Brownlow medallist Adam Cooney is extremely excited for the 2023 AFL season.
Now just 44 days away from Round 1, Cooney is looking forward not only to watching the season play out, but attending games in person.
As a fan that prefers to watch games at the venue instead of on TV, Cooney listed seven (somewhat tongue-in-cheek) reasons why fans should get to games in 2022.
7. Yelling, ‘Holding the ball!’
“Number seven is you get to yell, ‘Holding the ball’, as loud as you can 100 times a game with 30,000 screaming fans,” Cooney said on Sportsday SA.
“Even if your team member that you’re watching has laid one glove on the player and they’ve handballed it off in half a second, you still have to yell, ‘Holding the ball’.
“I think that’s one of the great things of our game.”
6. Banter between opposition fans.
“Number six is the opposition banter and the crowd one-liners.
“You get some rippers at the footy, as long as it’s all good-natured banter back and forth, it’s always a bit of fun.
“I love that crowd involvement.”
5. Hurling “PG rated advice” at umpires.
“Number five is giving the umpire PG rated advice over the fence so they can actually hear it.
“When you’re at home yelling at your TV, it just doesn’t have the same effect.
“I think the umpires appreciate the feedback if they do get it wrong, for someone to actually point it out.
“I think everyone needs to be held accountable.”
4. Having a pie and a beer in the stands.
“A pie and a beer just hit different at the footy.
“When you’re at home you’ve got to heat your own pie up, the sauce doesn’t taste the same when you squeeze it out, you’ve got to ration it at the footy.
“I know generally they (beers) are typically mid-strength out of a plastic cup and cost $14, but there’s just something about sitting there in the outer having a pint at the footy that you can’t emulate at home.”
3. Watching the work-rate of individual players.
“Watching how hard a player has actually worked to get to a position they’re actually in.
“I take my young fella to the footy and he wants to play as a wingman at times or as a ruck.
“We watch the different positions of the players and I try to get him to keep his eyes on one of them and just watch them for half a quarter.
“If I get to a Carlton game I get him to watch Sam Walsh, he’s the hardest working player in the game and you can’t see that on TV.”
2. Experiencing the tension of the game.
“Just the tension of a close game is unmatched.
“When you’re at the footy and everyone’s sitting around you tense and tight, you can’t get that at home.”
1. The vibe.
“Number one is the vibe.
“The atmosphere at a game is completely electric.
“You just need to go to the footy, so if you ca,n get there this year.”