Canada or Bust

I don’t think many people know that this year could have turned out very differently for me. I was seriously considering doing a 6 month stint in Canada: working, playing footy and travelling. For various reasons I felt I had to pull out, the main one at the time being my application with the Ambulance Service, which has only just come to fruition.

I would still consider it for the future. There was one main drawback, the “Footy Culture.” I have been part of this culture from playing Footy for so long. I got used to being in it without really participating in it. This culture involves (amongst other things) going to the closest pub after games (usually a club sponsor) and getting drunk, just for the heck of it. I was never into that so most of the time I didn’t go, but when I did go I wasn’t very comfortable on most occasions, even though these blokes were somewhat friends.

In Canada I thought this would be amplified as I would have to live, work, socialise and play footy with the same people. It would be harder to get away. I doubted whether I had the strength to cope with all the pressures. Maybe if I starred on the footy field they would let me be. Apparently it would not be hard for me to be a star of Canadian Footy.

So if I give it another year or two will I be better equipped to cope with going to Canada? It seemed like a double edged sword, I originally wanted to go because I could play footy over there in a developing competition, but I find it hard to cope with the footy culture sometimes. Any practical solutions?

Introducing Netball

My Soccer games have been washed out a few times recently. What is sports nut to do with his free Saturday? How about go to the Netball? However, it helps if you have a particular someone to watch otherwise it may be considered a bit dodgy (for the blokes).

I was initially intimidated when first approaching the Netball courts as from a fair distance away you can easily hear the constant shrill of umpire’s whistle. This is something completely different to me. Most of my sports playing days there have been only one Footy field or one Cricket field. Here at the Netball there are at least 30 courts going at the same time. That equals a lot of females, hence my continued intimidation. Needless to say that I stayed relatively close to the one I was there to watch in the first place.

I can now watch Netball and appreciate the skill involved. People who downgrade this sport, mainly blokes, forget to take this into account. Even at this level (I don’t really know what level I was watching) it still takes a lot of skill to win.

I would, however, need a lot of convincing to ever get me on the court to play. I have vowed never to play Netball again after giving it a go in a Knockout Comp in Yr 12. The constant “obstruction” and “contact” calls killed any enjoyment I may have had. That and the fact that no-one on our team could shoot straight.

Oranges for Suckers??

An AIS dietician this week has proclaimed that kids should no longer have oranges at half time of their sport. Instead the humble orange should be replaced with glucose lollies (such as red frogs) as well as sports drinks.

I think this dietician has forgotten that they deal with elite athletes and not junior athletes. I would seriously doubt whether they have children of their own, because I’m sure any parent will tell you stories of bad behaviour once they are hyped up of lollies.

I believe they are being irresponsible to suggest such a thing. Children playing sport should be encouraged to have fun, not shown the ways to get every slight advantage over your opponent.

They only real thing kids need at half time is water, and lots of it, especially on the warmer days. None of us really need to have sports drinks. These were made for elite athletes. Water is all we need as well.

I speak with some knowledge, having completed a Health Science degree. But doesn’t it all just sound like common sense?

Bad Boots…. Not Meant For Skiing

A tip for young players that has come from painful experience. If you are choosing to go on a skiing expedition this Winter I recommend you take your time in selecting your gear, whether you are hiring or purchasing (especially if purchasing). In particular, the ski boots must be comfortable. I put on the pair given to me by the bloke at the ski hire store and didn’t really get a feel for them. If I had, I may not have experienced what happened the following day.

After half a day of skiing, my feet were starting to ache. I didn’t think this was anything strange at the time as I get aching feet doing ice-skating as well with no repercussions. This was until I took my boot off at lunchtime. To my surprise the arch of my foot, just below the ankle, had grown an egg. It was hard to put my boot back on and therefore I struggled to walk. Needless to say that skiing was out of the question, I was done for the weekend.

So unless you want to be reading the paper in the cafeteria, then I suggest careful consideration when trying on ski gear.

Sports Movies

I have a fascination with sports movies. Especially the movies that are based on real life events. What I find more amazing is that usually these movies aren’t really about the sport at all. There is an underlying storyline that just uses the sport to convey its message. More often than not there is something good to learn from them. Here are a few of my favourites and what they are really about:

American Football
Remember the Titans – Racial tension between black and white Americans
The Replacements – The more money we have the more it corrupts our minds
Radio – How giving someone a chance can make such a difference to one’s life

Basketball
Coach Carter – When you dream about wanting something more you can achieve it

Baseball
The Rookie – Anyone can realise their dream, no matter what your age
For Love of the Game – One may be perfect on the field but not necessarily off it
Hardball – No matter how bad the situation there is always someone worse off

So many good stories are shown on our big screens through sport. I even like the romantic comedy, The Perfect Catch. I think it may be because I relate to the male character who is an absolute Baseball nutter.

Next time you are in the video store looking for an appropriate video I can highly recommend all of those mentioned above. There are so many more that I couldn’t refer to them all here.

But remember, if the vision hits slow motion, then you know something important is about to happen.

Shake Down the Thunder

“Shake Down the Thunder” – Jim Main

The subject matter of this book is very close to my heart, being Swans loyal since 1993 (over half my life thus far). It is the history of the Swans from their move to Sydney in 1982 till tasting Premiership glory in 2005.

The author, Jim Main has been a Swans fan much longer than I have. He is a Footy journalist and an historian. He has written many books and also puts together a history of every player to have ever played the game. That is over 100 years of players, no easy task. He also has his own column in the Inside Football magazine, which comes out every Wednesday in all good Newsagents (only the good ones). He is therefore well credentialed to put together a book of this nature.

Jim’s extensive research in evident very early. He has interviewed over 100 people who were there at the time and who contribute their knowledge of the goings. No stone has been left unturned. I was expecting the style to be as if it was Jim telling us the history but instead it was excerts from all the “contributors.” I found this different and easy to read.

I am a Swans Nut but the book was still very informative. When all these dramas were starting I wasn’t even alive. If I had known the full extent of what was going on then I may not have become a fan. I exclaimed to Dad that perhaps our naivety was a good thing. My first ever Swans game was in 1993 during a very long losing streak. I had no idea of that fact at the time. The Swans won convincingly. The excitement after the siren had me hooked, Dad bought me my first ever jersey at that game (which I still have).

But I had no idea that I was a few votes away from supporting a completely different colour scheme. That’s right, Fitzroy almost came up here to create the Sydney Lions. A decision many Fitzroy fans now regret.

It’s a very easy read for anyone interested in the game. Of course I still think everyone should read it. You may even learn something.