After going to a rugby union game last week, this Sunday afternoon I went off to my first Aussie Rules Football (AFL) game. I went with Tim, a good friend that I met in Europe a few years ago. We traveled around together for ~3 weeks, and it was great to see him again.
Tim is a huge AFL fan, originally from Melbourne. Melbourne is the birthplace of AFL, and has about a dozen teams alone around the city. The MCG, which is the largest stadium in Australia with a capacity of over 100,000, is home to 5 separate AFL teams. Supposedly seeing a game there is like no other sports experience in Australia. I hope to see a game there before the end of the season and my time in Australia.
Sydney, although it is Australia’s biggest city, only has one AFL team, the Sydney Swans. Sydney is traditionally a rugby league town. A game with two mediocre teams on an overcast Sunday afternoon drew ~30,000 fans. The game was a good one to attend in order to learn. It was one of the biggest blowouts of the year, with a score of 79-7 at halftime. Even for someone (like me) who knew next to nothing about AFL knew that was a lopsided score.
In any case, because the game was not even close, it let me ask Tim all the stupid questions about the rules, of which there aren’t many. They’re actually pretty simple, with the main ones below in case anybody is up at 3 am and they’re showing AFL on Fox Sports Net.
If the ball is caught after being kicked more than 15 meters, you get a free kick. Any other advance of the ball you can get tackled.
Teams try to kick the ball through a field goal. If they make it, 6 points. If they miss, only 1. AFL is the only sport in the world (along with horse shoes and hand grenades) that awards points for missing.
Teams can also advance the ball with a “punch”, which is akin to an underhand volleyball serve.
In the 2nd half, the Swans pulled away before the rain started coming down. The rain makes the game extremely sloppy, as it’s hard to both kick and catch the ball.
After the game, Tim, his friends, and I went to a pub for a few drinks and dinner. While there, I met a few local guys that are on a semi-pro, traveling AFL team. Interestingly enough, Aussie Rules Football (AFL) is actively targeting US basketball and football players for its next influx of talent. From a country with only 16 million, the AFL is looking to expand its recruiting base. Their hope is to find WR and SF/PF to fill this gap as the league rapidly approaches expansion.Their strategy is relatively simple - find either good HS athletes and offer them a scholarship and pay them a modest salary for 2 years of training or get recent college grads to commit to the same time period. Their theory is that athleticism cannot be taught, but the rules and fundamentals of AFL can be picked up rather quickly. The hardest thing for teams to find are tall, athletic players who can jump and catch - which are the skills that football and basketball players have.It’s an interesting gamble, considering AFL is dependent on good kicking skills and football and basketball skill players don't kick at all. Their hope is that the lure of playing professional sports will be big enough to get some good athletes down under. No Americans playing professionally as of yet as the program is just getting underway. Don't think they'd never get a big-time UF player, but I could easily see a UF walk-on or players from schools like Vandy, Stanford, Duke, UVA, etc giving it a shot.
When I mentioned that I was an all-state basketball player and turned down chances to play in school, they were intrigued and invited me out to one of their practices. I’m going to go, even though I might break at least a few bones. Hopefully their recruiting strategy is not based on my performance. Stay tuned to hear the update, which will hopefully be injury free.
Tim is a huge AFL fan, originally from Melbourne. Melbourne is the birthplace of AFL, and has about a dozen teams alone around the city. The MCG, which is the largest stadium in Australia with a capacity of over 100,000, is home to 5 separate AFL teams. Supposedly seeing a game there is like no other sports experience in Australia. I hope to see a game there before the end of the season and my time in Australia.
Sydney, although it is Australia’s biggest city, only has one AFL team, the Sydney Swans. Sydney is traditionally a rugby league town. A game with two mediocre teams on an overcast Sunday afternoon drew ~30,000 fans. The game was a good one to attend in order to learn. It was one of the biggest blowouts of the year, with a score of 79-7 at halftime. Even for someone (like me) who knew next to nothing about AFL knew that was a lopsided score.
In any case, because the game was not even close, it let me ask Tim all the stupid questions about the rules, of which there aren’t many. They’re actually pretty simple, with the main ones below in case anybody is up at 3 am and they’re showing AFL on Fox Sports Net.
If the ball is caught after being kicked more than 15 meters, you get a free kick. Any other advance of the ball you can get tackled.
Teams try to kick the ball through a field goal. If they make it, 6 points. If they miss, only 1. AFL is the only sport in the world (along with horse shoes and hand grenades) that awards points for missing.
Teams can also advance the ball with a “punch”, which is akin to an underhand volleyball serve.
In the 2nd half, the Swans pulled away before the rain started coming down. The rain makes the game extremely sloppy, as it’s hard to both kick and catch the ball.
After the game, Tim, his friends, and I went to a pub for a few drinks and dinner. While there, I met a few local guys that are on a semi-pro, traveling AFL team. Interestingly enough, Aussie Rules Football (AFL) is actively targeting US basketball and football players for its next influx of talent. From a country with only 16 million, the AFL is looking to expand its recruiting base. Their hope is to find WR and SF/PF to fill this gap as the league rapidly approaches expansion.Their strategy is relatively simple - find either good HS athletes and offer them a scholarship and pay them a modest salary for 2 years of training or get recent college grads to commit to the same time period. Their theory is that athleticism cannot be taught, but the rules and fundamentals of AFL can be picked up rather quickly. The hardest thing for teams to find are tall, athletic players who can jump and catch - which are the skills that football and basketball players have.It’s an interesting gamble, considering AFL is dependent on good kicking skills and football and basketball skill players don't kick at all. Their hope is that the lure of playing professional sports will be big enough to get some good athletes down under. No Americans playing professionally as of yet as the program is just getting underway. Don't think they'd never get a big-time UF player, but I could easily see a UF walk-on or players from schools like Vandy, Stanford, Duke, UVA, etc giving it a shot.
When I mentioned that I was an all-state basketball player and turned down chances to play in school, they were intrigued and invited me out to one of their practices. I’m going to go, even though I might break at least a few bones. Hopefully their recruiting strategy is not based on my performance. Stay tuned to hear the update, which will hopefully be injury free.
1 comment:
You should have told the team about your intramural flag football skills. I've never seen a WR your height that is as good as you are at getting outjumped on fade routes by 5'9 corners.
You single-handedly kept Wolski's QB rating in the teens.
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