28.11.05
93e Coupe Grey
Yesterday was the 93rd playing of the Grey Cup - the final of the Canadian Football Leauge. Think of it as the Canadian Superbowl. This year the game was being played here in Vancouver at BC Stadium. Last week in the Western Conference Final the local BC Lions were beat by the Edmonton Eskimos and thus missed out on making the game. Making the final from the East was the Montreal Allouettes. I was lucky enough to have a ticket thanks to Mel buying them a while ago.
So yesterday we headed down early to the stadium to soak up some of the atmosphere before the game. I guess it is a bit like being in Melbourne before the Grand Final where they have the build up all week with stuff like the parade and parties, breakfasts etc. There was a bit going on down by the staduim but at the end of the day it was just a lot of food vendors and free handouts that usually end up in the bin anyway.
So i decided to hit up the merchandise stores seeing what merchandise they had for either Edmonton or Montreal. However there was not one stall selling team merchandise anywhere, plenty of Grey Cup Merchandise that was generic and not real interesting, but not one item of either Edmonton or Montreal. I found that slighty odd, but after telling anyone who would listen to me go on about how they were not selling team gear for about 2 hours i gave up trying to buy either a Eskimos or Allouettes Touque (beanie).
After seeing everything that the “Street Party” had to offer we walked a few blocks back into the city and grabbed a much better and cheaper food option then on offer outside or inside the stadium. Finally we headed back to the stadium about 1:45 with the game starting at 3.
The teams went thought their warm ups and then the ground was invaded by all the “Dance Teams” - the politically correct way of saying cheerleaders, or more appropriately “exotic dancers” doing their thing. After that the Mounties carried out the Giant Canadian Flag and unfurled it inside people forming the shape of a Maple leaf. The teams were then introduced admit fireworks, smoke and flames, and O’Canada was sung. One thing about the National Anthem is that everyone seems to have a licence to sing it in his or her own fashion, meaning that each time you hear it you get a different version. So some suck and others are really good. This one was so-so although it was the first time i had heard the English/French version so there were a few lines that i didn’t know the words too.
Then came the kick off. The game was under way. Canadian (and American) football i find tends to be played out quite slow, for a non football fan the only hope you can have is that the game remains close, as it seems to really only becomes interesting in the last 10 minutes of the 4th quarter if the game is tight. Anyway the game got off to a slow start and the score being 10-1 at the end of the first half with the crowd favourite Edmonton being in front. I had gone to the game hoping that Edmonton would win, but with Edmonton out playing Montreal and hoping for a close game i found myself starting to support Montreal. Especially as the Edmonton fans around us were jerks and the two guys who had flown from Quebec to support Montreal complete with faces painted and signs written in French who were sitting on the other side of us minding their own business were totally being worked over to the extreme by the drunken Edmonton fans.
After the half time entertainment (the Black Eyed Peas sung a few songs) i was hoping for Montreal to return some fire. It happened with Montreal getting back into the game and the games coming close. Finally with 10 minutes to go the game it started to get interesting. The game was close and going down the wire. With 1 minute left to play in the 4th Edmonton scored to take a 3 point lead. On the last play of the game with 10 secs left on the clock Montreal kicked a field goal to tie the game and send it to overtime. So the final 30 minutes of a 4 hour marathon were exciting. The game ended up going to a second overtime with Edmonton finally running out 3 point winners 38-35.
It was a great experience to be at the game with a full house at the stadium. Although not exactly comparable the AFL Grand Final, or even a big game at the MCG (such as ANZAC day) it was still fun and something to say that I went to. Next is trying to get a ticket to an Canucks Playoff Games, but i think i’d need to sell a kidney to do that!!!
Some Photos and small movies are also online.
Update: Ok so the movies are not there yet. I’m working on that one…
Andrew McQuillan said,
January 2, 2006 at 4:01 am
Your Vancouver sports pictures are really great, as I am a big fan of the Canucks, Lions and Giants. I was at the Grey Cup and also at the Canucks/Blackhawks game (I can very faintly see me and my brother in one of the Grey Cup pictures.).
It’s pretty cool to have an Aussie perspective on football and hockey, especially football because of the AFL. Between the CFL and the NFL, there are either CFL fans who like both leagues or fans who find the NFL much duller. Our game has more offence than the Americans. The CFL is one of those leagues that is easy to appreciate living in Canada. It’s a bit of a minor league to the NFL, but there’s a wider field and more action, so it’s more entertaining. We’re lucky to have that alternative to the NFL.
We don’t get to watch much AFL at all, because they really never show it up here (Though, my brother watched games and highlights on the AFL website, so I got to see some of it.). There isn’t much awareness about it, but it’s not completely unknown. I have seen some of it before and find it fun to watch. It’s a great style. I don’t know everything about it, but I know the basics, and I guarantee that if I lived in Australia, I would be a die-hard fan of it. It’s too bad there isn’t a pro league in North America of it, because I could watch it when the CFL isn’t on.