A Tale Of Local Heroes And Madmen

By Alasdair McClintock on January 29, 2016 in Other

On long, hot summer weekends most of us dream of being by the ocean, cooling off in the Pacific before retiring to our patch of sand and beach umbrella to let the ocean breeze take the edge off the scorching sun. Others retreat to the relative comfort of shopping centres, walking around aimlessly like zombies in The Walking Dead, not really intending to buy anything, just happy to be in an air conditioned space. Some of us even have air conditioning at home, but given the price of electricity these days, I assume turning it on is a rare luxury afforded only to the ‘one-percenters’.

While most of us mere mortals flee the torrid heat, there are some who step willingly into its clutches. They spend these days, seemingly inexplicably, out in the hot sun on cricket ovals, chasing a little bit of hard leather around and whacking it with sticks. Others watch from the side: counting score, manning the bar, cutting oranges. While all of this is undeniably bonkers, there is certainly a romance about the whole thing, don’t you think?

A trip to Waverley Oval on any given Saturday and most Sundays during summer will give you an insight into the hearts and minds of these mad men and women. The grandstand echoes with convivial chat. Wide brimmed Greg Chappell hats dot the landscape like flying dinner plates and aromatic wafts of freshly applied sunscreen dance delicately upon your nostrils.

These people, both on and off the paddock, may have long given up on dreams of higher honours, but they still play and watch out of love for the pastime. Delve deeper and you will discover it is also the community, and the bonds forged, that keeps them coming back each weekend, rather than just the game itself. And yes, the cheap beers probably help too.

Sports clubs are much like little villages in that way. Everybody does their bit to get the thing off the ground and functioning. People must be fed, watered, dressed and looked after. The village can only survive through the collective actions of individuals. Relationships are forged, things are achieved and sometimes love even blossoms. There is even the occasional idiot.

On the field you have a mixture of youth and maturity; those with big dreams and those just trying to sweat out last night’s rum. Some probably couldn’t even tell you why they’re out there. Habit, perhaps, more than anything else. But they will make lifelong friends and many new ones each year. The value of joining a sporting club when you’re new to an area cannot be underestimated.

So next time you’re wrestling with traffic down Bondi Road on your way to submerge yourself in the refreshing azure of the ocean, spare a thought for the sweaty folk at Waverley Oval and the curious slice of heaven they have built for themselves.