(Hardly) The Sports Authority

Happy Friday afternoon (where you all are)! It's
Saturday morning here, and I knew I could get one more
New Zealand e-mail off before the weekend.

So, I found an appropriate topic: sports. I have
heard and heard and heard about all of the sports at
home this weekend, so I thought I would share some
information about sports in New Zealand. Just call me
the Sports Authority. (But not really, maybe actually
the furthest thing from it. In fact, the line you are
most likely to hear when I am watching sports here is
'What just happened?').

First, though, I have to say a big 'Let's Go!' to the
Waukee Warriors - homecoming tonight. The good old
boys in purple are 3-1 in their first year in 4-A.
Not too bad... I'll be checking the sports scores
late late late tonight! Woo hoo!

Secondly, 'GO HAWKS!' What a great win for the state
of Iowa that will be! Even cyclone fans have to admit
it...

Lastly, 'Go Panthers!' What a great win for the
northeast part of the state of Iowa that will be!
Even Cyclone fans have to admit it... But really, it
will be a good game either way. And almost EVERYONE I
know at home is going to go to it. So have heaps and
heaps of fun!

Now, to local entertainment:

New Zealand sports leaves a lot to be desired.

A Lot.

No football, no baseball, no basketball.

Instead we have rugby, cricket, and netball. Yuk,
yuk, and yuk.

Rugby:
Rugby is an interesting sport. It's the closest thing
to football, but isn't really at all. The men who
play rugby are as big without pads as the men who play
football are with pads. And they're tough. Like
play-tackle-rugby-with-no-pads-or-protection-to-your-head
tough. I think a rugby player could crush my head
with his thighs.

The hardest part of adjusting from football to rugby
is that the players get tackled, and then keep on
playing. They just toss it from the ground to the
next closest player who runs, then gets tackled and
throws it from the ground to the next closest player,
and so on. I still haven't figured out where the
strategy is, or what has to happen to end the darn
play.

But, I guess if you've grown up watching it, it's
normal to you. My friend Tahi (whose name I could
only remember by thinking that it was the first two
syllables in the word Tahiti) said he never understood
'gridiron' football, because the player would get the
ball, and things would get exciting, but then he'd get
tackled and the play would stop. (As if that's weird,
right?).

So I just told him not to talk to me anymore.

Cricket:
Cricket sucks. Is this even a sport? Come on! I
have no more words to say about cricket. At all.

Netball:
I haven't figured out this one yet either. If I am
inferring correctly from what I've seen, netball is
played without a backboard by women, and with a
backboard for men, although that makes no sense.
Also, it's a non-contact sport, which makes it boring.
And the ladies wear skirts, which makes the whole
sport, in general, virtually unwatchable.

Go Cowboys?