State of Origin

In case you didn't know - rugby, or "footie" as it is called here, is a BIG deal in Australia. Even by Texas standards, Australians take sports to a new level. The highlight of the year is the "State of Origin" series between New South Wales and Queensland. Three games are played over a period of two months between two all-star teams from each state.

Last night was the second game in the series and several of the priests in the deanery came over for dinner and to watch the game. While it was fun, New South Wales was shut out -- which doesn't make for a happy room. However, it was a good chance for Morgan and I to meet many of the priests in the area and ask a few questions about footie rules that have stumped us until now.

I must confess that I enjoy watching the sport -- it is fast-paced, simple to follow and relatively short (approx. 1.5 hours for a game). NRL (National Rugby League) I enjoy more than AFL (Australian Rules), which seems much less organized and too hard to follow.

I am amazed at the beating these blokes take and equally amazed that the game is rarely stopped for injuries, and that they do not pull a bloke off the field even if he is bleading significantly. Yet, while it is a serious game, the Australians demonstrate their relaxed nature in that the game is not stopped because of poor calls and people do not seem to get terribly upset about it; rather, it is accepted as part of the game. All of us strikes me as quite different from North American sports.

As for the Australian word of the day: "mad" or "maddness", which is awesome. You can just imagine the confusion this causes.

Blessings and G'Day!