Muddy Shorts and Party Shirts

One of the things Jeremy likes best about being in Cambodia is that he gets to play Australian Rules Football (AKA footy) again.  Most Americans don't know anything about this sport, but there's actually an amateur league that Jeremy played in when we lived in Portland, Oregon.  And there's an amateur team here in Phnom Penh.  Anyone who doesn't know footy always say "oh, that's like rugby, right?" but that would be like comparing baseball to cricket.  Yes they have some similarities, but they are actually completely different sports.  If you're really curious, you can learn more about footy at this link.  But the basics are a big field, a ball, a lot of kicking the ball in the air, and two teams of men in short shorts running around the field after the ball.

Last weekend, the Red Army footy team from China traveled down to Phnom Penh to challenge the Cambodian Eagles in a friendly match.  It started absolutely pouring one hour before the match, turning the field into a soupy mess.  Thankfully for the fans, the organizers had put up a big spectator tent with chairs, plus the rain stopped just before the opening toss up.  But that didn't help the players who slipped and slid through 60 minutes of muddy play.

Luckily, I remembered to bring my camera, and remembered to actually take pictures during the match!  When we went to Singapore for a friendly match against the Singapore Wombats, I was so absorbed in watching the match that I forgot to take any pictures at all.

This time, I was able to get a good picture of Jeremy kicking the ball.  He's number 16 with his back to the camera:

And I got this really great one of him catching the ball:

And another one of him jockeying for position on the field:

Sadly, the Chinese Red Army pulled out a victory.  But we still invited them to the after-match celebration.  The Cambodian Eagles love to wear "party shirts" to any social gathering.  A "party shirt" is a bit difficult to define.  It's kind of "you know it when you see it," with any colorful, loud, or patterned shirt usually fitting the bill.  In this photo, several of the Aussie boys are flaunting their party shirts, while I'm displaying my party skirt:

Not to be outdone, the token American players from the two teams gathered for a photo, with the Cambodian Eagles' members wearing some stunning party shirts as well: