The Summer of Sports continues as Americans follow the offseason comings and goings of two of the four major sports, the third entering the business end of the season with its trade deadline passing and the fourth now beginning training camp. Meanwhile, fans in Europe are anticipating the beginning of the domestic league soccer season, and those in the British Commonwealth countries are following the game of cricket and the fierce rivalry between England and Australia for the Ashes. But down in Australia, it is in its winter, and it's the best time of year for sports there with two of their national winter sports rolling on with their seasons, while many are losing sleep to watch overseas action including their world champion cricket team. It also means one thing... Aussie Rules Football.
It's a sport that, like most others, is full of history, yet it is one that's unique in so many ways. It's a game that's played primarily in one country, but the thrills and sights of it are breathtaking and captivates fans & viewers around the world. And in a country that views sport as a much greater part of the national culture than the U.S., this is a game that is its contribution to world sports. The game enthralls fans everywhere with its unique brand of blistering speed, great skill and incredible courage exhibited by great athletes, in front of passionate and dedicated fans.
This post on Australia's only natively-made sport is the first in our Summer of Sports series to focus on a sport or event that isn't as well known as those that we regularly follow here in America. However, thanks to both TV and technology, I've been watching AFL, or "footy" as it's referred to by fans, frequently over the years and have become amazed by the sights of a sport that is unique in so many ways. And it's more spectacular and more action-packed on a more breakneck pace than the stop-and-go nature of its American counterparts. That's the way it is in the Aussie Rules.
HISTORY
Australian Football predates its growth to 1858, when a young Australian named Thomas Wentworth Wills, came up with a new sport that he originally intended as one that would keep the country's cricket players stay fit during the winter offseason. He looked at rugby, soccer and other football codes (Aussie slang for forms of football as there are so many of them) and came up with a sport that drew upon the codes' best aspects. His invention became Australian football, and its first game took place in August 1858, during winter down under.
Wills, along with two other top Victorian cricketers and their teacher, helped devise both a set of rules of the game and the AFL's oldest club, the Melbourne Demons, all in the span of four days in May 1859. They modified rules that were from rugby to help create their brand of football that the Aussies would take as their own seven years later. And by 1877, the game's first significant competition, the Victorian Football Association, began play.
During the next four decades, Australian football would flourish as clubs were formed throughout the country and leagues started up in the game's heartland of Victoria, as well as in South Australia and Western Australia. But in 1897 as the sport's popularity continued to grow, six of the league's best & richest teams chose to break away from the Victorian Football Association and form the Victorian Football League: Collingwood, South Melbourne, Essendon, Melbourne, Fitzroy and Geelong plus invitees Carlton and St. Kilda.
Upon its forming, the new league became a trailblazer for modern day Australian sport, as it helped establish an annual finals tournament at the end of the season to determine its champion rather than award the premiership to the top team at the end of the home & away matches, as well as the modern scoring system. And the League would become the premier football competition in Victoria, though the VFA was thriving at the same time and still does today as the separate, modern-day VFL.
The VFL would expand to 12 teams by the mid-1920's and had very little change in its structure until a national expansion began in the '80s. First, financially-struggling South Melbourne moved to the harbor town of Sydney, capital of rugby league in New South Wales. Then teams were formed in the other states of Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia in the next decade, which led to the 1990 name change to the Australian Football League, reflective of the league's growing national reach.
AN AUSSIE RULES PRIMER
AFL games are played with an oval leather ball that feels more smoother like a soccer ball and much different than an American football. They're all played on a grass oval that encompasses the length of a regulation cricket field. Much like in baseball and in hockey, the size of the playing surface vary by stadium, but a regulation field measures 165 meters long by 135 meters wide, or 180 by 150 in yardage. With a white boundary line that designates the field of play, the ground also features two 50-meter (55-yard) arcs, a center square and a center circle. At either end of the field is a goal square, marked in front of two taller goal posts, with stand 7 yards (6.4 meters) apart.
Both teams have 22 players for which to play from, each with their own position based on their size and skills, and identified by a non-specific number on the back on their team uniform. During play, 18 players are on the field at any one time, with 4 on the bench as substitutes and, like in basketball, can replace another player at any point in the game. The starters are divided up into three units of six: 6 in the forward line, 6 in the midfield, 6 in the back line.
The forward line consists of a full forward, two back pockets, a center half-forward and two half-forward flanks. Their primary objective is to score goals, with the full forward and center half-forward being usually big and strong (much like a basketball power forward), and the pockets & flanks being small and quicker like strikers in soccer. They call themselves home in the forward area, located inside and around the opposing team's 50-meter arc.
The midfield in between arcs comprises of a ruckman, rover, ruck rover, center and two wings. A ruckman is the team's tallest player, who contest center bounces & ball-ups, and hit the ball down to their teammate; think AFL's version of a basketball center. Meanwhile, the rover, RR and center try to gain possession of the ball and pass it along, while the wings, described as fast & agile, provide a bridge in grabbing the ball & kicking it to the forwards.
Both teams have 22 players for which to play from, each with their own position based on their size and skills, and identified by a non-specific number on the back on their team uniform. During play, 18 players are on the field at any one time, with 4 on the bench as substitutes and, like in basketball, can replace another player at any point in the game. The starters are divided up into three units of six: 6 in the forward line, 6 in the midfield, 6 in the back line.
The forward line consists of a full forward, two back pockets, a center half-forward and two half-forward flanks. Their primary objective is to score goals, with the full forward and center half-forward being usually big and strong (much like a basketball power forward), and the pockets & flanks being small and quicker like strikers in soccer. They call themselves home in the forward area, located inside and around the opposing team's 50-meter arc.
The midfield in between arcs comprises of a ruckman, rover, ruck rover, center and two wings. A ruckman is the team's tallest player, who contest center bounces & ball-ups, and hit the ball down to their teammate; think AFL's version of a basketball center. Meanwhile, the rover, RR and center try to gain possession of the ball and pass it along, while the wings, described as fast & agile, provide a bridge in grabbing the ball & kicking it to the forwards.
The backline is composed of a fullback, two back pockets, a center halfback and two halfback flanks. They are akin to an NBA defense as they match up with the forwards of the opposing team with the objective to prevent them from scoring goals. Defenders are typically at a similar size and weight as their direct counterparts, and have the ability to turn defensive prowess into attack by helping provide transition into offense.
Regardless of where they're located, Aussie Rules players have elements of basketball players, rugby & NFL players, and even track athletes too. Because of the field's length compared with the playing areas of other sports (27,000 square feet), they are fast sprinters and must be able to have enough stamina for running constantly for 80 minutes goal to goal, just like in soccer. And the competitors are also physically strong as, with no padding or head protection (though some players do use lightweight helmet guards), they must also be durable to withstand the sheer force of on-rushing opponents.
Every match begins, and restarts after every goal, with a center bounce, with a player from either team contesting the ball when an umpire bounces it in the center circle, located at the center of the center square. Something similar called a "ball-up" also occurs when it wasn't clear who had possession when play stops.
Games are played in four 20-minute quarters (same as NHL & NCAA hoops, 5 more than NFL and 8 more than NBA), for which time is added on (or in TV terms, stoppages) to help compensate for time when the ball isn't in play, i.e. after a goal is scored. Matches have a 6-minute break after the 1st and 3rd quarters, and a 20-minute halftime; thus, a full game lasts the same as an NFL game: around three hours.
When a player has the ball in possession, he may run in any direction, provided that he bounce it every 15 meters, 16 yards in American words, and he may dispose of it by either kicking or hand-balling. For the ladder, a handball means a player balances the ball on one hand, makes a fist with the other and strike the ball with the fist in the direction of the player they're passing it to. By the way, a player can't throw or hand the ball to another player, conceding a free kick and a turnover to the opponents; same goes if a player bounces the ball farther than 15 meters.
The very thing that makes the AFL so special and grabs fans' attention the instant they see it on TV is the game's most-spectacular play. Basketball has slam dunks and buzzer-beaters, golf has the hole-in-one, and fight sports have knockouts, and in Aussie Rules, it's the mark. It's when a player catches the ball directly on the full from a kick at least 10 yards away, then either step back and kick at goal uncontested or play on immediately. Marks are what makes the highlights on sports segments & shows everywhere, and more than any other provides the thrill factor in footy.
Of course, the objective is to score more points than the opponent within the 80 minutes of game time. When the offense kicks the ball in between the two taller center posts in the goal area, a goal is awarded and they pocket 6 points and play restarts in the center square. If the ball clears a taller and shorter goalpost, hits a goalpost, is touched by an opposing player on its travels or simply rushed across the line, a "behind" is scored, and only 1 point is scored, and as in basketball the team scored upon restarts play by kicking inside the goal square.
THE LAWS OF AUSSIE RULES
The rules of Aussie Rules, or the Laws as they're referred to down under, evolve constantly, but the game's essence is as simple as Aussie Rules gets. The league is governed by the AFL Commission, whose responsibility is to administer the competition and the sport itself. Eight members comprise the Commission, led by Chairman Mike Fitzpatick and CEO Gillom McLachlan.
On the ground, a team of 9 umpires - 2 officials more than in American football - officiate matches. This unit comprises of three field umpires, who are on the field and make sure the players uphold the rules; four boundary umpires who keep an eye on the ball at all times and restart play by throwing it back on the field behind their head; and two goal umpires, who signals any score.
Aside from the two aforementioned rules in the last section above, there are many other key rules:
- When a player grabs the ball, they must kick or handball before they are tackled. If he is deemed to have had a chance to dispose of the ball and doesn't do so, he concedes a free kick to the tackler.
- As AFL is a contact sport, tackles are allowed in this game, provided that players attempting to tackle must grab the opponent between the shoulders and knees. Any contact above the shoulder will be penalized for too high, while any below the knees will be charged with a tripping foul.
- Just as is the case in hockey, a player can't push another in the back, and applies when tackling and in marking; otherwise the opponent will be penalized.
- "Holding the man" is when a player is tackled, grabbed or held while not having possession of the ball. The consequence is him being awarded a free kick.
- When a player has marked the ball or is given a free kick, the opponents must give him all the space he needs in being careful to not further infringe. Should that happen, or if a player argues with an umpire, they may give away the AFL's equivalent to a technical free throw in hoops: a 50-meter penalty where the ball is advanced 55 yards to the point where the kicker has a much easier shot at goal and almost always scores a gift goal at the opponents' expense.
- If the ball goes out of bounds off of a straight kick on the fly, they turn the ball over and the opponents get a free kick. If it's deflected over the boundary line, a throw-in occurs with the boundary ump putting it back in. If it's done deliberately, a free kick is conceded to the opponent.
- Kicking the ball is allowed in AFL where a player can kick it directly off the ground, even score a goal too. All that's provided if there's a chance of kicking an opposition player. If a player is ruled to do so on an opponent, he gives away a free kick.
- As hockey fans and a certain CBC analyst can attest to, we all know when how much is too much when it comes to fielding the right number of players at the same time. Only 18 players are allowed on the field at the same time; if a team is found to have 19 or more on the field, or if a sub enters outside the designated interchange area, the opposition is awarded a free kick and a 50-meter penalty. Ouch.
NEED TO KNOW: THE AFL
Today, the AFL roll call comprises of 18 teams, and all of them play a season that lasts as many as seven months, spanning all of the Australian winter from later summer in March to September in early spring. It begins with a four-week preseason slate with all games played at night (formerly a 4-week knockout tournament was played with a grand final), followed by a 23-round "home and away" regular season of 22 matches, including one bye week per team. Matches are played across every state in the country and in stadiums in the five major capital cities of Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane QLD, Adelaide SA and Perth WA, along with Hobart in nearby Tasmania and even in New Zealand.
The league fixture is put together up to 5 months in advance, and sees a single round robin of each team playing each other once in the first two-thirds of the season. Then, in the last several rounds of the season those who are slated to play each other time play a second time at the other's stadium. Matches are scheduled in much the same manner as the NFL and EPL with consistent start times to maximize both stadium attendance and TV audiences. At present, there's 1 primetime game on Friday night, up to 3 games on Saturday afternoon, 2 games on Saturday night, 3 games on Sunday, and an occasional Thursday night match.
There's also themed rounds and special matches during the season as well. The most notable is the annual clash on ANZAC Day (Australian Memorial Day) between rivals Collingwood & Essendon and a 2nd match hosted by St. Kilda in Wellington the same day. The former is often the season's most-anticipated home & away match due to their huge rivalry and following; the St. Kilda game held across the Tasman is representative of Australia & New Zealand's combined armed forces. Other key matches include a game on the Queen's Birthday between Collingwood and Melbourne, and "Dreamtime at the 'G" between Essendon and Richmond to honor Australia's indigenous population.
The league utilizes a 4-2-0 system in terms of points allocated during the home & away season: four points for a win, two points for a draw and none for a loss. Positions on the league ladder (table or standings), and who makes it to the Finals, are determined by total points, and should there be a tie, percentage of points scored versus points conceded during the season. The team who amasses the most points receive the minor premiership, the McClelland Trophy and top seed in the Series.
The AFL is structured in much the same way that a North American pro sports league where all clubs are franchises who are the same year after year, unlike the promotion & relegation turnover in the Premier League and European soccer. And like their American counterparts, they are spread out all over the country, with 10 in Victoria and two each in the other continental states. Who are the eighteen teams that comprise the league?
- Adelaide Crows: The Crows joined the league in 1991 as South Australia's first AFL team, and tasted back-to-back premiership success just six years later. They also have very fanatical fans who fill the Adelaide Oval and make it an intimidating place to play for opponents.
- Brisbane Lions: The Brisbane Lions are an amalgamation of former 8-time champion club Fitzroy Lions and '87 team Brisbane Bears when they merged in '97. The maroon, gold & blue notched the 21st century's first dynasty in winning three straight premierships from '01-'03.
- Carlton Blues: Charter AFL member, Carlton Football Club is based in an inner-city suburb of Melbourne, and the navy blues have a proud history with a record 16 premierships to their credit. Their best-known player is Chris Judd, who won the 2010 Brownlow Medal.
- Collingwood Magpies: Arguably the AFL's most-ferociously supported club, Collingwood is the team fans love to love or hate. Known for their black & white striped jumper, they also endured a Red Sox-like jinx where they lost eight Grand Finals they had played in from '58 until their win in 1990.
- Essendon Bombers: Essendon won the league's first premiership in 1897, and have also won 16 premierships as well, most recently with a dominant season in 2000 where they won 24 of 25 matches en route to a Grand Final rout, both after losing two Preliminary Finals by one point in the late '90s.
- Fremantle Dockers: The Dockers joined the AFL in 1995 as the league's 2nd Western Australian based team. They're based in the harbor-side city of Fremantle, but the purple & white their home matches in Perth.
- Geelong Cats: The second-oldest club in the AFL, Geelong is the only one based outside a metropolis, located some 30 miles west of Melbourne. After years of hardship and close calls, the Cats have become the dominant club of late, with three premierships in 5 years ('07, '09 & '11).
- Brisbane Lions: The Brisbane Lions are an amalgamation of former 8-time champion club Fitzroy Lions and '87 team Brisbane Bears when they merged in '97. The maroon, gold & blue notched the 21st century's first dynasty in winning three straight premierships from '01-'03.
- Carlton Blues: Charter AFL member, Carlton Football Club is based in an inner-city suburb of Melbourne, and the navy blues have a proud history with a record 16 premierships to their credit. Their best-known player is Chris Judd, who won the 2010 Brownlow Medal.
- Collingwood Magpies: Arguably the AFL's most-ferociously supported club, Collingwood is the team fans love to love or hate. Known for their black & white striped jumper, they also endured a Red Sox-like jinx where they lost eight Grand Finals they had played in from '58 until their win in 1990.
- Essendon Bombers: Essendon won the league's first premiership in 1897, and have also won 16 premierships as well, most recently with a dominant season in 2000 where they won 24 of 25 matches en route to a Grand Final rout, both after losing two Preliminary Finals by one point in the late '90s.
- Fremantle Dockers: The Dockers joined the AFL in 1995 as the league's 2nd Western Australian based team. They're based in the harbor-side city of Fremantle, but the purple & white their home matches in Perth.
- Geelong Cats: The second-oldest club in the AFL, Geelong is the only one based outside a metropolis, located some 30 miles west of Melbourne. After years of hardship and close calls, the Cats have become the dominant club of late, with three premierships in 5 years ('07, '09 & '11).
- Gold Coast Suns: Now, the two new clubs, starting with the Gold Coast Suns, who joined in 2011 as the second team based in Queensland and who call home the beautiful Gold Coast. The red, gold & blue is home to two-time Brownlow medalist & premiership captain Gary Abblett, Jr.
- Greater Western Sydney Giants: The second new team is the GWS Giants, who joined in 2012 as the AFL's 2nd team in New South Wales. The orange, charcoal & white play both in the Sydney Olympic Park and in nearby Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory, the nation's capital.
- Hawthorne Hawks: Based in Melbourne's eastern suburbs, Hawthorn joined the AFL in 1925, but it wasn't until the '60s that the Hawks began to fly. They won seven premierships in a 15-year span of the '70s and '80s, and are the defending two-time champions having won in 2013 & 2014.
- Greater Western Sydney Giants: The second new team is the GWS Giants, who joined in 2012 as the AFL's 2nd team in New South Wales. The orange, charcoal & white play both in the Sydney Olympic Park and in nearby Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory, the nation's capital.
- Hawthorne Hawks: Based in Melbourne's eastern suburbs, Hawthorn joined the AFL in 1925, but it wasn't until the '60s that the Hawks began to fly. They won seven premierships in a 15-year span of the '70s and '80s, and are the defending two-time champions having won in 2013 & 2014.
- Melbourne Demons: Melbourne Football Club was formed in 1858 as Australia's oldest football club, and had their golden era in the '50s under legendary coach Norm Smith. Despite their last title in 1964 and checkered success since then, the Demons nonetheless have a proud history.
- North Melbourne Kangaroos: The Kangaroos joined the AFL in 1925, and the blue & white stripes were the dominant team in the '90s with two of their four premierships coming during that decade. They also won in '77 in a replay over Collingwood after the first Grand Final ended in a draw.
- Port Adelaide Power: Port Adelaide joined the AFL in 1997 as the 2nd South Australian-based club, but it isn't the only team being fielded as they also play in the SANFL state competition. Together, the Power have won 36 state premierships and the 2004 national premiership.
- North Melbourne Kangaroos: The Kangaroos joined the AFL in 1925, and the blue & white stripes were the dominant team in the '90s with two of their four premierships coming during that decade. They also won in '77 in a replay over Collingwood after the first Grand Final ended in a draw.
- Port Adelaide Power: Port Adelaide joined the AFL in 1997 as the 2nd South Australian-based club, but it isn't the only team being fielded as they also play in the SANFL state competition. Together, the Power have won 36 state premierships and the 2004 national premiership.
- Richmond Tigers: Richmond joined in 1908 with a strong supporter base in the working-class Melbourne suburb...think, the AFL's own Pittsburgh Steelers. After a good run in the '60s & '70s, the club has gone through tough times, but have regained footing in recent years with 2 Finals berths.
- St. Kilda Saints: An original AFL member, St. Kilda have been the AFL's equivalent to the Cubs: success hasn't come much. Their lone premiership was a 1-point Grand Final win in 1966 over Collingwood, but a loyal & fanatical Saints fan base have remained through thick and thin.
- Sydney Swans: The Swans were the team that started the AFL's expansion beyond Victoria in 1982 when they relocated from South Melbourne to the Harbour City. In the last 20 years, Sydney has been a consistent premiership contender, winning in 2005 and 2012.
- West Coast Eagles: Based in Perth, the Eagles joined the AFL as the first club from Western Australia and as an expansion team in 1987 and won two of three premierships five years later. The blue, white & gold have remained a top team with an strong supporter base on the west coast.
- St. Kilda Saints: An original AFL member, St. Kilda have been the AFL's equivalent to the Cubs: success hasn't come much. Their lone premiership was a 1-point Grand Final win in 1966 over Collingwood, but a loyal & fanatical Saints fan base have remained through thick and thin.
- Sydney Swans: The Swans were the team that started the AFL's expansion beyond Victoria in 1982 when they relocated from South Melbourne to the Harbour City. In the last 20 years, Sydney has been a consistent premiership contender, winning in 2005 and 2012.
- West Coast Eagles: Based in Perth, the Eagles joined the AFL as the first club from Western Australia and as an expansion team in 1987 and won two of three premierships five years later. The blue, white & gold have remained a top team with an strong supporter base on the west coast.
- Western Bulldogs: Formerly known as Footscray, the Bulldogs joined the AFL in 1925 and despite winning only premiership in 1954, their fanatical fan base clad in the royal blue, white and red have remained loyal.
The grounds that host AFL matches are among the most well-known stadiums in the South Pacific, and it's headlined by the Melbourne Cricket Ground. With its population of 100,000, the MCG is the game's spiritual home as it hosts more clubs than any other at 6, and is the venue for the Grand Final. The league's other Melbourne home is the 55,000-seat Etihad Stadium in the Docklands district, which opened in 2000, home to 4 teams and features the only retractable roof among the national football codes. Other key stadiums that host AFL matches include the Sydney Cricket Ground and ANZ Stadium Australia in NSW, The Gabba in Brisbane, Subiaco Oval in Perth, Adelaide Oval in South Australia, Bellerive Oval in Hobart and Westpac Stadium in Wellington, NZL.
The grounds that host AFL matches are among the most well-known stadiums in the South Pacific, and it's headlined by the Melbourne Cricket Ground. With its population of 100,000, the MCG is the game's spiritual home as it hosts more clubs than any other at 6, and is the venue for the Grand Final. The league's other Melbourne home is the 55,000-seat Etihad Stadium in the Docklands district, which opened in 2000, home to 4 teams and features the only retractable roof among the national football codes. Other key stadiums that host AFL matches include the Sydney Cricket Ground and ANZ Stadium Australia in NSW, The Gabba in Brisbane, Subiaco Oval in Perth, Adelaide Oval in South Australia, Bellerive Oval in Hobart and Westpac Stadium in Wellington, NZL.
Because of the size of the stadiums including the MCG (which tops most every sports stadium outside of the home of the Dallas Cowboys), it's no surprise that the AFL blows away it's combined competition of NRL rugby league, Super Rugby union and the soccer A-League as Australia's best-attended sports league. And with over 35,000 attending each match, it's in the top 5 in highest average attendance figures in pro team sports worldwide, joining the EPL, NFL, Major League Baseball and Germany's Bundlesliga soccer league.
Just as is the case in other countries, sports broadcasting in Australia is a lucrative business, and it's no surprise the AFL is its holy grail. TV coverage began in 1957, a year after it began in time for the Melbourne Olympics, and consisted of only the final quarter of matches live on the city's four local TV stations, then evening replays of games after they had ended. Today, the TV rights reach easily into the nine figures, every match is televised live in its entirety, and from the beginning it has been the domain of the Seven Network, along with the FOX Footy Channel. Radio coverage is also hugely important as well, and before it became the WWL, AFL was a cult-favorite sport in ESPN's early years.
League sponsorship is also as coveted by corporate sponsors as the broadcast rights, with companies like Toyota, Coca-Cola, McDonald's, Gatorade, Carlton & United Breweries (makers of Foster's beer), Virgin Airlines and News Australia are among those who lend their logos and dollars to sponsor the league and its initiatives. Memberships are also sold by the AFL that give members first chance to reserve tickets for games in the MCG and Docklands, plus priority access to Finals tickets. And AFL marketing is a huge deal as well, with strong merchandise sales, a popular EA AFL video game and footy tipping and betting competitions.
In America, it's the Super Bowl that brings everything in this country to a halt that first Sunday in February. In Australia, it's the AFL Grand Final that takes on the role of being the biggest day in Australian sport, taking place on the last Saturday in September. It's the culmination of the sport's biggest month, the AFL Finals Series and the season's final eight. It's referred to often in popular Australian culture as simply, that "One Day In September."
Since the league's very first season in 1897, a postseason playoff system has been in place to determine the premiers. After using numerous systems that were sometimes confusing to fans, in 1931 the present format of the Grand Final being played as the last game in the season began. The top eight teams on the league ladder at the end of the season qualify for a four-round postseason final series, all culminating with the biggest day in Australian sports.
The road to that fourth Saturday in September stretches to the first Friday of the month with the qualifying & elimination finals, and sees the #1 seed take on #4, the #2 seed vs. #3, #5 vs. #8 and #6 vs. #7. Since 2000, the finals system gives the top four seeds safety after the elimination finals, the top two teams and seeds #5 & #6 get home field advantage. The top half have a double chance where they need to only win two matches to reach the Grand Final, while the other four need to win three.
The winners of the 1-4 and 2-3 matchups in these qualifying finals advance to the preliminary finals in week 3 and a much-needed bye week in week 2. The losers of those games will host a home final in week 2 and will host those who win the 5-8 and 6-7 elimination finals, which are single elimination. From then on, it becomes cutthroat with the week two semifinal winners earning a date with the top two remaining teams in the preliminary finals.
When those two surviving teams from Preliminary Final week emerge, all eyes turn to Grand Final week, and the buildup in the week before the game is the same as the hoopla surrounding the "Biggest Sunday Night of Them All" in America. It all begins on Monday with the Brownlow Medal count, with an Oscars-like atmosphere to award the player judged "fairest and best" in the AFL season with the game's most-prestigious individual award to one of Australian TV's largest annual audiences. A post-match vote of the umpires from all games determine who wins that award known as "Charlie."
Then on Thursday night, fans head out to where their teams are training to watch them go through practice under the lights. And at lunchtime the next day, it's the Grand Final Parade as both clubs, the Brownlow Medalist and other key figures parade through Melbourne's Central Business District with over 100,000 lining the parade route. And there's also a sprint competition among clubs who didn't make the Grand Final that also takes during the week too.
The big day on Saturday actually begins late on Friday night with the Seven Network, airing an all-night AFL marathon of past Grand Finals leading into the North Melbourne Grand Final breakfast, one of many brunches held to kick off the big day and featuring numerous guests and entertainers. Then, there's the slew of pre-match entertainment that takes place in the hour or so before game time, from music to cavalcades. Many top Australian and international stars have taken the stage & field over the years both before, during and after the game, including most recently Ed Sheeran. Plus, both team's club songs are performed live, and of course the traditional playing of Advanced Australian Fair.
It all leads to that magic hour when the ball is finally bounced to begin the big one. The AFL Grand Final is the largest-attended major championship game in all of sports, with over 100,000 packing the MCG to witness some of the greatest moments in Australian sporting lore play out to the year's largest TV audiences: upwards of around 3 million in the capital cities alone. This includes perhaps the AFL's signature game: the 1970 Grand Final between rivals Carlton and Collingwood. There, the largest MCG crowd ever, 120,000, saw the Blues overcome a 44-point halftime deficit and won the flag 111-101 over the Magpies, including a spectacular mark by Alex Jesaulenko. Thirty-five years later saw Sydney and West Coast play two Finals that were decided by less than a goal, including a defensive mark by Sydney that snapped a 72-year title drought.
In the end, the team who emerges victorious that day (or, if the match ends in a draw, a replay that takes place the next Saturday where a 2nd game is played), is the one that towers above all others as the best team in the land. The reward is title of AFL Premiers, plus a silver premiership cup for them to lift at the on-field celebrations, premiership medallions for each player that plays in the Grand Final, a navy-blue premiership flag for them to unfurl at their first home game the following season, the Norm Smith Medal for best player in the Grand Final, and $1 million in prize money. But the feeling of being the winners of the biggest prize in Australian sport is, of course, priceless.
I remember watching Aussie Rules football for a long time, going back to when I was a kid when they showed those highlight shows of it in the '90s. It's a unique example of a hybrid sport: it combines the toughness of the NFL, the awe factor of the NBA, the endurance of soccer and track, and the bone-crushing nature of hockey. It's the perfect sport for a nation that loves sports so much more than most other countries in the world. And as it heads towards its biggest day, AFL Grand Final Saturday (which takes place this year on the first Saturday of October due to the Cricket World Cup), Aussie Rules football is a game that must be seen to believe. With speed, skill, strength, courage and doses of the spectacular, there's nothing like it in sports.
Make sure to follow the DC Social Network as I'm staying busy both here on DCBLOG and across my social media platforms this summer. For now, the focus in on the Summer of Sports, but very soon we'll be turning most of the attention to the MTV Trifecta.
- First, follow my dedicated live tweet hub, DCNOW at Twitter @DC408DxNow. This summer, you've experienced sports' biggest events and greatest moments with yours truly, from the Warriors and Blackhawks' title triumphs to American Pharoah's run to glory, the USA's Women's World Cup win, Grand Slam triumphs for Serena Williams and Jordan Spieth, and so much more. There's still more ahead with Ronda Rousey returning to action at UFC 190 on Saturday, the Special Olympics in L.A. and NFL training camp now underway.
- DCBLOG has been complementing those live tweets with extensive and unique blog coverage of all things sports right here, taking you beyond the headlines and highlights for a unique look at sports from my press box. Soccer, golf, boxing, tennis, cycling and poker have been covered here during the summer, and if you haven't checked out those posts be sure check them out here. Next in our SOS series, we'll be taking a look at the keepers of the flame in sports storytelling, NFL Films, and a reflection on soccer's growth in America in the aftermath of Team USA's Women's World Cup win.
- DCBLOG has been complementing those live tweets with extensive and unique blog coverage of all things sports right here, taking you beyond the headlines and highlights for a unique look at sports from my press box. Soccer, golf, boxing, tennis, cycling and poker have been covered here during the summer, and if you haven't checked out those posts be sure check them out here. Next in our SOS series, we'll be taking a look at the keepers of the flame in sports storytelling, NFL Films, and a reflection on soccer's growth in America in the aftermath of Team USA's Women's World Cup win.
- With my MTV live tweets back in session with Catfish, Teen Mom and America's Best Dance Crew, we're counting down to not only the VMA's but also to a new cycle of the Trifecta, aka Are You The One? and the RW/Challenge franchise. When the AYTO Season 3 buzz kicks off in a few weeks, we'll have a season preview, a look back to Season 2 in Puerto Rico and wall-to-wall coverage from Hawaii. We also have a special edition of DC FORUM that, if you're a Real World fan, you will want to check it out...stay tuned to here, of course.
- Also ahead, my fellow sports/MTV fan, webcast host and recent college grad Andrew Kirk will have a special Big Time Reality TV webcast on his YouTube where he'll offering his thoughts on the recent Trifecta cycle, answering questions submitted by yours truly. Be sure to follow the both of us, Brian Cohen, Ali Lasher and Reality Radio as our webcasts and blogs will be all over the MTV Trifecta as we near the premiere of AYTO3, plus for right now, Big Brother 17 as well.
- And as always, don't forget to follow my primary Twitter handle @DC408Dxtr, my Instagram account also at the same handle, and at Tumblr at dc408dxtr.tumblr.com. I'm open for you to chat with me anytime on Twitter, so if you want to talk sports, MTV or pop culture, I'm here for you.
Again, thanks for joining us for this look at Aussie Rules Football, part of our Summer of Sports series. Make sure to follow DCNOW as we witness the latest chapter of Ronda Rousey's run into UFC history as the third month of the Summer of Sports take shape on Saturday. Until we talk again here next week, thanks for reading, have fun and enjoy the sun.
- I AM DC
Acknowledgements: AFL.com.au, YouTube AFL Explained, AFL Fact Sheet
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