Australian football has many detractors. For a variety of reasons, that might be said.
Domestically the elite AFL level of the game is perhaps regarded jealously. To put the game down, there’s some well worn lines that get trotted out.
Ironically this weekend, a retired American NFL punter with a high profile in his homeland has dispelled one of those myths about our homegrown game.
The easy putdown that we so often hear is that in 160 years, the game of Australian football has struggled to break into New South Wales and Queensland. So what’s to think that it could have international appeal? The suggestion is that no one outside of Australia can fall in love with the game unless they grew up with it.
And then along came Pat McAfee.
American sports analyst Pat McAfee is a new fan of the AFL. (Photo by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for SiriusXM)
He is a retired punter for the Indianapolis Colts, who since his retirement in early 2017 has developed a profile as an American football and wrestling analyst, plus as a stand-up comedian as well as appearing on nationally syndicated radio.
With many sports shut down due to the current Covid-19 pandemic, in the early hours of Saturday morning Indianapolis time, McAfee stumbled upon some live sport. Fremantle were taking on Essendon in a game he’d never before seen in an empty 55,000-seat stadium on a field that is as foreign to McAfee as are the rules of this game.
There’s nothing familiar. No crossbar goals. No rectangular field. No formation plays or offside concepts.
And yet, this first game has made an impression despite the absence of crowd-generated atmosphere. McAfee posted a series of tweets in the first quarter, including this one.
And the next day he continued.
The game has certainly made an impression.
As it is, I’ve followed international Australian football for about 20 years and have spoken with many men and women from around the world who have fallen in love with a game played professionally on the other side of the world. It can and does happen. So many have regretted that they didn’t have access to the game as they grew up.
The point being that the all-round skill requirements are a feature. Many people grew up playing volleyball, or basketball, or football, or rugby, or gridiron. However, in Australian football, they find a sport where they can combine pretty well all the skills they’ve developed across a broad range of sports in just one game.
For the AFL, this weekend has already been worth it from this promotional perspective. Alas, we now see a major clampdown on activities and the AFL is postponing its season.
The AFL would have loved to provide more content for another couple of weeks at least to the sports-starved world. We can only assume that as the southern hemisphere moves towards winter that normal sporting activity will likely resume in the northern hemisphere before it does here.
We can only hope that by May 31 the authorities have pulled the trigger at the right time and a local resumption is foreseeable. However, May 31 is the best part of ten weeks away and I seriously doubt that we’ll be resuming prior to winter.
Munro Mike
Roar Rookie
And Pat McAfee continues drawing the attention of his 1.8 million followers to the game......Insane, mayhem.
Munro Mike
Roar Rookie
#Seymorebutts AFL in NZ includes the regional leagues (eg AFL Auckland, AFL Canterbury, AFL Wellington) and then generally across Feb-March they have a 'super league', something like a 9 round super league between 4 teams and via a draft with a base group of retained players from year to year. This year included the first womens version. Vietnam, I have a mate involved with the Vietnam Swans. Asian footy was often characterised by expat and beer but has become more and more about game development with locals. AFL Canada is pretty big and the Ontario AFL is a very strong league. Mens and womens - Canada men have been to all 6 AFL International cups and the women to the 3 (2011/14/17) womens events and have made the GF each time (womens) vs Ireland for 1 win and 2 losses. Over the last 15 years in particular footy has grown - in Europe new nations have been coming in such as Poland, Croatia, France and generally gain international rep experience via the Euro 9s tournaments and then graduate (Croatia, France, Germany) to the 18 a-side and make their way to Aust for the International Cup. It's grown organically - I recall about a dozen years ago when the Denmark AFL had their first domestic league game without expat Aussies playing/coaching/officiating.
Seymorebutts
Guest
Aussie Rules is more international than people realize. There is a bi annual game between Canada and the UK... well there was 25 years ago at least. There are Australian Football leagues all over the world.. I heard they have a team in Ho Chi Minh city and Thailand.. I presume they have a couple of sides in New Zealand. ;-) For the life of me I have never understood why the AFL has ignored the international aspect of our game when it is played in a number of countries.. and has grown indigenously. The games started as contests between expates wanting something to do on their days off, and the locals enthusiastically joined in.. when the expats returned home, the locals kept playing.
Pope Paul VII
Roar Rookie
You mean viewers from the outside world don't understand Brian, Bruce Lingy, Huddo et al?
Munro Mike
Roar Rookie
#Gray-Hand Thanks - - I forgot to insert 'ironic' emoji (I'd decided against the out of fashion 'NOT'). Given Canada haven't figured it out yet. (i.e. our 'cultural cringe' is rarely a solo experience). Which gets back to now and then, looking at ourselves through the eyes of an outsider.....being a little more forgiving, and a little more appreciative.
George Apps
Roar Rookie
Very much so, but it's not "football" is it? the ball never toushes the feet.
George Apps
Roar Rookie
No, I don’t think like that. I think they genuinely like our game and think it’s the greatest ever, unlike our stereotypical view of Americans boasting “we are the best in the world all things”.
Gray-Hand
Roar Rookie
Cultural cringe plays out even now – that we struggle with how we would move forward as a Republic. Canada figured it out. Canada is a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Exactly like Australia.
Munro Mike
Roar Rookie
#Floyd I think it's a losing battle - the fellow just does not understand English. Australian "cultural cringe" is when people would dismiss any Australian product (say.....a Holden Commodore vintage 1988, an AFL game or a movie such as 'Phar Lap') simply on the premise that we must be inferior to the rest of the world. The Australian "cultural cringe" is regarding Australia as having NO worthwhile culture/heritage. This sadly flies in the face of the comments of one Samuel Langhorne Clemens (Mark Twain) stated of Australia and it's late 19th century 'history' to that point......"always picturesque; indeed, it is so curious and strange, that it is itself the chiefest novelty the country has to offer and so pushes the other novelties into second and third place. It does not read like history, but like the most beautiful lies; and all of a fresh new sort, no mouldy old stale ones. It is full of surprises and adventures, and inconguities, and contradictions, and incredibilities; but they are all true, they all happened." ' And yet - Australian's have struggled with their own story. Still do. It's sad. Cultural cringe plays out even now - that we struggle with how we would move forward as a Republic. Canada figured it out. Me - I know our local footy code is a national treasure. Many in Sydney would deny this - for 2 reasons. One of general cultural cringe and the other simply the resistance to anything Victorian.....still haven't gotten over allowing the colony independence only for it to suddenly find gold and become the cultural centre of Australia for the next 100 years.
Munro Mike
Roar Rookie
Agreed.
Munro Mike
Roar Rookie
#RobT Yes - a game full of punting however he was enraptured by the 'catching' of the punts and the volleyball style hand passing and the soccer style territorial movement. For him - his realisation being that AFL wasn't just like Rugby. The punting in general play and continuous play; only scoring goals from 'punts'; a large expansive oval upon which to punt strategically. It's a bit like someone having only played tennis by themselves hitting against a wall - - and suddenly see that you can play on a court, against others, doubles even.....a whole new world of possibilities opening up. For him - I'd suggest seeing the NRL would a confirmation that THAT is just like Rugby. I'm not sure many offensive/defensive players would see the NRL and have a light bulb sporting moment (if they are already familiar with Rugby). Anyway - it's just been a bit of fun hearing his sense of discovery and wonder and fascination - there's a genuine innocence about it all which I've enjoyed listening to.
Duh
Guest
Because it could be worth millions to the sport.
Lukey Miller
Guest
Don't worry too much, the AFL and the broadcasters are not the slightest bit interested in promoting the game to the massive audience in the rest of the world. If they were, they would have had segments where the games rules, protocols and methods would be clearly explained. Pre-game and in breaks they could have catered for the uninitiated who were tuning to see what this Aussie Rules game was about. People not previously exposed to AFL would have enjoyed the skills and contested nature of our game, but would have been very confused about the rules and purpose of the game. AFL is a football game like no other after all. So don't worry, the people trusted with marketing our game are not interested in going out of their way to actually market the game - they won't get this opportunity again. Gill needs to shake things up at the AFL and get some people in who are switched on - not just in marketing.
dontknowmuchaboutfootball
Guest
Who needs code warriors to spurn any celebration of footy's appeal when there are plenty enough AFL supporters who'll happily take up the charge?
RobT
Roar Rookie
It’s a bit disingenuous to say McAfee liked it despite there being nothing unfamiliar. He liked it because he’s an ex-NFL punter and saw a game full of punting! It was the familiarity to his expertise that drew him in. Was still an amusing react. It’s a shame some ex-NFL offensive or defensive player didn’t stumble upon NRL for their reactions too.
Republican
Guest
.......we live in catastrophised times Mike, while the capitalist global construct which 'sport' is an integral product, now confronts it's fallibility. The game will survive so long as supporters and participants on the ground maintain interest because that about culture and culture will endure, but capital may not. That said I do not have an issue when growth is organic, so not contrived. If someone from the opposite side of the globe is interested in our game, of course start up a league of your own. I take exception to the gross commercial expedience, through force feeding or the aggressive hard sell that creates the illusion of a codes footprint. This model of 'growth' ultimately devalues respective grass roots and a codes domesticity to this end. We already experience this sanitisation of said sporting codes that disenfranchise, compromises and ultimately render extinct the cultural DNA of 'product'. Sadly Australian Rules Footy is far from immune at the elite tier anyway. The 'AFL' which assumes ownership the game once know as Australian rules Football, is a marketed product for consumers as opposed for supporters but despite this, the game remains an anomaly, due to its continued uniqueness, i.e. inherent in its domestic status.
Munro Mike
Roar Rookie
#Republican You're taken a catastrophised view of this. My main interest in this is the Mike Pyke type scenario. The AFL was richer for the presence of Jimmy Stynes, is richer for the presence of Mason Cox - - and likewise a Canadian RUWC rep in Mike Pyke who got recommended the game by his high school mate and turned an unlikely story into a premiership gilded footy fairy tale. Ours is an institution - you're very correct - that is often taken for granted. I see these sorts of stories as helping to remind some of what we have.
Naughty's Headband
Roar Rookie
You mustn't be old enough to have experienced Australian cultural cringe in all its glory.
Munro Mike
Roar Rookie
Exactly.....Mike Pyke also a great example who sought it out. Mason Cox of course is now a great advocate and his two brothers play locally in the US.
Floyd Calhoun
Guest
It isn’t “classic Aussie cultural cringe” & the writer isn’t fawning at all. It’s simply an account of an outsider’s impressions of a game he barely knew existed. It’s complimentary & positive, yet you still manage to find fault with it.