My first AFL game

First of all I am delighted to be back on the net with my new Telstra mobile device :) I will be even more delighted if I continue to have 5 bars and can blog regularly.

Having grown up in Sydney, I was definitely a Rugby League girl pre-Super League.  I proudly supported my team - The Berries, and engaged in many debates about their virtues. In recent years I try to keep in touch enough to be able to follow conversations, and uphold my family's interest in the Raiders, for whom I have a soft spot from the Mal Meninga days.

I have resisted Swan fever, but in the Northern Territory, 'footy' means AFL, so I felt it was the right time to find out a little more about AFL.  There was a buzz of excitement in the air Friday afternoon as we headed to Traegar Park for the game between the Indigenous All Stars and Richmond.  Naturally, I was going for the All Stars, as was the majority of the crowd - around 8000, I understand. Not surprisingly, it was a warm night with the most beautiful deep blue sky, and our grassy patch afforded us a perfect view of the West Macs and Mt Gillen.

It's a very long time since I've been to any football match - I would guess at least a couple of decades, and I was keen to see why there are so many converts to AFL around Australia.  Fortunately, I was in good company, as I had a work colleague to explain the general rules, and I think we even touched on a few of the finer points of the game. I was treated to a fairly free-flowing game with some
impressive teamwork.  It was a much quieter affair than I had anticipated, but I suspect that was because their was little rivalry amongst the spectators.

I thoroughly enjoyed the game, the company, the atmosphere, and the peacefulness of the evening. What a great way to start the weekend! 

I'm not sure I'm about to become an addict, but I have developed a little more respect for AFL, and certainly for the fitness of the players and officials, and I was delighted the All Stars beat Richmond 90-40.

To start the game, the coin was tossed by a young Aboriginal school boy, who apparently was chosen for the fact that he had been at school that day and happily related what he had learnt.  I'm sure he'll remember tossing the coin for a long time - maybe longer than he remembers what he learnt that day!