Australian Rules, or
Aussie Rules, is a sport unique to
Australia. It originated from the Irish game of Gaelic Football in the mid-1800s. The first recorded game of Australian Rules took place in
Melbourne on 7 August 1858 between Scotch College and Melbourne Grammar and it was in that year that the rules of the game were formalised into a
code.
The code is most popular in the southern states of
Victoria,
South Australia,
Western Australia and
Tasmania, but with the formation of major clubs in
Sydney in 1983, the sport is now widely followed in
New South Wales and
Queensland.
Australian Rules is played on a large
oval pitch between two
teams, each of 18 players. The teams try to score
goals (six points) through the centre posts, or behinds (one point) through the outer posts. The ball may be
kicked or
punched (handballed), but it may not be thrown. It is a game of positional play, each position using the basic skills of kicking, handball, marking, baulking and shepherding.
Kicking - Soccer excepted, Australian Rules uses more kicking than any other code. The advantage of kicking over other methods of getting rid of the ball, eg hand passing, is distance. The
drop kick, drop punt and torpedo punt are the basc kicks of the
game.
Handball - This skill must be mastered with both hands; the ball is held with one hand until struck with the clenched
fist of the other. It can be used defensively or as an attacking skill to open up
play.
Marking - A crowd-pleasing
feature of the
game.
Height in the
player is helpful but the main essentials of good marking are an ability to spring or
leap into the
air, and timing and judgement in getting into position. The player must always keep his
eye firmly on the
ball when taking a mark. The two kinds of marks are called 'high' and 'body'.
Baulking, Spinning, Pivoting and Shepherding - These are important team skills which can check or block the approach or
tackle of an
opponent. Tackling must be below the
shoulders and above the
knees.