Australian rules football.Unit 5

[mdelgado]

In Australia they play a game called Australian rules football. Is a variant of football played between two teams of 18 players, plus four interchange players in a team, outdoors on large oval-shaped grass fields (often modified cricket fields), with a ball in the shape of a prolate spheroid. The primary aim of the game is to score goals by kicking the ball between the middle two posts of the opposing goal. The winner is the team with the higher total score at the end of the fourth quarter. Except for special circumstances, if the score is tied a draw is declared. The game is also distinguished from other games by the fast, relatively free movement of the ball (partly due to the absence of an offside rule) and the awarding of a free kick for any clean catch – known as a mark – of a ball which has been kicked more than 15 meters. Spectacular high marks, tackles and fast, fluid play are the game's main attributes as a spectator sport. The vast majority of players do not wear any of the protective clothing used in other football codes; the few who do typically do so for medical reasons. Although it is a winter sport, pre-season competitions usually begin in late February (that is, in the Australian summer); the football season proper is from March to August, with finals being held in September.