That’s My Team

By Mike Hytner on December 24, 2013 in Other

As an immigrant to several different countries over the years, I’ve always found those first few months particularly exciting: that anticipation of the unknown followed by the novelty of fresh discoveries and the fun of exploiting them to help integrate into the local way of life.

‘Becoming a local’ might not be everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s fair enough, but personally I’ve found it helps form a certain sense of belonging, something that only adds to the richness of the experience away from home.

Assimilating to a certain locality can take a variety of forms that are, obviously, dependent on where you are. Here in Australia though, with no new language to learn or towering cultural barrier to hurdle, it’s slightly simpler than other places I have lived, and has mainly involved drinking in the local bar, joining a sporting team, engaging the neighbours in polite conversation and not being so ‘English’ to the point of annoyance.

But perhaps the most important facet of successful integration, and one of the most exciting for me, is taking on a sports team to support as your own. And in Sydney, with a wealth of professional teams across the sporting spectrum, lucky visitors are rather spoilt for choice.

I arrived three years ago with pretty much a blank canvas: I wasn’t a huge rugby league fan, AFL was as foreign to me as the notion of 30 degree heat in November and the football scene over here had hardly piqued my interest from the other side of the world. I didn’t even know who was any good, leaving me to make my choices without any preconceived notions of who I ‘should’ support.

As it was, it wasn’t the history, the politics, the stadia, the fans, the kits or even the star players that swayed me in my choices. Instead, I largely allowed geography to lead me to my fate. The results have been mixed.

In AFL, the Swans have done me proud, while the lie of the land actually left me with a choice of NRL teams, such is the concentration of clubs around Sydney. I opted for Souths over the Roosters for what I perceived as a stronger connection with the local community, and I was very nearly rewarded this past season.

But it was the choice facing me in football, my favoured sport, that excited me most – and ultimately disappointed most. I couldn’t look further than Sydney FC – the only top-flight club on offer in the city at the time – but despite some high profile marquee signings since I arrived, they have proved mightily frustrating to follow.

Things got pretty bad last season with the arrival of the Western Sydney Wanderers on the scene, who took the league by storm both on and off the pitch. Due to the two clubs’ proximity, the Wanderers’ success only seemed to highlight the failures of their neighbours from Moore Park. So far this season has been no better.

In a way, it makes me think I should have migrated to the Western Suburbs, put up with Parramatta, the stinking heat and the Eels, and bided my time until the Wanderers were born. That way I would have had an excuse to be part of it. Then again, I’m no bandwagon jumper – once you’ve nailed your colours to the mast, you’re stuck with your choices, even if the ship is sinking – and it looks like I’ll just have to sit tight and share in the local misery.

Still, being a part of something, anything really, is better than nothing.