Mum and dad were over in town for a couple of days recently so JJ and I went out to dinner with them on Thursday night. We walked into the Hyde Park Tavern and wondered why there was a great big spotlight shining on the majority of the dining tables. There was also some camera and sound type equipment setup to go with the spotlight. We talked to a waitress and asked for a table for four and she told us that there wasn’t one available until the people with the camera equipment had finished.
Ever curious I asked what was going on. She told us that it was set up for a live sports cross for the news that night. As some Port Power guys have taken over the hotel they do this live cross on a Thursday evening every few weeks. None of us were really keen to wait and the fact that we had JJ with us and it was already past 6pm and we wouldn’t be ordering until around 6.30 meant that eating there wasn’t really an option if we wanted a relatively peaceful meal.
I am not a football fan by any means and wasn’t in the bar to ‘star’ spot, although on the way out there was a lovely tall blonde man with a Port Power uniform on. I gather he was one of the players.
I don’t really understand Australia’s obsession with AFL to the detriment of equally or more worthy things like the music, theatre, or the arts in general. I’m sure the game itself is quite good and as I have a son, the likelihood of him playing some sort of sport is quite high. I imagine at some stage I’ll have to go and watch him kick, throw or hit a ball around at ungodly hours on a weekend. But why has it been elevated to some sort of cult status?
Ever since Adelaide had two teams join the national football the hype surrounding it has gone through the roof. During the football season it’s very hard to find a non-football related story on the front page of our only statewide paper. Is there nothing else that journalists can find to cover a story on? At least here in South Australia the first question you are NOT asked when you meet someone is what football team do you barrack for? In Victoria, this is quite different where football is like a religion there and most people think you are a bit weird if you confess that you don’t like the game.
Back to dinner. We went across the road to Kibbi’s and enjoyed a lovely meal there. They are also quite kid friendly as their menu comes with some colouring in activities and a cup full of textas.
