Playing in Australia

With all the rain and its’ unpredictability the coaches and captains have created some alternative training options for the team. Thursday we ran to the tennis training complex (Pat Rafter Arena) about 2 km away and used two adjoining tennis courts to run training. This is the arena where the Australian Open has been played and is a top notice tennis training facility.

On Saturday July 14, 2012 I had the opportunity to watch the Yeronga Senior men’s team play. The field was wet from the previous days of rain. The men were constantly sliding through puddles and you could tell it was tough to get your hands on the ball. In addition the ball was heavy due to being saturated by the puddles of water making long kicks nearly impossible. The Men played with heart and never let up. They came away with the win. The men came off the field worn out but satisfied by their win.

We typically have games on Sunday but this weekend our game was on Saturday night at 5:45 against Palm Beach. We played at their field which is located on the Gold Coast. By 5:45 it is dark here so it was another game under the lights. I have never played under the lights and now two games under the lights. It is a unique experience to play under the lights and I have grown to enjoy it!

We arrived to training on Tuesday to see a pile of tennis balls. Was this Footy training or Tennis training? Curious I thought. After warming up Head Coach Jake Simmons-Bliss had us pair up and grab a tennis ball. We used the tennis balls to help improve our eye-hand coordination with the ball. We need to be precise and build our skills. This is an exercise I am sure to bring back to the states and use. Jake informed me he has tons of unique training exercises up his sleeve.