AFL Grand Final day in Shanghai

On Saturday I was able to experience my second AFL Grand Final outside of Melbourne.  The first occurred back in 2007 when I was over in Honolulu - my co-worker John and I finished up early on the Friday afternoon and made our way to one of the only places on the island which was showing the game...and proceeded to be extremely bored by the absolutely thrashing that Geelong dealt to Port Adelaide.  It was good to be able to see the game, but there weren't too many other Aussies there, and the atmosphere was a bit lacking.

Saturday was completely different.  The local AFL footy team (the Shanghai Tigers) have been organising a Grand Final day event in Shanghai for the last few years.  This year it was held at a pub named Big Bamboo, which I've blogged about before.  The game was due to start at 12:30pm local time, and the event began at 11am, so it was an early start for me.  I arrived to find the place already extremely full of Aussies - they were everywhere!  I paid my entrance fee ($AUD40 for free beer until 6pm and free BBQ lunch), got my complimentary stubby holder and made my way inside.  I ran into a few people that I knew almost immediately and sat down at their table.  Quickly dispensing with the VB that I'd been given at the door, I moved onto the Pure Blondes and watched with interest as more and more patrons came in through the door.

By the time the telecast started, there must have been around 200 people in the bar; 98% were Australians.  We watched with pride as John Farnham, Jimmy Barnes and Mark Seymour performed (You're The Voice with all three of them - awesome!), and when the Australian national anthem was played the entire crowd stood as one and sang our hearts out.  It was fantastic!  Indeed, aside from being at an actual game at the MCG, it was the biggest group of people I've ever watched an AFL game with.

At half time there was a brief interlude while everyone got some food (delicious BBQ) and the organisers drew raffle tickets and gave out door prizes - I actually won a gift voucher for a meal at a fairly fancy restaurant worth $AUD150 or so - not bad!  Haven't used it yet but it's still valid for another month or so.  The game itself was extremely exciting and stayed close for the entire 4 quarters. Disappointed that Geelong one (my Dad is a Saints fan) but the quality of the match was excellent considering the conditions. 

The day finished at around 6pm local time, when the free beer stopped and the bar reverted to it's normal layout in preparation for the evening crowd.  By this stage the majority of patrons that were there for the Grand Final had left, but a few of us continued on.  I ended up migrating from there to Xintiandi to get a meal, and then hopped from bar to bar along the strip there until the wee hours of the morning.  Finally got home exhausted by 2am - it was a long day, but heaps of fun.