East Fremantle Sharks 15.18 (108) at Perth Demons 16.10 (106) (Western Australian Football League) - April 14, 2013

When I planned this short trip to Perth, it was to see the AFL and Super Rugby matches. Sunday afternoon was empty, which just wouldn't do. With my return flight not until midnight, I had to find something to watch. After much searching online, I discovered the wonderfully named WAFL, which stands for the West Australian Football League. This is a semi-pro league with 9 teams based in and around Perth. It might be considered the equivalent of Independent League baseball, with some players moving on to the AFL and others coming back at the tail end of their careers, but with no direct affiliation to the larger league.



The WAFL plays four games every weekend and thankfully there was a game on Sunday afternoon at Brownes Stadium, home of the Perth Demons. Located just a few minutes from the Victoria Park rail station, it was convenient to where I was staying and therefore a no-brainer to pay a visit and add the 101st league to my list (more on that in a future post).



The stadium was originally known as Laithlan Oval, named for the suburb in which it is located. In 2009, local dairy concern Brownes has owned the sponsorship rights, hence the new name.



All WAFL games are $15 for adults with unreserved seating. Ovals are quite large, so choosing a good seat is important. Most fans choose to sit in the upper rows of the covered section near midfield (visible beyond the posts above) but there are also benches right at field level that provide a unique view (below).



The canteen here was great, with $4 toasties my choice (a toastie is just a sandwich grilled in a press). Beer was only $6/can although you had to remain within the licensed part near the bar.

There isn’t much else to talk about here. These places can hold up to 20,000 but there were perhaps 2,500 at the game I attended, so it was easy to move around and take pictures from different spots. The weather was perfect, not too hot, a nice breeze, perfect for fall football. If you are in Perth between April and July, check out the WAFL schedule and see a game if you can; much like minor league baseball it will give you a sense of the community and be pretty entertaining as well.

The Game

If you missed my recap of the AFL game I saw at the Subiaco Oval, read that for a brief explanation of the rules of the game.

The East Fremantle Sharks were visiting, and with both teams coming in at 2-0, I had hopes for a good game and was not disappointed. Both squads were able to move the ball fairly easily and there was a lot of scoring, but neither club could build a big lead.

The scoreboard after each quarter was as follows:

East Fremantle 4.3 (27) 8.9 (57) 9.15 (67) 
Perth          5.4 (34) 8.4 (52) 11.8 (74)

Note all those behinds that East Fremantle scored in the second and third quarters, indicating that they were getting possession but their kicking was a bit inaccurate.



In the final frame, the teams battled for the lead, but it looked like Perth (in black, kicking above) had taken it with two goals as the clock neared 30 minutes (remember that quarters are just 20 minutes long but there are no clock stoppages for the fans, so the actual end of the game is a mystery).



Down by 4 points, the Sharks managed to block a Perth kick, take possession, and move the ball down the field with a couple of excellent kicks. The final kick was received in the center of the 50-meter area by Sean Henson who was paid the mark despite the Perth player also seeming to gain possession. The mark forced the defenders off Henson, who calmly slotted home to give East Fremantle a thrilling 15.18 (108) to 16.10 (106) victory. Those behinds in the middle two stanzas ended up being the difference. It is not common for a team to win scoring less goals, but that is what happened here.



Perhaps the most enjoyable aspect of the game was the hand-operated scoreboard. With 59 scores in the 80 minutes of action, the operators were certainly busy.

Best,

Sean

Read More

Crusaders 14 at Western Force 16 (Super 15 Rugby) - April 13, 2013

Super Rugby began in 1996 with 12 teams based in South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. In 2006 it added 2 teams and became known as the Super 14. During that year, I was involved in a Super 14 tipping competition (known as a sports pool in North America) with colleagues from countries that actually played a lot of rugby. There were about 25 participants, and I was the ignorant Canuck, while the Poms, Kiwis, and Aussies all were confident of their chances.

We had to pick winners on a weekly basis, with points awarded for the correct result and closeness of the score. Having limited knowledge of the teams forced me to rely on public odds, which turned out to be a smart approach, as the other punters eschewed such help, preferring to use their expertise. Naturally, their expertise was only self-regarded and I found myself winning the competition and $500 as well. The money was quickly spent at a post-season celebration where I was repeatedly told of my beginner’s luck, but the satisfaction of having bested my colleagues still remains. From that time, I have followed Super Rugby, but had yet to attend a game, due to the season being relatively short and Japan being quite far from the countries in which the matches are played.

Now that I live in Singapore, I am just five hours from Perth, which is home to the Western Force, the first of those expansion teams. I arrived too late last year to visit, but this season there was no excuse. With the Australian Football League (AFL) and other sports in the area, a trip to Perth was a must and I finally got to go last weekend.

nib Stadium



The Force began play in 2006 at the venerable Subiaco Oval, which is usually an AFL ground and which I had visited the previous evening. The larger oval field at Subiaco was not suitable for rugby and the team moved into the Perth Oval, which is actually a rectangular field despite its name.



Having first opened in 1904 (the Book Stand was added in 1956 as you can see above), the stadium was in dire need of improvements and an extensive renovation program was started in 2012. The open-air seating has been replaced by new covered stands on the east and south sides, while the field itself was revamped. The north end, which is known as the Shed (below) and is mostly a standing area, was left untouched, maintaining a historical feel and a nice contrast to the newer sections.



I visited nib Stadium (named after health insurance provider nib and pronounced n.i.b.) during the final stages of these renovations. Construction is scheduled to finish at the end of June so it was a bit messy at parts, but overall I was quite impressed. I was again lucky to receive a free ticket as part of a Stadium Journey review and was given a tour of the facility by Sam Burling, one of the stadium’s marketing staff.



The stadium is located in the City of Vincent, about a 15-minute walk from Perth’s CBD. If you are coming from farther afield, Claisebrook is the closest rail station, about five minutes away from Gate 4. If you have your ticket with you, the train is free before and after the game. If you wish to drive, there seemed to be plenty of street parking in the area.



Gate 3 is the main entry point and you will emerge onto a large opening where a few food and drink options can be found. Food is fairly typical but reasonably priced. The Kiwi Kar had some meals for $12 but I would recommend the Bratwursts behind the south stand where there were 3 varieties at $8.50 each.



The most expensive tickets are $75, which is a bit dear for this sort of event. The cheapest seats are not even seats at all, but the standing area in the Shed. There are also tickets for $65 and $55, so not that many options – for me the extra dollars for the best seats are worth it here. There are only seven home games per season, so it is obviously necessary for the team to get as much revenue as possible, but for the length of the game (less than 2 hours), it can be a bit much to those of us used to similar prices for much longer matches.



The most noticeable feature here is the colour of the seats in the newly-added sections. They start with dark green seats at the bottom of the section and gradually lighten as you make your way to the top. This is to symbolize the journey from the bright green field to the blue sky and is quite an arresting sight when the stadium is empty. When the fans begin to fill those seats, their light blue jerseys add to the overall experience.



In fact, I was highly impressed with the crowd who showed up in numbers, most wearing the blue jersey of the Force. Several visiting fans came with face paint and other paraphernalia but all were welcomed. Unfortunately, there were a few bad apples who marred the experience for all. First, there was a streaker at halftime, which is somewhat acceptable as it doesn’t really impact the game. The rather portly gentleman was cheered on by the fans as he made his way from one end zone to the other unmolested. Security finally got hold of him and took him away and all was forgotten when the game resumed. Unfortunately, his antics inspired some other idiots who decided that their 15 minutes of fame had to come with five minutes left in a tense game. Security was caught napping again as four others (partly clothed at least) ran from the north end onto the pitch. One visiting player knocked down one of the intruders and eventually order was restored, but it definitely changed the flow of the game, which turned out to be one of the better sporting events I have seen.

The Game

Rugby is a fast sport with each half taking just over 40 minutes. It is not a game that lends itself to constant loud noise or distractions because the action on the field can be quite fascinating. I had been given a seat right near midfield and was amazed by the speed and strength of these guys. Many of the tackles left the recipient audibly gasping, and the brute physicality of the game was apparent from the first whistle.



The visitors were the Crusaders from Christchurch, the most successful team in the history of the competition with seven titles, although their 3-3 start was not promising this season. The Force had never finished higher than 7th and were off to a terrible 1-6 start so expectations were for a blowout.

Surprisingly though, the Force scored first when Sam Norton-Knight broke four tackles and stretched his arm just under the posts to ground the ball just four minutes in. The perfect location for the try allowed Jayden Hayward an easy conversion and it was 7-0 for the home team.

The teams traded penalties (in rugby, a penalty is a kick that is given after a team commits an offense – successfully booting the ball through the posts is worth 3 points) over the next quarter-hour before Luke Romano capped off a long Crusaders possession with a try at the left corner.

Conversions are kicked from a point parallel from where the ball is grounded so scoring in the corner makes the kick very difficult and Tyler Bleyendaal couldn't find the right angle. The ball sailed wide, allowing the Force to maintain the lead, 10-8.



It appeared as if Romano crossed the line in the 36th minute but it was disallowed after a video review showed that a forward pass had been committed earlier in the play. Yes, other leagues make intelligent use of video replay to ensure that bad officials don’t ruin the game. Yet MLB and the NBA still allow 55-year-old men to decide the outcome of events being played by athletes less than half their age. But I digress.

The Force added two more penalties to end the half up 16-8, but the Crusaders got those back early in the second stanza to again move within two points. After that, it was defense that ruled the pitch.



For the last 25 minutes, it was the Crusaders who played like their name, wave upon wave hammering the bulwarks of the Force defense. Romano crashed home for another apparent try but the video review showed that he did not ground the ball properly. Still undaunted, the Crusaders continued to push but a number of drops and other handling errors doomed their chances. As the siren sounded, they were moving within penalty range and the fans were clearly concerned, but a hard hit knocked the ball loose and the Force recovered, kicking it out of bounds to end the game and preserve the hard-fought victory.



It was really a great defensive battle and the best rugby match I have ever seen. I hope to do a Super 15 tour sometime, but that requires a lot of time and money, things that are in short supply right now.

Finally, a big thanks to Sam Burling and all the nib Stadium crew for their assistance in showing me their wonderful venue.

Best,

Sean

Read More

Essendon Bombers 10.12 (72) at Fremantle Dockers 9.14 (68) (Australian Football League) - April 12, 2013

The Australian Football League is the only fully professional circuit where the sport known worldwide by its nickname "Aussie Rules" is played. When I was a kid, Aussie Rules reached a surprising level of popularity in North America, helped by ESPN broadcasts and Jacko Jackson, a larger-than-life player. Since then, its reach has dwindled but it is still hugely popular in Down Under, with over 2,500 clubs playing across Australia. The AFL Grand Final is the most popular event in the land, regularly drawing over 2.5 million viewers and a live audience of 110,000 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

It is a sport that I had always wanted to see and when I found out that Perth had two teams in the league, I knew that I could combine a Super 15 Rugby match with an AFL fixture over a weekend. So I did.

The League

The AFL has 18 teams, with 10 of these playing in the state of Victoria, where the game got started back in 1897. The states of Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia, and West Australia each have two teams each, ensuring local rivalries are enjoyed outside Melbourne. Many of the stadiums are shared between two or more teams as the size of the field is among the biggest in sport so it is difficult to have multiple pro grounds in the same area. That is the case in Perth, where the Fremantle Dockers and West Coast Eagles both use Subiaco Oval.

The teams play 22 games over 23 weeks, with the playoffs featuring the top 8 teams, culminating in the Grand Final.

The Rules 



Each team has 18 players on the field at one time. The field is an oval, with four posts at either end (above). The  object is to kick the ball through the inner goalposts, scoring a six-point goal. The two outer posts are called the behind posts and a ball that is kicked between a goalpost and a behind post nets a single point and is known as a behind. The umpire signifies a goal by emphatically extending both arms, bent at the elbow. A behind is noted with just a single arm so extended. The score is represented as G.B (T) where G is goals, B is behinds and T is the total, obviously equal to 6*G+B.

Players can run with the ball or pass it forward or backward by hitting it with their hand. No throwing is allowed. Usually though, players advance the ball by kicking it to their teammates. A kick that is caught is known as a mark and the player making the catch is then afforded space to kick again. Often though, the kick is not properly taken, and a mad scramble for possession ensues. This controlled chaos gives the game its energy; tackling and general obstruction are allowed as players try to either pick up the ball or find space to kick it to a safer location.

There are four 20-minute quarters and the play is constant, with stoppages only after points are scored or the ball is forced out of bounds. There is no stoppage on the game clock, which often continues beyond 30 minutes as only the timekeeper knows when the quarter will actually end, sounding a siren when that time is reached.

This is obviously a very simple explanation of the rules of the game and interested readers can further explore the Wikipedia entry.

Patersons Stadium




Opened in 1908, Patersons Stadium is more famously known as the Subiaco Oval. Located in the suburb of Subiaco, the stadium has undergone numerous renovations with the last in 1999 turning the venue into an all-seater. Despite being over 100 years old, Subi has been well maintained and is a wonderful place to get acquainted with the game of Aussie Rules Football.

Getting to Paterson’s Stadium is easy for visitors as long as you are staying close to one of TransPerth’s rail stations. The oval is located between two stations on the Fremantle Line: West Leedersville and Subiaco. I recommend the latter as that affords you the chance to explore the eclectic neighborhood a bit and perhaps find a place to have a pre-game beer or two.



I was fortunate to receive a media pass due to my work with Stadium Journey and arrived quite early. There was an exhibition match being played between two recreational clubs which gave me a chance to understand the rules of the game. When that finished, I took a tour around. The stadium is on a relatively small footprint so concourses are narrow and there a lot of stairs to get you from level to level, but it works surprisingly well. There are some pieces of art (such as that above) that add colour to certain areas.




Tickets here start at $30 and move up to $75, with three other price points in between. Interestingly, the better seats are those higher up in the stands. As the field is so big, sitting down low is a disadvantage and the top rows would fill more quickly than those down below.



Sections are called “blocks” and there are generally three levels around the entire stadium, although a 400 level has been built behind the west goal. The Premium Ticket at $62.80 is the second most expensive but this might be the best option for sitting upstairs. Tickets are sold via TicketMaster, so you can explore the stadium that way before purchasing. Note that the top 4 rows in some of the 300 sections (OO and above) have seats that offer only a restricted view (below). As well, the upper decks are covered by a roof, while the 100 level was out in the open, necessitating ponchos for those fans sitting there.




I saw dozens of concession stands all around the stadium offering a good variety of what is typical local stadium fare for the most part. Of course, this being Australia, a pie is a must. At $5, they are one of the cheaper options and although they might not be the healthiest choice, they are unique to sport in this country.  Behind Block 103 is the secret spot though: a bratwurst stand where they are cooking the sausages in huge skillets filled with sauerkraut. For just $8, this seemed like the best option for hungry folks.



Overall, I found the Subiaco Oval to be a fantastic spot to catch my first AFL game. The fans were great, the place was sold out with nearly 37,000 on hand, the atmosphere on a rainy Friday evening was wonderful, and there was an excellent game to boot.

The Game


The first bounce to get the game underway

The Fremantle Dockers were hosting Essendon, one of the teams from the Melbourne area. It was only the third week of the season but both teams had won their first two fixtures, so a good match was expected.  Fremantle was celebrating the 200th game for Luke McPharlin as they ran through the sign below (ironically he was injured in the first five minutes and removed from the game).



It is really not possible to recap the match score by score. Fremantle dominated the early going, storming out to a 5 goal lead after the first quarter. The second quarter was much more defensive with the teams combining for just 3 goals and 4 behinds as the half ended with the Dockers leading 7.5 (47) to 1.5 (11).



It should be mentioned that Essendon's coach, James Hird, had been the subject of much media coverage in the days coming up to the match after allegations of being injected with a banned substance. I guess this was used as motivation in the halftime speech because the Bombers game out on fire and scored 5 consecutive goals along with 5 behinds to move within three points at the final break.



The onslaught continued early in the fourth frame but Fremantle finally found a few replies and with time running out, the match was deadlocked at 9.12 (66). Essendon then scored a goal to take a 6-point lead but Fremantle pushed for the tie. With a couple of minutes left, a kick was bounding toward the posts when it bounced wide, yielding a single point. From the ensuing kick-in, Fremantle regained possession and again had a chance. This time the ball bounced into the goal post and through. I thought that was good for 6 points and the win, but the collective groan of the Fremantle faithful told me that I was ignorant of the rules; in fact, a ball that touches the goal post counts as a behind regardless of where it ends up.

Soon after the restart, the siren sounded and Essendon celebrated their amazing comeback with the final score reading 10.12 (72) to 9.14 (68).




Notes

Hyphen usage is important. The below sign does not indicate that they are giving away booze, rather that you are not allowed to consume such beverages in Block 113, a fact that I found extremely disappointing.



The Dockers have an anchor as their symbol, but those two inflatable anchors below look like something else, particularly when the right one is labeled "Staff".



Best,

Sean

Read More

SIN-PER-SIN - April 11-14, 2013

I'm back from my three-day jaunt down to Perth, which happens to be the city farthest from New York and other points on the eastern seaboard for those interested in such points of trivia. I haven't written much about aviation lately, so I thought I'd just post a quick bit about the trip before writing about the games I saw.

I left on Thursday afternoon, taking a bus from downtown Singapore to Changi, which had recently been ranked the best airport in the world in a survey sponsored by SkyTrax. The bus takes just over 30 minutes from where I work, making it a much more affordable option than a cab.

The outbound flight was on Tiger Airways, one of the numerous low-cost airlines that make Singapore a great hub for budget travellers. The one-way trip is about 5 hours and cost about $120 US, not a bad deal at all.



Tiger doesn't have online check-in for non-Singaporeans so I had to line up with everyone else, which took an unbearable 5 minutes. One thing about Changi is that they realize that people standing in check-in lines are not spending money, so most carriers seem to have plenty of staff to make things move quickly and get passengers into the shopping area as soon as possible.

Another benefit here is that security is handled at each gate, so after checking in, you proceed straight to immigration. As a Singapore resident, I am able to use an automated gate both coming and going, a process that is easier on your passport as you don't get it stamped each time you travel.

Changi has three distinct terminals, each with a few interesting attractions. Tiger flies out of Terminal 2 which has a sunflower garden and orchid garden, as well as a spotting gallery. Computers with free internet connections are widely available, although getting used much less these days as nearly everyone is taking advantage of the free wi-fi provided. Either way, there are plenty of things to occupy your time while you wait for your flight.

My flight left on time and 5 hours later, I was in Western Australia. The wonderful experience of Singapore's airport was a distant memory as I  now had the task of figuring out the best way into town. Taxis are too costly so I had to choose between Perth's poor public transit or a private shuttle service.

There are four terminals at Perth's airport, with the international terminal being a 15-minute drive away from the main domestic terminals. I don't know who designs these airports that require such a trek between terminals, but it is massively inconvenient, especially given that there is no public transit at the international terminal. There is a free shuttle to the domestic side, which I took hoping to catch a bus downtown. Just as the shuttle arrived, I saw the bus pulling away, and the next bus wasn't for another hour, so I ended up waiting just 40 minutes to take the PerthConnect shuttle at $25 return. Such inconvenience would be a recurring story during my weekend stay, but more on that in another post.

Return Trip

One of the advantages of these LCC's is that they charge the same price for each flight whether you buy a return or a one-way ticket. In other words, there is no cost advantage to buying the return ticket with the same airline, so I used Jetstar Asia for my return leg, paying just $89AUD as I had a voucher affording a $50 discount. In other words, I flew a total of 10 hours for just over $200, an amazing bargain.

The flight was at midnight which gave me some time to explore the airport. Turns out there is an observation gallery that is completely empty in the evening, giving you some peace and quiet away from the crowds and a nice view of the apron. There were also a couple of computers on the main departure level with free internet but little else worth noting. All in all, I can see why Perth ranks #78 in the world's airports and strongly advise the authorities there to improve their transit options to the city, which lies less than 20km from the airport.

Best,

Sean

Read More

Perth Trip Planned

Australia is likely the world's biggest sporting nation if you consider the amount of sport that is followed and played by a relatively sparse population of just 23 million. Cricket, rugby and Aussie Rules Football are the three big games, but field hockey, basketball, and even baseball have their own followings. This weekend also sees the first race in the F1 calendar in Melbourne, which also is home to the Australian Open every January. You get the point; Aussies love their sport. And as you probably know, so do I.

Despite this connection, I've only visited there once in the past 5 years, a trip back in 2009 just after I started this blog. This neglect was mostly due to the fact that Sydney and the other main sporting cities are about ten hours from Japan, a long and expensive trip. Now that I am residing in Singapore however, Australia is quite a bit closer. Those cities on the east coast are now an eight-hour journey, but even more proximate is the province of Western Australia, just five hours straight south. That three-hour difference may not seem like much but it makes weekend trips much easier. With rugby season underway, I thought it a good time to check out some schedules and see if a trip presented itself.

The capital city there is Perth, which has plenty of teams to choose from. In rugby union, there is the Western Force, a team in Super 15 Rugby, which also features clubs from South Africa and New Zealand. There are two squads in the Australian Football League (AFL which is Aussie Rules to those from overseas): Fremantle Dockers and West Coast Eagles. As well, there is a soccer team (Perth Glory), basketball (Perth Wildcats), baseball (Perth Heat) and cricket (West Coast Warriors). The key would be finding a weekend where two or three of those teams were in action and flights were cheap.

Starting with the Force, I narrowed down possible trip dates to a couple of weekends in April and May. The AFL gets underway on March 22nd and either Fremantle or West Coast is home every weekend as the two share the same venue, Patersons Stadium (which used to be known as the Subiaco Oval). The basketball regular season is just finishing up but the playoffs begin in early April and Perth is one of two very strong teams and should be playing until the middle of the month. The A League playoffs will also be going on at that time but the Glory are far down the table and won't have a home game as far as I can tell.

With all that in mind, I decided to go on April 12th for three days. Friday night sees Fremantle hosting Essendon and Saturday evening will have the Force taking on the Crusaders from Canterbury, New Zealand. Sunday is currently empty but I'm hoping for a basketball game to magically appear on the schedule. If not, the city has plenty of attractions to keep me busy before I fly back that night.

As usual, I will be posting updates here, so check back in April for all the highlights.

Best,

Sean

Read More