The following piece appeared in my monthly column in Swan Magazine (December issue).
December ah December, the craziest month of the year, full of endless to-do lists and unrealistic deadlines all completed under the promise of carefree days to come. For freelance writers December presents another conundrum, the ‘Year That Was’ piece. One thousand words that succinctly sum up the preceding twelve months, easy right? I’m pleased to say that this year’s theme started emerging in late September and arrived fully formed after the American elections. 2016, ‘The Year of The Under Dog’.
The trend began in March with a group of media starved celebrities entering the African Jungle for another round of I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here. Doubts were high whether the inclusion of Australian cricket legend Shane Warne, would cause a repeat of the 2015 Freddy Flintoff lovefest. But we were proven wrong when a surprise contender rose to the surface.
AFL bad boy Brendon Fevola stunned us all. His ability to conquer all food and physical challenges was impressive. His candour about past indiscretions, refreshing. But it was his bromance with Anthony Callea, his love-hate relationship with the utterly unique Laurine Fleure, and his tender fatherly approach that helped Warne conquer his fear of spiders, that made the show unmissable. His own shock at taking out the crown only further cemented his position on the ‘Year Of The Underdog’ achievements board.
Roll on to May when Australia was invited to the 61st Eurovision Song Contest in Sweden, thanks to the outstanding inaugural appearance of Guy Sebastian the year prior. Competing against 42 countries, X Factor winner Dami Im, glistened on stage while singing her song, the Sound of Silence. The nation watched on as one of the closest Eurovision countdowns played out. Australia, was sitting on 511 votes with one vote to go. Missing out by only 20 votes Dami Im came second overall, and took out first place in the jury vote. Australia number two in only its second outing in the competition.
Also in May, Australian expat Englishmen tuned in to see if Leicester City could win the English Football Championship cup for the first time. The odds were 5,000 – 1 against them at the start of the season. Their draw with Manchester meant it came down to whether Tottenham would beat Chelsea. The match ended 2-2 giving Leicester the crown without kicking a ball, and as the party began that night, Mark Selby, ‘the Jester from Leicester,’ won the World Snooker championship. Leicester was on a roll.
Meanwhile back in Australia, Adelaide United had been languishing at the bottom of the Australian A-League Football table after eight rounds. The grand final saw them take on the Western Sydney Warriors and eventually hold the cup aloft for the first time in 13 years.
Come June the American NBA saw the Golden State Warriors enter the grand final with a 3-1 win behind them, meaning history had them destined to win the title. That was until the Cleveland Cavaliers proved otherwise, taking out the championship for the first time in their 46 year history. They were the first team to win from a three game deficit.
The year moved on and Western Australians hunkered down into a winter that saw dinner table discussions focus on who still had a job, versus whose family or friends were facing the ‘r’ word, redundancy. If ever there was the need for a good Dave and Goliath story this was it.
By October the American World Series Major Baseball League was wrapping up. The
Cleveland Indians were sitting on a 3-1 record and with the home town advantage they were facing certain victory. They were playing the Chicago Cubs who, legend has it, have been cursed since 1945 when someone brought a goat to the game. Both teams were facing the longest droughts in World Series titles, with 176 years between them. When the Cubs defeated the Indians it marked their first World Series victory in 108 years. There was no mention of whether the goat featured in the celebratory dinner.
Also in October, 6.5 million Australians grabbed a party pie and sat down to watch the AFL grand final where perennial winners the Sydney Swans took on the Western Bulldogs. This was only the third time the Bulldogs had graced the final in their 91-year history. Our love of underdogs and desire for some good news had us crossing our fingers, which made it very hard to pick up a devilled egg.
When the final siren sounded the television audience numbers were up 16% on 2015, making it the highest ratings for the match in a decade. The final score was 89 to 67. The Bulldogs had achieved their first win in 62 years. Redundant workers around the nation stood defiant raising their beers in a gesture that could only be read as ‘take that Goliath’. The outcome was only topped by what has gone down as one of the best acts of sportsmanship, when Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge handed his coaches medal to injured skipper Bob Murphy. Hearts swelled across the nation.
The very next day in the NRL grand final the Cronulla Sharks faced off against the Melbourne Storm. The Sharks were looking to break rugby leagues longest premiership drought of 49 years. Ninety thousand Australians packed into ANZ Stadium and thousands more at home, many whom had never watched the game before. We sat mesmerised. Could David steamroll Goliath again? In a thrilling game of changing leads the result came down to the very last minute. The score 14 – 12. A victory for, The Sharks. David had nailed it.
Away from the sporting field October saw Perth receive a shock accolade on the world stage. The luxury Como Treasury hotel was named the second-best hotel in the world in the Conde Nast Traveller’s Readers’ Choice Award. Not bad for a hotel that’d been open for just over a year.
The very next month Italy’s rugby team beat the South African Springboks for the first time and Australia beat an embarrassed Wales 32 – 8. What’s more the all-conquering All Blacks were beaten by Ireland for the first time in 111 years. One hundred and eleven years people.
In hindsight, was it any wonder then that in the same month some 60 million Americans placed a tick next to Donald Trump’s name? We should have seen the signs.
In the madness that followed the American election it was interesting to read the plight of a young Perth teenager whose Schoolies Week rite of passage ended with a possible drug conviction in Bali. Released into the loving arms of his family after just 48 hours, surely that constitutes the ultimate David and Goliath story of the year.
On a personal note, after a series of rejections this would-be writer had a short story accepted into an anthology. Watch this space for more news around February.
In signing off on 2016, the ‘Year Of The Underdog’ I wonder if maybe next year the meek shall inherit the earth. In the meantime, thank you for your support over the past twelve months.
Merry Christmas and safe holidays.
