culture vibe, one has to plug into the city's beach scene (which I'm doing), its sports scene (which I'm about to do right now), and its club scene (which I will never do because from youth I was never cool or comfortable enough to be let or hang out at any hot spot)(and even if I try to start clubbing now, I'll easily be the oldest guy in the room grooving, and no one wants to see that)
Anyway, sports watching is something I can and want to do, and Sydney has plenty on offer. And just to belabor the Sydney v London angle quickly: the fans in both cities are fun and loud, but the events down under play under better weather, and there's a whole lot to enjoy and experience here beyond EPL angst.
To wit: Aussie Rules! Oh, does it ever! I remember years ago I would change the channel whenever Aussie Rules highlights would come up on CNN World Sport -- there was just something about the players' tight sleeveless uniforms and referees' finger guns that I found...off. Having just seen an Aussie Rules match live and up close, however, I can say the whole spectacle is in fact amazing, and even the uniforms now fit right in in this era of sleek Under Armour performance suns-out-guns-out bro-wear.
The game I saw was an AFL match between local side Sydney Swans and Melbourne-suburb based Collingwood Magpies. It was a late season affair and both sides were fighting to make the playoffs. The Sydney franchise is a storied one, relocated from Melbourne in the 80's as part of Aussie Rules' nationwide expansion, and once went over 70 years between championships but won one as recently as 2012.
Collingwood, meanwhile, well....as my match companion explained "You have to be BORN a Collingwood supporter -- no one would ever CHOOSE to become one and subject themselves to all hate and abuse." Apparently, the Magpies are historically the most resented team in the league, a state brought about by their periodic success, working-class roots and, um, "passionate" and "eclectic" fans.
The teams also showcase two of the most intriguing players in AFL: Sydney's Lance "Buddy" Franklin and Collingwood's Mason "American 'Pie" Cox. Franklin is an undisputed superstar, one of the greatest players in Aussie Rules history. He's so good, you can immediately tell he's the best one out in the field even if you've never seen him play before and just know to keep an eye-out for someone named "Buddy".
Cox, on the other hand, is a towering 6'11 former U.S. NCAA basketball player who somehow found his way to AFL after standing out (har!) at a recruiting combine. His height and baller skillz have translated surprisingly well in Aussie Rules, and he may very well represent the future of the entire sport.
Now I don't need to write any further primer on the Aussie Rules games itself, because it was already so beautifully done by deadspin here. Let me just borrow some lines from the piece and chime in every so often with my personal highlights from the Swans v. 'Pies match:
A player that catches the ball kicked by another player earns the right to make their next move without interference, but otherwise play is mostly continuous. Players can tackle the opposition to stop their progress and to try to win the ball. Play moves forward, backward, and around all 360 degrees of the field. Kicking the ball through the goal earns six points, while other types of scores are worth one point. At the end of the game, the team with the most points wins!
The finger guns, however, still feel...off
The game I saw was an AFL match between local side Sydney Swans and Melbourne-suburb based Collingwood Magpies. It was a late season affair and both sides were fighting to make the playoffs. The Sydney franchise is a storied one, relocated from Melbourne in the 80's as part of Aussie Rules' nationwide expansion, and once went over 70 years between championships but won one as recently as 2012.
So bandwagoners still welcome
Collingwood, meanwhile, well....as my match companion explained "You have to be BORN a Collingwood supporter -- no one would ever CHOOSE to become one and subject themselves to all hate and abuse." Apparently, the Magpies are historically the most resented team in the league, a state brought about by their periodic success, working-class roots and, um, "passionate" and "eclectic" fans.
Basically they're Raider Nation. Or Bgy. Ginebra.
The teams also showcase two of the most intriguing players in AFL: Sydney's Lance "Buddy" Franklin and Collingwood's Mason "American 'Pie" Cox. Franklin is an undisputed superstar, one of the greatest players in Aussie Rules history. He's so good, you can immediately tell he's the best one out in the field even if you've never seen him play before and just know to keep an eye-out for someone named "Buddy".
Joining such other legit one-named superstars as "Lebron" and "Alden"
Cox, on the other hand, is a towering 6'11 former U.S. NCAA basketball player who somehow found his way to AFL after standing out (har!) at a recruiting combine. His height and baller skillz have translated surprisingly well in Aussie Rules, and he may very well represent the future of the entire sport.
Or at least of college centers who kick bricks with tremendous upside
Now I don't need to write any further primer on the Aussie Rules games itself, because it was already so beautifully done by deadspin here. Let me just borrow some lines from the piece and chime in every so often with my personal highlights from the Swans v. 'Pies match:
A player that catches the ball kicked by another player earns the right to make their next move without interference, but otherwise play is mostly continuous. Players can tackle the opposition to stop their progress and to try to win the ball. Play moves forward, backward, and around all 360 degrees of the field. Kicking the ball through the goal earns six points, while other types of scores are worth one point. At the end of the game, the team with the most points wins!
Yep yep. I would attempt to describe the Aussie Rules play I saw as having the free flow and movement of basketball, the joy of running of soccer, the athletic majesty of continued American football quarterback-to-wide receiver bombs, and the sustained suspense of a baseball outfielder robbing homeruns at the wall.
However, one of the quirks of the game is that the time is kept by officials way up in the grandstand, and the players out on the field don’t have an official countdown clock to consult during play. There is a countdown clock on the TV feed, but while there is an upward-counting timer on each ground’s scoreboard, players are largely left to their own devices to manage the late stages of the game.
Ah, so this is why the guy seated in front of me kept on calling someone on his phone late in the match, then hyper-excitedly telling me "One minute to go! One minute to go!" Thought he ordered us an uber pool or something.
Kick the ball across the plane between the two goal posts without it being touched, and you’ve kicked a goal, worth six points! The goal umpire signals this feat by striding to the midpoint between the goalposts, pausing dramatically for effect, and pointing two finger guns straight forward...If the ball crosses the plane between any two posts in any other manner... and that’s a behind, or “point,” worth one point. The goal umpire signals this by standing directly next to one goalpost, pausing dramatically for effect, and pointing one finger gun straight forward. So, Aussie rules footy is one of the only sports where you can earn points by not kicking it through the goal! These are the only two scoring options. If Team A has kicked 10 goals and three behinds, its score is written as 10.3 (63). This can be verbally stated in a few ways, but “ten goals three, sixty-three” will do fine, as would simply “sixty-three.” (For context, across the AFL in 2016 teams averaged 88 points per game.)
I find this point system ingenious and effective. It lends itself to high scoring, wild rallies/lead-changes, and even some dramatic buzzer beaters. Take my Sydney vs. Collingwood match. (*cue Quinito Henson recap voice*) WATCH as Collingwood takes control early and races out to a 17-point lead at halftime, but WATCH OUT as Sydney storms back in the third quarter and takes a two goal lead into the final chapter but WATCH OUT as Collingwood goes on a run to take a slim lead late but WATCH OUT as Buddy tries to take it back with a clutch free kick
BUT! after some more agawan buko scrambling a Swan manages to kick it through AT THE BUZZER or reasonably close to it (see, "One minute to go!" above), while lying on the ground!
SWANS WIN! SWANS WIN (*checks scoring system math*) BY TWO!
After a victory, the winning team’s players link arms in the clubrooms and belt out the club song, in one of the more enjoyable traditions of the game. Each team has its own song, but the Richmond Tigers have the best one.
Yeah maybe, because the Sydney Swans' song (har!) is just a cover of the fight song of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (or of the mga La Salista, if you prefer)
Still, great fun all around!
(Well, unless you're a Collingwood fan, but then, you're used to it. Sydney Swans bandwagon, baby! ).
Aussie rules was awesome.
with a dash of the chaos of a rousing game of agawan buko.
However, one of the quirks of the game is that the time is kept by officials way up in the grandstand, and the players out on the field don’t have an official countdown clock to consult during play. There is a countdown clock on the TV feed, but while there is an upward-counting timer on each ground’s scoreboard, players are largely left to their own devices to manage the late stages of the game.
Ah, so this is why the guy seated in front of me kept on calling someone on his phone late in the match, then hyper-excitedly telling me "One minute to go! One minute to go!" Thought he ordered us an uber pool or something.
Kick the ball across the plane between the two goal posts without it being touched, and you’ve kicked a goal, worth six points! The goal umpire signals this feat by striding to the midpoint between the goalposts, pausing dramatically for effect, and pointing two finger guns straight forward...If the ball crosses the plane between any two posts in any other manner... and that’s a behind, or “point,” worth one point. The goal umpire signals this by standing directly next to one goalpost, pausing dramatically for effect, and pointing one finger gun straight forward. So, Aussie rules footy is one of the only sports where you can earn points by not kicking it through the goal! These are the only two scoring options. If Team A has kicked 10 goals and three behinds, its score is written as 10.3 (63). This can be verbally stated in a few ways, but “ten goals three, sixty-three” will do fine, as would simply “sixty-three.” (For context, across the AFL in 2016 teams averaged 88 points per game.)
I find this point system ingenious and effective. It lends itself to high scoring, wild rallies/lead-changes, and even some dramatic buzzer beaters. Take my Sydney vs. Collingwood match. (*cue Quinito Henson recap voice*) WATCH as Collingwood takes control early and races out to a 17-point lead at halftime, but WATCH OUT as Sydney storms back in the third quarter and takes a two goal lead into the final chapter but WATCH OUT as Collingwood goes on a run to take a slim lead late but WATCH OUT as Buddy tries to take it back with a clutch free kick
Bud-doink
BUT! after some more agawan buko scrambling a Swan manages to kick it through AT THE BUZZER or reasonably close to it (see, "One minute to go!" above), while lying on the ground!
— AFL (@AFL) August 4, 2018
SWANS WIN! SWANS WIN (*checks scoring system math*) BY TWO!
After a victory, the winning team’s players link arms in the clubrooms and belt out the club song, in one of the more enjoyable traditions of the game. Each team has its own song, but the Richmond Tigers have the best one.
Yeah maybe, because the Sydney Swans' song (har!) is just a cover of the fight song of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (or of the mga La Salista, if you prefer)
Still, great fun all around!
(Well, unless you're a Collingwood fan, but then, you're used to it. Sydney Swans bandwagon, baby! ).
Aussie rules was awesome.
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