Why Port? [Introduction]


"Football is not a matter of life and death. It is more important than that."

--- 

We love sports because they encapsule the whole of life without being life itself. Sports are a kind of spiritual vaccine. Well, I got addicted to the medicine. I follow many sports, and I support many clubs (despite having no talent to practice any sport whatsoever - sigh!).

Australians wondered how I ended up following footy and why I picked Port. When I was living in America [1], I had to answer similar questions. In their case, Americans asked: "Why the (Giants/Indians/Pistons/DC United)?" The reasons are usually silly. It was either a kit (DC), a badge (Indians), or one particular game (Giants). Probably, the only team for which I have a good reason to support is the Pistons: the "Bad Boys," back-to-back NBA champions. I love the way they played basketball! And I have picked all of them way before having the opportunity to visit, let alone to live, in the U.S. So, the fact that I have never been in Australia is not an issue.


My story begins some time ago [2]. I got acquainted with Australian football watching an odd sport show on TV when I was a kid in the 80's called "Gillette World of Sports." It was a bunch of highlights from sports other than soccer. Along with tennis, sailing, golf, boxing, baseball, and such, there was this weird game played on an oval field with four giant goal posts in each end, where umpires wore hats, players climbed on each other's backs, and the final scores were like in basketball. I learned that it was a different kind of football played in Australia, and I thought it was awesome. Kids, right?! Still, that was before internet. I couldn't get much contact with the game and ended up forgetting about it.

Fast-Forward a couple of decades, and my younger brother spend a month visiting cousins who were in Australia. I requested him two presents: an AFL ball; and a AFL game for PlayStation. He brought me both. We had a lot of fun trying to learn the game on the fly, having no idea about the rules [3]. I would pick the Power all the time because of the colors, which are similar to Grêmio's, and the initials P.A. [4]. Here is how Grêmio's supporters look like:


"They just need to learn how to sing NTUA!"

 Since those days, I have been checking the seasons, now and then, to see how Port is doing. Last year I have finally downloaded the AFL app, started watching more highlights, reading stuff at "The Roar," and having a BigFooty account.


Now, I have a blog...

---

Notes:
[1] Some people complain about calling the U.S. "America," but it is simply a case of 'broad sense' v. 'strict sense;' besides, different things can share the same name.
[2] Almost thirty years!
[3] I still don't have a clue about the rules, but the AFL umpires don't seem to be much better.
[4] Grêmio and I are both from Porto Alegre.

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