Source :- THE AGE NEWS
AFL great Nick Riewoldt knows what it’s like to have his heart pounding when running up the race and on to the hallowed turf that is the MCG on grand final day.
That’s why he can’t wait to see how the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers react when they enter the fabled cauldron come the historic first-ever NFL regular season game here on Friday before a sell-out crowd expected to nudge 100,000 fans.
“If the crowd get up and about, and we’re told there’s going to be a lot of travelling fans, I hope you get a Collingwood or Carlton type roar when the teams emerge, and we’re able to really sort of showcase the passion Melbourne and Australian people have for sport,” Riewoldt, a key member of Seven’s free-to-air commentary on Friday, told this masthead.
“I hope that’s the way it unfolds.”
Seven will take the Netflix play-by-play feed for the game, but Riewoldt and Ben Graham, the Australian punter who played in the 2009 Super Bowl with the Arizona Cardinals, will have key roles to play in the pre-game, half-time and post-game coverage on the free-to-air network.
Former Rams running back Todd Gurley will also feature.
Graham said the two fierce divisional rivals may take time to adjust to playing in a cavernous stadium which is not purpose built for American football.
“They will be blown away by the size of the MCG. They may never have played in a stadium where the grandstands aren’t right on top of the field. That’ll take a little bit to get used to, but once the game starts, once kickoff comes, it’ll be all irrelevant,” Graham said.
“They will be totally locked in to what they’re doing. They will be aware of any weather conditions that are going to affect the way they play. But once that game starts … you lock in once the ball’s kicked off.”
Several 49ers’ players attended Friday night’s elimination final between Geelong and Carlton at the MCG, hours after arriving in Melbourne.
Kicker Eddy Piñeiro said the 49ers would be ready to handle the local conditions.
“We got here a week early, getting accustomed to the time, the people. We will be ready to rock and roll,” he said.
The Rams will not arrive in Melbourne until Thursday, but several of their players have brushed up on their history of the MCG, having toured the venue over the past year, and also watched a live AFL game.
Star Rams’ cornerback Jaylen Watson said he had played before six-figure crowds in college, but the experience here would be one he and his teammates would not forget.
Riewoldt’s excitement is unbridled, and he has seen first-hand the show the NFL typically delivers, having spent 2023 with American-born wife Catherine and their young family in Houston. Their three boys became ingrained in American football, while Riewoldt had stints with ESPN on its game coverage aimed at an Australian audience.
He said the average sports fan can expect a high-class game between the loaded Rams, already the Super Bowl favourites, and a divisional opponent steeped in tradition.
“It’s violent chess … it’s a very nuanced game, really,” Riewoldt, the St Kilda great, said.
“The stop-start nature of it dictates that it’s a nuanced game. But, at the end of the day, you’ve still got you know some of the biggest, strongest, fastest athletes in the world running around trying to hurt each other.”
Amid the AFL finals hoopla, the MCG, including dressing rooms and food and drink outlets, will be transformed this week into the home base for a sport that delivers all the US razzmatazz any sports fan could want.
Graham, a former Geelong captain before switching careers, said Melbourne had a chance to leave an indelible mark in the mind of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
“This will feel like grand final week … this is as big an event, as it is a game itself, but the fact that we’re having an NFL game in Melbourne for the first time in Australia is groundbreaking,” Graham said.
“We’ve seen how quickly it has grown internationally, into other countries. This year there are nine games played in seven countries on four continents, and the commissioner has made it clear he wants as many as 16 games played internationally.”
Graham made four stops in the NFL, including with the Detroit Lions when he played alongside Matthew Stafford, now the Rams’ star quarterback and reigning league most valuable player after leading the league last season with 4,707 passing yards and 46 passing touchdowns.
He caught up with Stafford last November and offered an open-ended invitation to a BBQ when here, but because of the Rams’ tight schedule, will make do with a quick chat after the game.
Seven’s pre-game coverage begins at 9am on Seven and 7plus.
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Jon Pierik is a sports journalist at The Age. He covers AFL and has won awards for his cricket and basketball writing.Connect via X or email.
