By Kyle Jorrey
Sports Editor
Ask your typical American what they know about Australia and chances are you’ll get one, or a combination of: Crocodile Dundee, The Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin, Foster’s Beer, boomerangs, kangaroos and the Outback Steakhouse.
An entertaining list, but not exactly what you would call an accurate worldview.
Pepperdine sophomore Scott Doerner, a native of Melbourne, Australia, said he’s heard it all before.
“I don’t know what to say, but there is a big misconception concerning crocodiles and sharks,” Doerner said. “And the biggest is Foster’s Beer. No one drinks that stuff in Australia, ever.”
Melbourne is the continent’s second largest city, home to more than 3.4 million residents who live around the huge Port Phillip Bay on the southeastern seaboard of Australia. According to Doerner, it is a cosmopolitan city that offers plenty of good times, both day and night.
“The are lots of clubs and pubs in the city … but the atmosphere is more relaxed,” he said.
Because of an impressive public transportation system, the Aussies in Melbourne don’t usually have to worry about finding a ride.
“We have Trams that go all throughout the cities and suburbs, and up and down the coast,” Doerner said. “Everyone uses public transportation in Melbourne.”
While almost impossible to catch on American television, Aussie Rules Football is to Melbourne what Lakers basketball is to L.A. It’s king.
Nearly every weekend, hundreds of thousands of Aussies such as Doerner take to the streets of Melbourne, dressed in their favorite clubs’ jerseys, to “take in a game of footie.”
“Aussie Rules football is basically a religion, it’s awesome,” Doerner said.
“Something like 100,000 people pack into the Melbourne Cricket Grounds and basically just go crazy… it’s the best sport in the world to watch.”
The sophomore said the sport’s reputation for violence is completely accurate.
“I played in high school and guys get knocked out all the time,” he said.
“You can’t just take a swing at someone, but you can run full steam at them and just take them out. It’s great,” he said, in typical Aussie fashion.
Around 95 percent of Australia’s population is located in coastal areas, and Melbourne is no different.
Though the waters in the bay do not remain nearly as warm as they do in the beach communities to the north, the Aussies in Melbourne still take to the water in droves, primarily to surf.
“Surfing is huge all along the east coast,” Doerner said. “The waves are great in Sydney and Melbourne, especially at Bell’s Beach.”
Bell’s Beach is a legendary surf spot just off the coast in Melbourne where the world’s greatest surfers flock to face some of the globe’s biggest waves, often reaching 10 feet or higher on a good day. It was highlighted in the 1990s surfing/action flick “Point Break,” starring Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze.
When they are looking to vacation, citizens of Melbourne are quick to head north to the warm relief of the Gold Coast, or to the unequalled beauty and wildlife of the Great Barrier Reef.
“There is like a billion types of fish up there,” Doerner said.
“People from Melbourne, especially when it gets colder in winter, head up north near Brisbane where it’s warm all-year round,” he continued. “They go up there to get out of the city and basically relax and get pampered.”
With his first year playing for the Waves under his belt, Doerner said he has come to enjoy California. But that doesn’t change his longings for those games of “footie” or a home-cooked Aussie meal, or even drink.
“The beer in Australia tastes much better,” joked Doerner, who pointed out the drinking age in his country is 18. Doerner encouraged any American who has a chance to take a visit to “the land down under.”
“Australia is a place that has a lot of things going for it,” the Aussie said. “There’s only 20 million people in a continent nearly the size of America, so there’s lots of room to roam.
“A lot of people think that the beaches of Malibu are so beautiful, but in my mind, a place like Sydney is 20 times better,” he continued. “You’ve got to check it out.”
September 25, 2003