Dawn and those mad Sainters

by Yvette Wroby

There’s no shortage of crazies at the St.Kilda Football Club.  This was proven when 1000+ Saints fans and members rocked up to the St.Kilda Beach front at 5 am Tuesday 8^th November for an advertising shoot for 2012 Membership Drive.  At 6.30 am, another group was waiting at Frankston beach, and at 10 am, another group at Brighton Beach.

My friend Rina and I decided on the earliest time at the nearest location.  I got up 4.15am to get to Rinas at 5 and the beach by 5.20.  People streamed into the shelter of St.Kilda Baths Café, who kindly opened early for free rolls and coffee and tea (we paid for those).

And as we gathered, so did the lightning and the thunder and the rain, soaking those as they came to be part of this day.  Sam Gilbert blessed us with his presence and I got another good photo, this time, with me and an autograph on my flag as well.  I was back to being 12 years old again, it never went away, just got buried under all those years and wrinkles and rolls of fat.  When the rain eased, we started to go out again, and I lined up to get Scott Watters autograph and photo and I can’t believe how cute he is, how friendly he is, and, my goodness, how bloody young he is.  We got new scarves and hats, the same one as last year.  I’m putting all mine together to make a blanket now that my old sewing machine is working again!

Then the film crew got all the Sainters to line up on the shore front, looking out to the horizon, with instructions not to look at the chopper when it comes in a few minutes time.  We were lucky to get into the first 200 in the line close to the beginning, others were moving along trying to take up the whole beach area.  We were asked not to wave flags or arms or sing, just to stand out and look at the horizon.  It felt very weird but good.  There were young ones and old ones, a baby, people in wheelchairs, they stayed up on the platform.

So, as with any film shoot, there was a lot of waiting around and talking to other crazy people, some who’d come before work, school or life in general.  For the time we were on the foreshore, it didn’t rain.  So maybe the footy gods were looking out for us.  (Footy Gods, can you get us that blessed second flag as well please?)

How hard is it to look at the horizon when a helicopter flies 20 metres in front of you, being so close your hats and scarfs get blown back?  It flew by 5 times, and we stood still and proper as asked.  Rina kept picking up plastic bottle garbage floating on the water line, which we threw out with our coffee cups.  We were asked to stay put, a hand held camera would take close ups, and we were in the first hundreds that this covered.  I wore my knitted hat so I could spot myself in the ad or on TV.  All three news services have covered the event tonight, I am yet to see the people’s news on the ABC at 7pm.

Behind us, interviews were being conducted with Nick Reiwoldt (who looks very fit and healthy) and Scotty Watters and Michael Nettlefold (boy has he been a busy beaver over the last 5 weeks).

Finally, the group was gathered for a big photo for the Herald/Sun and then, we began to chant and sing.  First, St.Kilda (clap clap clap), second, our team song, and finally, just mad cheering and waving of flags and hands.  All smiles.  Then the rain came again, so we scuttled off, and I got home in time to see my daughter head off to school.  She’s 17 and thinks I’m completely nuts.  Then again, we all think our parents are nuts at 17.  Plus, she barracks for her Dad’s team, the Blues.

Then Rina sends me the following email:

(As an explanation, Rina is studying for her batmitzvah at the age of 56, and the discussion is about the prayer shawls worn by the religious folk, usually men, but in the more liberal congregations, women wear talliths as well)

Hi Yvette,

Wasn’t it fun this morning?

I was just looking up guide notes for my non-Jewish friends who will attend schul for my Bat Mitzvah and look what I found…..

Colors

• Different tribes would have worn talliths of different colors. Most Jews wore a basic white tallith that had blue, black or purple stripes. The members of the tribe of Levi wear red cloths with black and white stripes. Moses is said to have worn a tallith of the tribe of Levi in these colors.

Go Moses! Go Saints! J

Rina xxx

So that is this is how we spent the morning, or pre-morning if you will.  On looking up the St.Kilda website, we feature in photo 39 (me getting my autograph from Watters) and in photo 52 with the helicopter.  I deliberately wore my knitted hat to easily identify myself.  I missed on the “shy” gene when I was made up.

 

Yvette Wroby

Roving reporter for the Saints (in her dreams) and the footyalmanac.com.au (I’m living the dream).