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| THE THRILL OF IT ALL |
So it turns out the first day of the Ashes happens on the
same night as
State of Origin III:Judgement Day. On the one hand this feels like two Christmases coming at
once, on the other it’s like juggling two families on Christmas day. When I
thought the cricket started at 7 pm AEST (I am very bad at counting), things
were sweet: Ashes First Ball and almost an hour of the first session to soak up
the vibe before popping over to SOOJD First Impact, some fiddling round in the
middle before comfortably watching the final 20 minutes or so of Origin during
the Ashes lunch break. But the cricket starts at 8 pm, which is a big ole mess.
Ashes First Ball and a couple of overs while they sing the anthem at Suncorp,
back to SOOJD for First Impact… then it will be like an episode of
Happy Days
when Richie schedules two dates on the same night and has to keep taking toilet
breaks or making phone calls to rush back and forth between the two.
I have been watching more League in the last few years
because when I ordered a boyfriend online I asked for one who could teach me
how to watch NRL. One of our early dates was a live screening of Origin 1
hosted by the Fire Up guys. Initially I didn’t understand the references to
“Origin Footy”: “It’s what you’d expect from Origin Footy”, etc. It turns out
“Origin Footy” means Footy with Hatred, and the easiest way to explain it would
have been to tell me “It’s like when they talk about Ashes Cricket”. I have now
tapped into the deep vein of loathing for Queenslanders I never knew existed
within all self-respecting New South Welshpersons. I wake up on three wintry
days a blue-blooded cockroach. It works out better than in the novel. Combine
that with the Cricket with Hatred and it adds up to a great deal of frothing at
the mouth come the 8th of July.
