Australian football has countless detractors. For a variety of reasons, that might be said.

Domestically the elite AFL level of the game is perhaps involved jealously. To keep video games down, there’s some well frayed fronts that get scampered out.

Ironically this weekend, a retired American NFL punter with a high profile in his homeland has dispelled one of those delusions about our homegrown game.

The easy putdown that we so often hear is that in 160 years, the game of Australian football has struggled to break into New South Wales and Queensland. So what’s to think that it could have international plead? The suggestion is that no one outside of Australia can fall in love with the game unless they grew up with it.

And then along came Pat McAfee.

Pat McAfee.

American plays analyst Pat McAfee is a new fan of the AFL.( Photo by Slaven Vlasic/ Getty Images for SiriusXM)

He is a retired punter for the Indianapolis Colts, who since his retirement in early 2017 has developed a sketch as an American football game and fighting specialist, plus as a stand-up comedian as well as appearing on nationally syndicated radio.

With numerous athletics shut down due to the current Covid-1 9 pandemic, in the early hours of Saturday morning Indianapolis time, McAfee stumbled upon some live play. Fremantle were taking on Essendon in a game he’d never before seen in an drain 55,000 -seat stadium on a realm that is as foreign to McAfee as are the rules of this game.

There’s nothing familiar. No crossbar purposes. No rectangular subject. No formation represents or offside concepts.

And more, this first activity has made an impression despite the absence of crowd-generated atmosphere. McAfee announced a series of tweets in the first quarter, including this one.

I’ve watched one one-fourth of Aussie Rules Football and I already know that this sport was supposed to be my announce back in the day.

This was supposed to be my sport.

When my child arrives in the next marry yrs, his ass is gonna be punting& punching balls all around the house.

— Pat McAfee (@ PatMcAfeeShow) March 21, 2020

And the next day he continued.

Last night I was introduced to the @AFL .. I don’t know how I’ve go this long not knowing it existed.

It’s INCREDIBLE. pic.twitter.com/ aiYQo5tlNy

— Pat McAfee (@ PatMcAfeeShow) March 21, 2020

The game has certainly made an impression.

As it is, I’ve followed international Australian football for about 20 times and have spoken with many men and women from around the world who have fallen in love with a game represented professionally on the other side of the world. It can and does happen. So many have regretted that they didn’t have access to the game as they grew up.

The point being that the all-round skill requirements are a feature. Many parties grew up playing volleyball, or basketball, or football, or rugby, or gridiron. Nonetheless, in Australian football, they find a athletic where they can combine pretty well all the skills they’ve developed across a broad range of plays in time one game.

For the AFL, this weekend has already been worth it from this promotional attitude. Alas, we are currently examine a major clampdown on activities and the AFL is postponing its season.

The AFL would have adoration to provide more content for another couple of weeks at least to the sports-starved world. We are simply be supposed that as the countries of southern hemisphere moves towards wintertime that ordinary sport undertaking will likely resume in the northern hemisphere before it does here.

We can only hope that by May 31 the authorities have gathered the provoke at the right time and a local continue is foreseeable. However, May 31 is the best part of ten weeks apart and I seriously suspense that we’ll be resuming prior to winter.

Read more: theroar.com.au