Seahawks Fend Off the Chiefs

On a very sharp, cold and breezy Seattle winter's night was host of the National Football League's fixture between the Seattle Seahawks and the Kansas City Chiefs at CenturyLink Field. This stadium is an incredible stadium for its sheer size. The stadium is for 70,000 spectators and 69,500 odd turned up to scream at the top of their lungs and make one heck of a noise to maintain the reputation of Seattle being one of the noisiest stadiums in the league. So noisy in fact are the fans at CenturyLink, is that they trigger the second highest amount of false starts in the league, second behind Minnesota. However, for a casual fan like myself, it was intense the noise and rather painful. Then again I had 6 fans in my seats scream at their fullest capacities in the back of my head to induce said migraine.

Tickets to these games do not come cheap, and unfortunately the cheapest I could afford were towards the very back. While not a bad view, the bitter cold blowing into the semi-open stadium did make it rather chilly. I do recommend to take your gloves for a game and a warm jacket, in which I did. But apart from the noisy fans behind me, the atmosphere is what I was expecting in an NFL game. These fans wear their emotions on their sleeves and are not afraid to show it. They do not take too kindly humour of the wry, witty or even dry varieties. So I suggest that you don't engage like that. 

The game however was a very even contest with Seattle coming out of the blocks early and hard. But failing to capitalise on the dominance. This is where Kansas City Chiefs had began to turn it around and cause trouble for the Seattle defensive team. Yes, that is right, there are effectively two teams within the team. One is an offensive team, then when they are on the defensive, well, you got it there is a team for that as they switch. So It is rather difficult to follow if you are not a fan of the game like I am. When I start to get into understanding the basics of the game however, it stops and then there is a considerable pause in the play. So it is hard to understand why they stopped and what was it for.

Kansas during the second quarter edged in front over the hosts and the crowd were wavering in their loud support for the Seahawks. But with mistakes from the Chiefs, Seattle had turned it around and with some touchdowns and conversions had hit the lead and secured the match as 38 to 31 point winners.

Beers were the usual fare at the game, I had a bottle of Budweiser for 12 dollars and chips and M&Ms for 12 dollars in total. There were plenty of other foods, but I wasn't going to fight through the crowds to fight for the food and fight all the way back up to the back of the stands with the food.
Despite the cold, and the bitterness of the winter's night in Seattle, it was a wonder evening to watch my first American football game. If you are in the states and you want to tick it off your list, I recommend it.

 

Utah Upbeat As Portland Slow On The Trail

Headed to my second NBA game at the Moda Centre on a rather chilly, crisp, cold and clear night in downtown Portland, Oregon to watch the Portland Trailblazers play host to the Utah Jazz. I caught the Max to the Rose Centre and was a little long as per usual when you cross through cities on a system that should be heavy rail, but that's the US for you. I got into the venue but I had to hand over my selfie stick to the cloak room. While this is a standard policy for virtually every stadium around the world, I thought id just have it in my pocket until post game for some after match selfies.

I found my seat with no difficulties, but there was a couple who had placed their coats on my seat and I didn't want to be squashed up next to them so I sat behind them where there were a couple of empty seats. I sat there for the first half and a couple of minutes into the third quarter until a family decided to finally arrive after eating and drinking on the concourse level. I don't understand why would you spend this money on basketball tickets, come all this way, (Portland is very sparsely populated) and not watch the game live and not on some screen in a concourse food outlet?

I happily moved, but went to the opposite side of my seat to get myself a better, or different perspective. I had no problems finding a seat as people were starting to leave half way through the third quarter as Utah were dominating Portland. The home side were competitive in the first half only trailing by 6 at half time. However, Portland's poor shooting and woeful rebounding, steals and foul count had given the Jazz easy opportunities to sink for threes and take free throws to blow out the lead beyond single digits and ended up running home with a 30 point win, 120 to 90.

The food was the same but this time I had the chicken spicy burger. It was 12 dollars also and I had a collectors cup on top of that for another 12. The total was 24 dollars and I have to say that the chips were once again a bit average. They were garlic fries, but I had to add some more salt and have ranch and barbecue sauce to add flavour. The burger was dray and utterly tasteless with little to no spice what so ever. I found this disappointing as in the United States if something is spicy, you know that there will be a bit of a tickle, unlike in Australia where it is a land devoid of anything remotely spicy.

The bread was dry and felt stale, but I could be wrong as bread in the US is usually a bit dry and not overly soft like back home. The lettuce wasn't bad, but the tomato was not pleasant. The chicken patty was bone dry and without any flavour. It only just had that crumbed taste and it did break apart easily like regular chicken. However, all in all it was not very nice.

A shame that the food on this occasion was even worse and that the Trailblazers played even worse still. But It is a neat little basketball stadium in a small Pacific North-West town that I am sure that I will be returning to at some stage in the future.

Portland Overcome Memphis

It was a crisp and cool early December winter in Portland, Oregon which was the host to my first National Basketball Association match, between the Portland Trailblazers and the Memphis Grizzlies. It was also my first trip to the Moda Centre in Portland as my previous outing here was a Timbers game last July.
The venue is very much like the Perth Arena, and most basketball venues I would imagine, with signage that was straight forward and well signed. The staff were helpful also and there were no major issues getting to my seats.

Portland started off very slowly with Memphis sprinting out of the blocks in the first quarter and dominating the frustrated home fans. Where I was sitting was rather boisterous and I loved the support as it was very much like my time at Providence Park, only with more music from the sound system. Portland were slowly warming up to the contest and in the second quarter they were starting to find their feet. However, some sloppy shooting, poor rebounds and giving away some fouls were keeping the Grizzlies with the noses in front of the contest.

By the third quarter Portland found new energy, they began to hit their strides with the crowd pushing them along. In this quarter their passes seemed to stick and they were blocking almost everything Memphis threw at them. The rapid turnovers, and the turnarounds had ensured that the Trailblazers had hit the lead by three quarter time. In the final quarter Memphis were a shadow of their former selves from the first quarter and were trying all they could to try and stem the flow of the home side. However, in the last 5 minutes of the quarter Memphis did manage to break open the Portland defence, but it was too late and Portland were too resilient holding out the visitors 99 to 92.

Food was not bad as I had the chicken strips with chips and barbecue sauce. I had a collectors cup with coke and a cider during the game. The cider was an apple cider which was not sweet, so if that is your thing for apple ciders then you may not enjoy it. The cider was 11 dollars, the meal was also 12.50 and the collectors cup was 12. This seems to be standard for sporting venues as I recall this for the Timbers and at the Dodgers and Galaxy last year.
All in all a fantastic first game for me and would highly recommend anyone in the US during the winter months to go and see a basketball match.

Perth Glorious Against Brisbane

Perth overcame a late fightback from Brisbane in their Hyundai A-League week 3 fixture at nib Stadium on a pleasant Perth evening. Perth were in fantastic form, after their rescue mission the previous week against Melbourne. They continued the patient, calm build up of play to open the account on the 15 minute mark. Perth look decidedly different than previous years and I just couldn't believe my eyes to see just how composed they were in all areas of their game.

Perth doubled the account through an unfortunate own goal had set the scene for a potential Perth walk over of the Roar. Perth seem to be generating a lot of opportunities and more chances for goal than last year, let alone previous seasons, which is a positive sign for the team and fans alike.

There were moments where Brisbane were sniffing for an opportunity, and it came on the brief moment of a lapse in concentration towards the end of the second half which awarded the visitors the opportunity to take a penalty. Brisbane converted the penalty and were frantic to try and score an equaliser, but to no avail. Perth held out firm and recorded a 2-1 win.

I had a beef pie this time from Jester's as previously mentioned, you cant really screw this up as the taste is the same. However, the price of the pie at 6 dollars is on the edge of too expensive for the size of the pie. At Optus or at Aussie Rules games, you get a bigger pie but similar price. But sacrifice in taste of the meat and pastry. Water was 5 dollars, so that is a bit of a rip-off for just water. So much for "living lighter" etc that the state government is trying to push. But with Perth playing a better, more controlled style, is a pleasure to watch. May we see more of it.

Perth Impress but Fail to Punish West Sydney

The Hyundai A-League kicked off in Perth on a beautiful sunny and fantastic day between Perth Glory and the West Sydney Wanderers. Perth Glory kick off the season with a new look squad and a new head coach looking to arrest the sliding poor results of previous seasons. West Sydney are going through a rebuilding phase and are looking at turning their fortunes around also.

Perth were dominating throughout the entire first half, remaining calm and collected with patient build up of passages of play which is a breath of fresh air. Perth took the lead through excellent passing and positioning which looked like the beginning of an avalanche of goals for the men in purple.

However, it was like a predictable horror movie trope, Perth Glory fell asleep and their dominance slipped. West Sydney were beginning to work their way back into the game by slipping through the lacklustre Glory defences. This culminated in a goal which was a shock, but really not surprising to older viewers and members who have seen this before. Yet still a shock as Perth were playing brilliantly under their new regime so it was a shame. The game ended 1-1.

Food was the usual, with cool drinks at 5 dollars and I had a Jester's chick curry pie, for 6 dollars. Jester's pies are very good, and were not any different here at the ground. Although the pie was expensive compared to one bought in a Jester's store, it is on the cusp of an acceptable price range. Of course a bottle of coke or soft drink for 5 dollars, is ridiculous. But hopefully this game is a sign of more to come for the season.

Lions Maul Falcons

The 2018 Western Australian Football League concluded its season at the new home of Australian Rules football, Optus Stadium, on a beautiful September's day in Perth. Subiaco were seeking the first team in 72 years to complete a season being undefeated. The Lions did so by overwhelmingly beating West Perth by 81 points. 25,000 people watched the match, the highest grand final attendance in many seasons after a declining trend over previous seasons.

 
The grand final victory completed another record, their reserves and colts also winning their grand finals. This is the first time a team has won all three grades in WAFL history.

Prior to the grand final, Subiaco had only played one game in 28 days and the rust showed in the first quarter. However the grand final nerves and jitters were immediately shrugged off with Subiaco taking command of the game in emphatic fashion.

Subiaco's defence was so tight that West Perth seemed to be on track to be kept to their lowest grand final score in a hundred years. West Perth were just unable to stem the onslaught of the Lions with the match finishing 19.13-127 to 7.4-46.

As for food and drink, it was a usual affair at Optus Stadium. Coke was 5 dollars, expensive but that is the rate in Perth venues. Pie was 6 dollars, a touch too much but you cannot go wrong with a Mrs Mac's pie. Beers were 8 dollars, the Alby range and the summer ale range too. Some sections were only selling mid-strength but the other areas were selling full-strength.

All in all was a fantastic day to watch the first WAFL grand final at its new home. Subiaco finally winning after their previous two failed attempts in 2017 and 2016. It is always a good day out when watching WAFL matches.

Fremantle Maintain Carton's Blues

My first Australian Rules Football game at the new Optus Stadium in Burswood was between the Fremantle Dockers and the Carlton Blues on a nice, bright, sunny and warm August afternoon.

Today's game was a dead rubber of sorts as Carlton was firmly rooted to the bottom of the table, and Fremantle were unable to make it into the top 8 to progress to the finals series. After a shaky start by the visitors, Fremantle were simply too good and closed down Carlton to win the game 15.11-101 to 10.12-72. The loss confirmed Calton to its fifth wooden spoon since 2002.

All in all the match was rather uninspiring and at times thoroughly painful to watch. However, both teams are in rebuilding phases, so there were some promising signs form both teams.

Water and cool drink were 5 dollars, beers were mid-strength at 8 dollars and a pies were 6 dollars. Slightly on the high side but at least it isn't out of control like in previous years.

Lions Edge Past Forrestfield

A warm and sunny Saturday afternoon at Rosalie Park played host to Subiaco Lions and Forrestfield United in the final round 24 of the National Premier Leagues Western Australia division. The visitors were in control early with a penalty earned on the ninth minute, which was slotted home to open the account. But the visitors struggled to take advantage of their dominance at Rosalie by failing to take their chances.

The hosts levelled the match with a 39th minute strike, which looked like Subiaco were going to take control of the game away from Forrestfield after this turn in the game. However, Forrestfield continued to press for a second goal but it just didn't come about after numerous chances went begging during the second half. Subiaco punished them for their wasted opportunities by scoring their second deep into stoppage time to deal a cruel blow to Forrestfield, who felt they were going to walk away with shared points.

As my arrival to the game was slightly rushed and the depleted supplies of the canteen, I opted for a can of coke and a packet of smiths for 5 dollars in total. Not bad for just a snack while watching the game at a venue, that is really not anywhere near NPL standard, let alone trying to be remotely close to said standard. Hopefully this changes in the near future.

Dogs Edge Falcons

A rather chilly, windy and wet day in Fremantle was host to South Fremantle and West Perth at Fremantle Oval. While South Fremantle weren't ever really out of the contest, they weren't exactly doing themselves and their fans any favours throughout the contest and at times hit the lead but were rather unconvincing in doing so. The windy conditions and the wet ball probably played havoc on the players where many were susceptible from slipping and fumbling the ball rather often.

West Perth on the other hand seemed to be playing within themselves and not pressing on further when they were in the lead during the match, perhaps that was due to the difficult conditions. I think however, the Falcons had misread the home team's dogged (pun intended) determination with the Dogs coming home with a 5 point victory in dark, chilly and wet conditions.

As I was away recently on holidays I had been craving for an ice-cream and got one with nuts, chocolate and a 'flake' which was a twirl bar, for 6 dollars. Not bad and was rather delicious. Can't go past a classic really. Beers were 8 dollars and of course my choice of drink was the Carlton Draught, for me another old faithful that goes down smoothly while watching the footy.
All in All another good afternoon to watch some Saturday football at Fremantle Oval.

Inglewood Too Good For Forrestfield

On a bitterly cold July night at Hartfield Park, was host the National Premier League WA match between Forrestfield United and Inglewood United. I hadn't been to Hartfield Park for quite some time, also due to my travel and other commitments I haven't been able to get down to see many games; so, this was a great opportunity to get out and see some night football. 

But it was the experience and skills of the visitors from Inglewood who were just too good for the hosts in this highly energised and intense match.

Inglewood opened the account with a neat finish in the 13^th minute after some shaky Forrestfield defending allowed the visitors the opportunity via a through ball.

However, Forrestfield remained resilient and toiled away and it paid off with an equaliser 10 minutes later via a penalty. It was at half time all square with the hosts feeling very confident of grinding out a result.

The second half resumed, and Forrestfield looked to tire which on the 60^th minute mark allowed Inglewood to pound on some wayward defending to give the visitors the lead once again.

Forrestfield huffed and puffed but it was to no avail as they were pressing high to find an equaliser. Their best chance was in the 85^th minute from a powerful strike that was brilliantly saved by the Inglewood keeper.

Match finished 2-1 in favour of Inglewood giving their manager Andy Keogh a much earned 3 points.

As it was freezing, and I was still recovering from a horrible bout of a flu, I did have a few beverages. Carlton Draught was 8 dollars and a coke were 2.50. Chips with gravy were 5 dollars and they were fantastic on a night like this with a forrie burger going down well at 8 dollars too.

Was a great night down at Forrestfield, albeit freezing conditions but was excellent with a decent crowd getting behind both teams.

Chelsea and Perth Play Friendly

Chelsea visited the west coast of Australia on a very chilly and cold Optus Stadium in Perth, the capital of Western Australia to play a friendly game with Perth Glory. The game was the first football game to be played at the new stadium, with cricket, Australian Rules and rugby league already being played at the stadium since its opening earlier this year.

The game was launched with much fanfare with the lighting display at the stadium once again proving to be a smash hit with its dazzling choreographed display while the Chelsea club song was playing as well as other songs. It felt like I was in an incredibly large night club with bolts of blue, shades of blue and white shooting all over the place.

 The game kicked off and it really didn't take long for the west Londoners to open the account with a rather simple tap in goal within the first 10 minutes. It really did look like that Chelsea were going to rip open the game and put on a cricket score. Thankfully, Perth showed a great level of resilience and tenacity and at times did cause the Englishmen a few moments of panic when they pressed.

However, it was rather obvious that there must have been a form of agreement between the two sides as tackles from both sides were rather soft, challenges at times were also rather weak and there were moments where Chelsea should have slammed the Perth Glory defence with at least 5 goals. So there must have been an agreement. I was impressed with the new signings of the Perth Glory under the new manager Tony Popovic. I hope that these promising displays from the new recruits can transpose into the up-coming A-League season.

The seats at the new stadium are fantastic. The seats are great viewing, especially if you wish to duck out for a beverage, Alcoholic or not. Choc milks are 5 dollars, Cokes are also 5 dollars, and beer was 8 dollars. The beers on choice were the usual, Alby and the mid strength one. Was just great to watch the game and enjoy a drink. The only problem of course is that it was incredibly cold and holding a cold drink doesn't help the hand!

It was a great night to watch the first game of football at the stadium, which was also a new record for a football game in Perth. This beat the 2000 National Soccer League grand final. That was around the 44,000 mark. The match tonight was 55,000, a very impressive figure.