The flip of the coin
Those last few moments before an AFL match begins are amongst the most iconic in Australian sport.
There are the visual cues of umpires being put through their preparatory paces and the two teams running through their banners.
There are the auditory thrills of a stadium of footy fans firing up their teams and the testing of the sirens.
The anticipation of a great sporting battle on a wintry Australian day puts people on the edge of their seats in the stands and across the country. The umpire raises the Sherrin high above his head.
Then there comes a small lull in the crowd as the coin is flipped high in the centre of the ground, with the captains paying keen attention, following the coin’s arc as it rises then it falls to the ground. The crowd erupts as one captain raises his arm to signal his team’s first small win of the day.
On Saturday afternoon at Manuka Oval, United States Ambassador Jeffrey Bleich joined the pre-game ritual that all footy lovers look forward to – the toss of the coin to determine how the Western Bulldogs and Sydney Swans would line up.
Ambassador Bleich took this honor seriously, telling the umpires how he practiced in the privacy of the Embassy grounds. No doubt many footy fans cast envious eyes on that man in the middle of the ground.
With a toss that would have made any two-up player jealous, Ambassador Bleich flipped the coin and, after a respectable period of air-time, delivered the Doggies their first little victory of the match.
Afterwards, the Ambassador made his way off the ground and back up into the stands with a smile on his face that you’d expect to see on a first gamer who was best on ground.
The game ended up being a typical Swans grinding battle and, with the predominantly red and white crowd, the noise on the final siren was impressive from the 10,000 strong. While not a particularly skillful game, the match was exciting as Sydney recovered from an 18 point deficit in the first quarter to win by eight.
Ambassador Bleich enjoyed an enthralling battle in the company of some of the legends of the game as well as other notable AFL supporters and administrators, such as Tom Harley, Simon Garlick, David Smorgon, Kate Lundy, and Mick Dodson.