Imagine a game with only one rule…there are no rules! That was my perception of Aussie Rules Football – also known as “footie” – until we went to see a game with our cousin Michael while in Melbourne!
The league is called the Australian Football League or AFL and its board of governors administers the single rule to the game…you can’t punch someone from the other team in the head!
Ok, there’s a bit more to it than that…here are the basics:
- Each team has 13 players on the field (aka the oval) at one time
- There are 4 – 20 minute quarters, though with some play stoppages the quarters are often 30 minutes each
- The object of the game is to kick the ball (“the footie”) through one of the sets of upright poles at either end of the field
- A “goal” occurs when the footie is kicked through the centre posts without being touched. A goal is worth 6 points.
- A “behind” occurs when the footie is kicked through the posts to the left or right of the centre posts. A “behind” is worth 1 point.
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A behind can also occur if the footie is touched by another player on its way through the centre posts.
Melbourne kicking for a behind – the ball went through the outer posts. -
The footie is moved forward in a number of ways:
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The footie can be kicked to another player who tries to catch it. If the footie is caught cleanly from a kick – no interference by another player – then it is called a “mark” and the player who caught the ball is allowed a free kick. Play can stop at this point as the kicker lines up to kick the footie. This is a strategic play as the footie gets close to the goal posts and the player can take a shot at scoring a goal or a behind.
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The footie can be “hand passed” to another player. The footie is not thrown, but is sort of “punched” like you are doing an underhand volleyball serve. Play continues – there is no “mark” for a hand pass.
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A player can run with the ball for up to 15 meters before having to bounce the ball, and then can run another 15 meters. This is difficult as the ball is oval shaped…try running and bouncing an “American Football”…not an easy thing to do!
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Players can tackle one another throughout the game, and the only real rule here is (or at least seems to be) no tackling above the neck.
That Melbourne player reaching for the ball is about to eat some turf!
- There are very few penalties – there is nothing like a red/yellow card in soccer. Play is very fast with very few breaks.
Fans come out in droves. The game we saw – the Hawthorn Hawks vs. Melbourne Demons – which was an early season game – had just over 41,500 spectators.
Another interesting aspect of the game is the involvement of the officials. There are about 10 umpires/linesmen around the field, and if there is a stoppage in play, one of the officials puts the footie back in play. For instance, in soccer if the ball goes out of bounds, the team who touched the ball last loses possession and the opposing team gets to throw the ball back into play from the sidelines. If the footie goes out of play, one of the linesmen throws it back into play – while facing away from the field!
There is lots of action throughout the game…
Of course music plays a big part in footie, with each team’s fans singing their supporting “fight song”. We were de facto Hawks fans, and our song, “The Mighty Hawks” went like this…
In order to present a balanced view (Go HAWKS!), I thought I’d post the Melbourne Demons’ club song as well…
We’ve never seen a field sport as fast and physical as Footie. The players are constantly running up and down the field and really are in amazing shape. It is a fantastic game to watch with plays happening so fast that the tide can turn very quickly at any point in the match.
Maybe this is a sport that could be brought to Canada…replace the CFL?
PS. Hawks won the game vs Melbourne 155 – 50. You may be able to tell that “we” are Hawks fans…well, our family is, and so by default we are as well!
Comments
10 responses to “GO HAWKS!”
Oh my… no problem ‘borrowing’ the melody from American tunes? What is that all about?!? The pictures are great ( as usual) and the sport pure Aussie! But the tunes? Sheesh!
Hi Herta, I’m not familiar with the American tunes you refer to…can you give an example? The Aussies might say the Americans borrowed the tunes from them…after all, Aussie Rules is an institution in Victoria!
The HAWKS song is exactly like I’m a Yankee Doodle Dandy, an American song sung by James Cagney about the life of George Cohan. The second one, ( Melbourne) is exactly like You’re a Grand Old Flag ,WRITTEN by George Cohan ….so both of the same era and both American songs originally….I am a great fan of old American musicals.
Hi Herta, as you know Australia’s origins were “criminal”, so maybe there’s something to what you’re suggesting! Today, the Hawks are nothing but honourable, so hopefully they’re paying for the rights to use the tunes. 🙂
At any rate…it makes yet another interesting anecdote! And boy do you guys have anecdotes! Loving taking this ride with you ( so glad Jill connected me!).
And we’re glad you’re along for the ride, it helps to motivate all of our writing.
Hi Oliver,
Loved your Blog! I agree with you that it is quite a fast paced sport. I had watched a few games on T.V. and was amazed by the speed at which the game is played!
Thanks for sharing! Do they have cheerleaders and half time entertainment? Love, Mom P.
Hi Baba,
It’s an amazing game to watch on TV, but you get more of the atmosphere at the stadium. As for 1/2 time, they do have some cheerleaders – not quite like the NFL, but they do have some. Just the home team it seems. For half time entertainment, they didn’t have a show as such, but had about 8 or so teams of kids from about 8 years up play footy on the big field (they set up a number of small fields complete with goal posts so they could all play).
Hi, Oliver and the gang, when I read “no rules….” I thought Great now I can finally understand a football (whatever else it’s called) game. Well, it’s not quite like that, but I can see that It’s a lot easier to follow than the NFL/CFL (I never know what’s going on there) but above all things, it sounds and looks like a lot of fun, It must have been quite noisy too. Great photos as always. What a great way to spend time with family. Love and Hugs
PS. I love all of the above discussion about the club songs 🙂
Hi Oma,
It’s a fun game to watch, and the rules are pretty easy once you get the hang of it. The good thing is that there really isn’t a lot of stoppage of play, so when it does stop it’s only for one of a small number of reasons. Anyways, a good game to watch!