Working in Brisbane these last couple of weeks has been a lot of fun. I’ve got to try a few beers, visit a few favorite restaurants, and just in general enjoy my time in the city when I wasn’t sitting behind a desk!
Earlier in the week I discovered that I would be off the night that the local Australian Football League (AFL) team, the Brisbane Lions, would be playing – and I couldn’t resist the urge to buy a ticket and see what Australia’s version of football was like in person.
On Saturday night, I walked across the Story bridge and down into the suburb of Woolloongabba to the historic Brisbane Cricket Grounds – otherwise as The Gabba. The Gabba is a beautiful stadium. It’s relatively low (at least compared to most US stadiums) and the lighting is fantastic. I had been to this stadium a couple of times before during my previous visits to Brisbane – it’s where I was introduced to the game of cricket. Because it’s a cricket ground, The Gabby is round – that means there really isn’t a bad seat in the house.
After arriving at the stadium – I collected my ticket and made my way to my seat for the Lions versus the St. Kilda Saints. I had found out earlier in the week that this should be a pretty close game – because both teams are toward the bottom of the rankings. But – bottom rung team or not – I was there to see how this sport was played.
Once in my seat – the pre-game festivities commenced. Similar to any other sport I have been to – pre-game interviews, some games with the crowd, and just general merriment before the game. I grabbed some dinner before game started – Australian stadium food is similar to what I am used to in the US – hot dogs, sandwiches,etc – the notable exception is PIES! I love meat pies – it’s probably why I have been able to hold on to this shapely figure for some many years. I had a cheese, bacon, and beef pie at The Gabba before the game – I was in heaven. So good.
Then the siren sounded to start the game and…a fight broke out on the field. While the players where fighting – they managed to put the ball in between the goal posts at the end of the field every now and then. Seriously, this game is brutal. No pads, and seeming no rules. Lots of pushing shoving and some of the hardest tackling I have seen in any type of football or rugby. It was a lot of fun to watch – the action was intense and the scoring was frequent.
The scoring was a little hard to understand at first – but it seemed to boil down to this: There are four goal posts at each end of the field – if the ball went in between the inner two after being kicked it was worth six points. If it went between the outer poles on each side – it was worth one point. The six pointer is called a goal and the one pointer is called a behind. There is more about the rules of Aussie Rules Football here if you’re interested.
I had a great time at the game and would love to go again sometime – it was a blast. A lot of good people sitting around me that where willing to explain rules to me and help get me excited about their hometown team, a lot of good food, some marginally good beer, and a helluva game that Brisbane won by a score of 108-77! It was the first time that the Lions had beaten St. Kilda in the last five years!
Go Lions!
Up and Adam 