Specky knew that much had been made in the local press about the fact that there was no such position as goalkeeper in Aussie Rules. They saw it as an enormous advantage and were fully expecting to slam plenty of goals into the back of the net.
Specky was nervous as the team bus drove slowly through the mighty gates of Croke Park. A big crowd was pouring into the stadium. A huge number of Dublin schools, had organised tickets for their students.
‘Woah,’ said Dicky, his face pressed up against the bus window. ‘Can you believe we’re back here, Speck? The crowd looks just as big as the one that turned out for the hurling game.’
The butterflies that had been churning in Specky’s stomach now felt like elephants with wings.
‘Yeah, and get a load of those Irish hotties,’ chimed in Skull. He waved to a group of highschool girls who had their hair painted green, orange and white, the Irish national colours. ‘They’ll be talking about the Skullanator after this game, I promise you.’
Specky wished he had Skull’s confidence. Nothing seemed to phase him. Skull was obviously one of those players who relished the chance to play on a big stage. Specky took a deep breath and hoped his nerves would settle down a bit.
The Aussies stepped off the bus, gathered their bags and made their way into the change rooms. Specky chose his locker and went into the property steward’s room where the Australian guernseys were all neatly laid out.
Since Specky was the goalkeeper, he had to wear a different-coloured jumper from his team-mates. His was bright orange with a navyblue-and-gold ‘V’ on the front.
‘Nice look, mate! You could direct traffic in that,’ joked Brian as they pulled on their shorts, socks, and runners in preparation for the warm-up.
‘Yeah, the Irish will need sunnies, it’s that bright.’ Specky grinned.
‘Can you believe where we are, Speck?’ said Brian. ‘It’s a long way from the Rivergum Redfins.’
Specky thought back to the time when he, Danny, Robbo and Gobba had helped Brian’s country team win a senior game against their archrivals.
‘Yeah, but I reckon old Razorback Jack would be handy to have in our team right now,’ said Specky, referring to Rivergum’s footy legend, Jack McCracken.
‘All right, boys! Slow jog around the rooms,’ ordered the Australian team’s fitness coordinator, Rick Cosker. ‘This is it. Time to switch on.’
While Grub and Bobby ran the show, Specky and his team-mates were happy to see Rick step forward. Rick was a fitness fanatic who had become an extremely important influence on the team. He competed in triathlons in his spare time and was completing a Masters degree in health and fitness. He controlled each player’s training load as well as monitoring their diet and nutritional needs. Specky and his team-mates admired and respected him enormously, and the fact that he was just twenty-seven years old provided a nice balance since Grub and Bobby were both well into their fifties.
Specky fell in behind Special K as the Australian team suddenly came to life.
‘Let’s make every tackle count!’
‘Gotta start well, boys. Take our opportunities!’
‘Kick the goals when we get a chance.’
As always, Dicky was leading the charge. ‘Tackle those blokes into the ground, boys! Let ’em know what we’re all about early. Play for the jumper, fellas! Don’t forget who we’re representing today!’
Specky loved Dicky’s passion. He was always the most vocal and enthusiastic player in the room.
‘I’m not letting the Aussie flag down, no way! And neither are you!’ Dicky roared as he stomped around the room with a manic look on his face.
Specky’s nerves began to fade. He was now in the zone – acutely aware of everything that was happening around him. He felt fresh and he was running up on his toes. As he made his way from one end of the room to the other, he noticed some familiar faces behind the barricades quietly watching the team go through their warm up. Among them he saw Michael, Patrick and Mr O’Leary. Patrick winked at Specky, and Michael gave him a thumbs-up. But then Specky did a double-take. Were his eyes playing tricks on him?
No, they weren’t. There in the crowd was that pushy agent Brad Dobson, trying to hand out business cards. And just behind him was Kevin Sheedy! Locked in conversation with Guy McKenna! Specky’s jaw almost hit the ground – what were the coaches of the Greater Western Sydney Giants and the Gold Coast Suns doing here?
Woah, this is huge, he thought, as they started their hamstring stretches.
Grub gathered the boys in the race just minutes before they were to go out onto the ground.
‘Keep it simple, boys,’ he said, his voice barely louder than a whisper. ‘Don’t forget that the series is played over two Tests and it’s an aggregate score situation. This game is really just the first half of a very long match. Every point counts, and every point saved makes an enormous difference. So support Magee in the goals, boys. It’s not going to be easy so he needs all the help we can give him. Get back in numbers and protect the net.’
‘I’m right there with ya, Speck!’ bellowed Dicky.
‘Yeah, let’s go, Speck! You can do it, man!’ encouraged Spiro.
The crowd’s roar from outside intensified.
‘It’s just us against them and their thirty thousand fans,’ said Grub, his voice now rising. ‘Let’s score early and quieten this crowd right down. Give ’em nothing to cheer about.’
Specky and his team-mates shuffled into a tight huddle.
‘Don’t get frustrated with mistakes,’ Grub said. ‘You will make them, you know that. The round ball is our greatest challenge. Flick it around by hand, run hard to support your mates, and tackle those kids so hard they’ll never want to see an Aussie jumper again. Now get out there and play like an Australian!’
The boys roared as one, and made their way to the entrance, waiting for the ground announcer to welcome them.
Specky had never felt so proud in all of his life. When the Australian team was announced, he floated onto the playing arena behind Special K, who was captain for the day. The crowd went absolutely nuts. Rather than boo or taunt the Aussies they burst into song. A chorus of thirtythousand voices resonated throughout the entire ground.
Specky and his team-mates had never experienced anything like it. They jogged a slow lap before moving in a couple of ball drills.
Rick Cosker grabbed a ball and took Specky down to the goals. As Specky took up his position, the vocal Irish fans behind the net jumped to their feet and started chanting:
‘You’ve got no i-de-a! You’ve got no i-de-a!’
Their voices grew louder and louder. Rick fired balls at Specky who did his best to keep them out of the net.
Specky knew that much had been made in the local press about the fact that there was no such position as goalkeeper in Aussie Rules. They saw it as an enormous advantage and were fully expecting to slam plenty of goals into the back of the net.
‘You’re right, mate,’ encouraged Rick. ‘You’re gloving the ball beautifully.’
Specky joined his team-mates at the centre of the ground for the singing of the national anthems. They stood in line with their arms linked. The Irish team mirrored them several metres away.
‘Stare ’em in the eyes, boys! And sing loud and proud!’ Dicky called out, reminding Specky and the others that Grub wanted them to belt out the anthem with pride.
But as the first few bars of ‘Advance Australia Fair’ blared out over the loudspeakers, Specky and most of his team suddenly became selfconscious about their singing. They mumbled their way through the lyrics. Even Dicky, who had belted out the first verse with gusto, quickly pulled back once he realised he was the only one really singing.
When the Australians reached the end of their anthem, Sean Kavanagh, the huge Irish half-forward and captain of Ireland, started yelling at his team:
‘What a joke!’ he shouted. ‘Have a look at ’em, would ya! They don’t want to be here. They don’t want to play for their country. They don’t even want to sing their own anthem.’
Specky felt embarrassed and ashamed. And he suspected most of his team-mates did too. He glanced over at Dicky and could see in his eyes that if he could’ve charged at Sean Kavanagh he would have.
‘You’re a disgrace to Australia!’ the Irish captain taunted them. ‘Ya think you’re too good to sing your own song. You’re a flippin’ disgrace!’
‘You’re the disgrace, mate,’ grumbled Skull through clenched teeth.
‘He should shut his gob. Or I’ll shut it for him,’ said Spiro.
‘Yeah, I’ll show him who’s a disgrace,’ said Dicky, taking a step out of line towards the Irish team.
Specky grabbed hold of Dicky’s arm and pulled him back in.
‘He’s just baiting us, mate. Don’t,’ he whispered, just as the Irish National Anthem struck up.
Unlike the Australian boys, the Irish team sang with passion and spirit, mouthing every word loudly and proudly. Specky looked on with a mixture of admiration and guilt. The crowd sang in unison with the Irish team, holding their hands over their hearts.
Specky held the gaze of the player opposite him, the legendary Eamon O’Sullivan. All right, then, let the fun begin, thought Specky, as he made his way to the end of the pitch.