A very fortunate chain of events had us back at Sydney Olympic Stadium (aka ANZ Stadium), but we actually caught a game this time.
We knew that there would be an Aussie-Rules Football game tonight (and we were pretty sure that we knew where), but we had been debating about whether or not to go. The weather had been crappy, but I was still looking for a way to make up for taking Tim to Yankee Stadium to watch the Knicks play.
After vacillating back and forth all day, we decided to head down to the stadium and see if we could get tickets at the door. We knew that the weather was keeping people home, so we were pretty confident that we'd get in.
While waiting for the train, we noticed some guys in Sydney Swans jackets, and asked them how to get to the game. They recommended another train that we ended up switching to. (Don't worry, I'm not wasting your time, this is an important detail.)
The train that we were recommended was actually much faster than the one that we took the night before. When it arrived at Olympic Stadium, we heard an MC, of sorts, directing people to the event. As we were walking, the MC asked if anyone needed a ticket (for free). Someone apparently had an extra, but no one took it, since everyone at the park already had theirs. But we didn't. So we gratefully accepted the ticket, and thanked its prior owner. (So it's a good thing that we took the train that we did, or else we would have missed the free ticket offer.)
As we were walking to the stadium, Tim noticed that the ticket was in the premium section. It was the most expensive class of ticket, and much nicer than the budget tickets that we were planning on buying. So our new plan was to just buy one cheap ticket, and then show the nice one to the usher, who would hopefully assume that our other ticket was just as good. We knew that the rain would free up a lot of seats, so sitting together would be no problem.
Turns out that if asked nicely, the woman at the box office can give premium tickets at severely discounted prices. Especially to friends trying to sit together, when one of them already has a nice seat.
So, armed with one free premium ticket, and one budget-priced premium ticket, we made our way to the field. About 20 rows from the field, to be exact. Right on the center line, to be very exact.
The game was great. Aussie Rules Football is a religiously popular rugby derivative that is played on a huge field. The point is to run the ball across the field and kick it though two field goal-like pylons. It's very fast paced, and had me jumping out of my seat throughout the game.
ESPN I'm not, but here's a clip of a jump ball followed by a quick goal. There are probably better clips online, and they're worth seeking out; the game's brutal.
By the way, Sydney won, again.
