Does your interest in the AFL wane when the WC is on?

[catscratchfever]

It was a fantastic World Cup, one of the very best I've ever seen.

Why is it that some AFL fans knock soccer because it's not as "tough" (i.e. brutal) as footy? Should a sport's intrinsic worth be judged on the likelihood of a player being injured during a game? That's just masochism. Why not the same criticism of tennis? Cricket? Any other sport? Is it because some footy fans can't stand the idea that "soccer" is known as "football" in most of the world? A chip on the shoulder perhaps? Australia seems to have a chip on its shoulder about a lot of things. I guess that's why "we" (i.e. "the media") make such a big deal about Australia being "the best" at this or that or "having the world's best practice" or other similar BS.

I like both codes but footy is and will only ever be a provincial sport played in a single provincial country.

 

[Macpotata]

It was a fantastic World Cup, one of the very best I've ever seen.

Why is it that some AFL fans knock soccer because it's not as "tough" (i.e. brutal) as footy? Should a sport's intrinsic worth be judged on the likelihood of a player being injured during a game? That's just masochism. Why not the same criticism of tennis? Cricket? Any other sport? Is it because some footy fans can't stand the idea that "soccer" is known as "football" in most of the world? A chip on the shoulder perhaps? Australia seems to have a chip on its shoulder about a lot of things. I guess that's why "we" (i.e. "the media") make such a big deal about Australia being "the best" at this or that or "having the world's best practice" or other similar BS.

I like both codes but footy is and will only ever be a provincial sport played in a single provincial country.

Good post. Also whenever there is the odd scuffle at a A-league game the media jump allover it. Yet you hardly see any of the fights that happen at the footy like the Collingwood ones this year.

It's called Fear. They're scared of soccer in this country. They will do anything to try and sabotage it and promote their beloved AFL.

 

[NoobPie]

It was a fantastic World Cup, one of the very best I've ever seen.

Why is it that some AFL fans knock soccer because it's not as "tough" (i.e. brutal) as footy? Should a sport's intrinsic worth be judged on the likelihood of a player being injured during a game? That's just masochism. Why not the same criticism of tennis? Cricket? Any other sport? Is it because some footy fans can't stand the idea that "soccer" is known as "football" in most of the world? A chip on the shoulder perhaps? Australia seems to have a chip on its shoulder about a lot of things. I guess that's why "we" (i.e. "the media") make such a big deal about Australia being "the best" at this or that or "having the world's best practice" or other similar BS.

I like both codes but footy is and will only ever be a provincial sport played in a single provincial country.

A couple of things

Has anyone on this thread knocked soccer because it's not as "tough" as footy? Plenty have said they are put off by the apparent super low pain thresholds exhibited by the athletes in that sport, but I cannot recall one comment in this thread that has raised that it is less "tough" as an argument.

Also, are you able to set out what you think makes Australia a "provincial" country? Given it is an independent country with the 13th biggest economy, and its cities pad out the top of the livability indexes I'm sure interested in the metrics you are relying on to define it as "provincial". Or is it some judgement about the alleged narrow mindset of its population? If so, perhaps you might want to school yourself on some of the attitudes that underpinned the brexit and trump votes (or are the UK and US "provincial" as well)?

 

[NoobPie]

Good post. Also whenever there is the odd scuffle at a A-league game the media jump allover it. Yet you hardly see any of the fights that happen at the footy like the Collingwood ones this year.

It's called Fear. They're scared of soccer in this country. They will do anything to try and sabotage it and promote their beloved AFL.

Smell the fear!

 

[Arkangel]

My interest in the footy is not at all affected by the world cup. I've always found soccer to be a sport that is fun to play but rather boring to watch. I have been living in Europe for the past few years and have watched a few games featuring the national team of the country where I've lived, or involving countries my work colleagues come from (as a social thing). I just can't conjure up much passion for it, though. Even if I could, I doubt it would reduce my interest in the footy; more likely they would exist alongside one another (much like my relatively recently-developed interests in long-distance running and hiking/mountaineering; I typically organise these activities around when the footy is on).

 

[HavUEvaSeenTheRain]

It was a fantastic World Cup, one of the very best I've ever seen.

Why is it that some AFL fans knock soccer because it's not as "tough" (i.e. brutal) as footy? Should a sport's intrinsic worth be judged on the likelihood of a player being injured during a game? That's just masochism. Why not the same criticism of tennis? Cricket? Any other sport? Is it because some footy fans can't stand the idea that "soccer" is known as "football" in most of the world? A chip on the shoulder perhaps? Australia seems to have a chip on its shoulder about a lot of things. I guess that's why "we" (i.e. "the media") make such a big deal about Australia being "the best" at this or that or "having the world's best practice" or other similar BS.

I like both codes but footy is and will only ever be a provincial sport played in a single provincial country.

Every single country does this. The biggest country China and the most powerful America are two of the worst. You don't think every single Croatian has been telling the world what an amazing feat it is to make the World Cup final for a country of 4 million.
Ask any American sports fan about the World Cup and it'll take them about 2 minutes to tell you that if America played soccer than they would've won 90% of the cups. They already know they are the best athletes so I don't think it's got anything to do with having a "chip on their shoulders" it's just some sort of national pride which every single country I've been to has

 

[mcgarnacle]

That a game is so often decided by a few unclear ref calls makes me glad I don't invest much emotion into soccer. After France got the second penalty it made me lose all interest.

unclear? well **** me. this is the first comment I've read anywhere to say that the handball was unclear.

 

[LongPause]

Good post. Also whenever there is the odd scuffle at a A-league game the media jump allover it. Yet you hardly see any of the fights that happen at the footy like the Collingwood ones this year.

It's called Fear. They're scared of soccer in this country. They will do anything to try and sabotage it and promote their beloved AFL.

Imagine consistently posting on a football forum then

 

[mcgarnacle]

Also talking about their on field colour combo, not just the flag. France is just blue or white.

The main uniform of France is:
shirt - blue
shorts - white
socks - red

and they wore this against Argentina in this world cup.

international tournaments are little bit different to home friendly matches & qualifiers as FIFA or UEFA will generally attempt to have teams predominantly in one distinguishable colour-scheme for clear differentiation as it isn't a home and away situation...............and what the AFL have copied in finals in the last few years.

 

[SBD Gonzalez]

Why is it that some AFL fans knock soccer because it's not as "tough" (i.e. brutal) as footy? Should a sport's intrinsic worth be judged on the likelihood of a player being injured during a game? That's just masochism. Why not the same criticism of tennis? Cricket? Any other sport?

Meh, I've never for one minute doubted that top soccer players are as tough and brave as anyone.

What's so wrong with soccer is that the difficulty of the scoring forces these genuinely tough blokes to act like wimps in a desperate attempt to get any sort of a shot on goal. It's simply embarrassing to see tough nuts reduced to humiliating themselves like that.

Is it because some footy fans can't stand the idea that "soccer" is known as "football" in most of the world?

Nope. We wouldn't expect non-Australians to speak Australian English in their countries, so they shouldn't expect us to not speak Australian English in Australia.

A chip on the shoulder perhaps? Australia seems to have a chip on its shoulder about a lot of things. I guess that's why "we" (i.e. "the media") make such a big deal about Australia being "the best" at this or that or "having the world's best practice" or other similar BS.

I wouldn't say a chip on our shoulder. I certainly think some of us Aussies have an inferiority complex.

But I don't think that applies to Aussie Rules. We love the game, we think it's the best game there is, it's huge here (as domestic comps go it's huge by any standards anywhere), so it's a completely immersive world that we love being in and we're proud of, that's all.

footy is and will only ever be a provincial sport played in a single provincial country.

We really, really don't care. (And I highly suspect most of us would actually prefer that it stays that way.)

I've learnt never to say "never" (I'm old enough to remember thinking the Berlin Wall was "never" going to come down) but I strongly suspect soccer is never going to sweep the field in Oz if it hasn't by now. The forces railed against it came into play too long ago. (Titus O'Reily's recent history of Australian sport is excellent on explaining how Aussie Rules and the two rugby codes got hugely established before soccer did in this country, and that inside running continues to this day.) No other country has four major professional football codes, and most of us have pretty much made our selections by now. Of course Australia is going through great demographic change, but I really don't see Aussie Rules fading away any time soon, while on the other hand the A-League has very much levelled out.

Soccer will always have an international dimension that Aussie Rules will never match, but that international dimension is also Australian soccer's greatest weakness.

 

[SBD Gonzalez]

It's called Fear. They're scared of soccer in this country. They will do anything to try and sabotage it and promote their beloved AFL.

What are you, like twelve?

 

[Hotdees]

Another 3 hours no one will ever get back. WC the most boring team in the afl

 

[SBD Gonzalez]

Another 3 hours no one will ever get back. WC the most boring team in the afl

You see the scheisse we dished up on Saturday?

 

[Cmarsh]

Meh, I've never for one minute doubted that top soccer players are as tough and brave as anyone.

What's so wrong with soccer is that the difficulty of the scoring forces these genuinely tough blokes to act like wimps in a desperate attempt to get any sort of a shot on goal. It's simply embarrassing to see tough nuts reduced to humiliating themselves like that.


Nope. We wouldn't expect non-Australians to speak Australian English in their countries, so they shouldn't expect us to not speak Australian English in Australia.
I wouldn't say a chip on our shoulder. I certainly think some of us Aussies have an inferiority complex.

But I don't think that applies to Aussie Rules. We love the game, we think it's the best game there is, it's huge here (as domestic comps go it's huge by any standards anywhere), so it's a completely immersive world that we love being in and we're proud of, that's all.

We really, really don't care. (And I highly suspect most of us would actually prefer that it stays that way.)

I've learnt never to say "never" (I'm old enough to remember thinking the Berlin Wall was "never" going to come down) but I strongly suspect soccer is never going to sweep the field in Oz if it hasn't by now. The forces railed against it came into play too long ago. (Titus O'Reily's recent history of Australian sport is excellent on explaining how Aussie Rules and the two rugby codes got hugely established before soccer did in this country, and that inside running continues to this day.) No other country has four major professional football codes, and most of us have pretty much made our selections by now. Of course Australia is going through great demographic change, but I really don't see Aussie Rules fading away any time soon, while on the other hand the A-League has very much levelled out.

Soccer will always have an international dimension that Aussie Rules will never match, but that international dimension is also Australian soccer's greatest weakness.

Do you have a link to that Titus O'Reily article?

 

[SBD Gonzalez]

Do you have a link to that Titus O'Reily article?

Not an article, it’s a whole book.

Very funny, as you’d expect, but incredibly infomative and well-researched.

https://www.titusoreily.com/shop/thoroughly-unhelpful-history-australian-sport

 

[Mr--ShinBoner--#11]

I mean, legit...
Every. Single. ****ing. Time.

 

[NoobPie]

I mean, legit...
View attachment 531978 Every. Single. *******. Time.

How embarrassing, Perth demons player trying to coatail off Chelsea to sell some wafl jumpers. Chelsea are just out here to give back to Aussie fans and they get ambushed by this kind of crass commercialism

 

[aussierulesrules]

When does the World Cup start?

 

[Andrew Mc]

You see the scheisse we dished up on Saturday?

A Melbourne (and F1) supporting mate and I have decided that the last weekend won't be ever spoken of.

 

[Benny78]

I was watching every game bar half the Sunday ones and since Carlton were on every Friday I've only watched Geelong games and some Friday/'Sat night games. It seems to have put me out of my routine.

 

[SBD Gonzalez]

I mean, legit...
View attachment 531978 Every. Single. *******. Time.

Probably more a reflection of an AFL marketing dept in dire need of a total clean-out.

 

[Blackhawk42]

It's called Fear. They're scared of soccer in this country. They will do anything to try and sabotage it and promote their beloved AFL.

There's nothing to be scared of. Remember that summer when the A-League were trying to claim they were laying the ground work to become the more popular sport in the country due to higher interest in that year's season and higher participation rates? They neglected to acknowledge that they were up against the Big Bash (which was only in it's third season), and were subsequently destroyed all summer. Now one is a juggernaut and the other sits 41st behind the national Kabadi (???) league for most profitable sporting organisations in the world.

 

[NoobPie]

Probably more a reflection of an AFL marketing dept in dire need of a total clean-out.

Except it was a wafl player

 

[Dunger]

Soccer players are incredibly fit and skilled but the game has some massive flaws in that they flop like a fish at the slightest bit of contact in an attempt to convince the umpire he should have a free kick.

My biggest issue is the ump swarmed with players pleading and praying for him to reconsider his decision. It's about as disrespectful as you can get and sets a terrible example for the kids. Accept the decision and get on with the game.

There's also a huge number of dead rubbers where teams that have done what they needed to do park the bus and put their b team on and play a 10 man defense with no interest in playing attacking football.

It may be the world game but it's ****ing tedious to watch and the craziness of the fans even at a shit level in europe is ****ed up.

To say the afl are scared of soccer is laughable.

If the a league wasnt backed by lowy, it would be dead by now, but he keeps throwing money at it and flogging it as hard as he can with bribes and whatever else to secure a world cup....

 

[estibador]

Except it was a wafl player

It's Troy Cook, who has an off-field role with the Demons now. Looks like he's kept himself in good nick.