Is Aussie Rules that hard to understand as a Pom?

St Kilda 143 (22.11) def. West Coast 42 (5.12)

As a sports-mad Englishman residing in Melbourne, it is somewhat surprising that it has taken me more than a year of living in Australia to finally get round to attending one of its national sports.

Australian Rules Football; also known as AFL, Aussie (No) Rules or in these parts just "footy".

Footy is big in Victoria, its birthplace, and is not restricted to just the back pages of newspapers or sports bulletins. The fate of Collingwood's ruck man's knee injury is arguably of greater importance than what the Premier has to say. The sport is micro-analysed by experts and casual fans alike, from endless radio shows to ordinary working people at the supermarket.

In that respect, it is strikingly similar to football (UK). The fervour reserved for these clubs, primarily born out of Melbourne’s suburbs, and played in front of crowds sometimes more than 90,000 people, is laudable.

But here's the kicker. Really, I don't fully get what's happening and, maybe more importantly, why.

I attended the St Kilda v West Coast Eagles game on a balmy Sunday afternoon at Marvel Stadium and felt a bit of a fraud. Sure, I've done my fair share of football (UK) games - way more than 1,000 at the last time of counting - and am well versed in cricket and both rugby codes. I've even been to a couple of AFL games before some thirteen years prior but this combination of football (UK) and rugby being played on a cricket field takes some getting used to.

My fellow Saints fans asked if we should sit towards the posts to see the goals and behinds or on the wings for a better overall view. I really didn’t know. We plumped for the latter, settled down with a schooner of Carlton Draught and a meat pie and proceeded to watch 36 blokes in vests and shorts with questionable haircuts punt and pass their way towards one end of the field over the course of four 20-minute quarters.

I understand the premise of the game; for one team to kick the ball between the centre of the four posts (for a six-point goal) or to the side (for a one-point behind) more than the opposition.

However, dear reader, this is about as far as it stretches. I have found myself wondering:

·         Where is the 'corridor'?
·         Why are there 75 interchanges per side allowed?
·         And what is a bloody ruck man in the first place?

The Saints won by a comprehensive 101-point margin (it won't always be this good, so I'm told) and we retired to the pub for a debrief. Now, this bit I can get on board with, but for now I think a little bit of extra research is required.

Until next time...