Still Hate the Roosters (Part II): Up Close With Bunnymund’s Red and Green Relative

As loyal readers of my blog and avid fans of the South Sydney Rabbitohs know, I have much respect for the team, and even more respect for their beloved mascot, Reggie.  As described in an earlier entry, I practically poured my heart out for just how important this enormous bunny is to the oldest and most winning rugby league club in Australia.  And quite frankly, I am not ashamed one bit to say that I adore this long-eared Aussie as a fan of both footy, Australia, and of course, rabbits.  During my return to The Burrow inside the Roosters home turf at Allianz Stadium, I finally came face to face with this rabbit from Redfern.

From the minute the opening kick sailed across field, I saw an entire year of waiting flash by in an instant.  It’s as if one year since my first footy match just flew by like the proverbial football that just sailed across Allianz.  Either way, I was ready and raring for some footy action.  But less than one minute into the game, something caught my eye from just up the field as I was sitting with The Burrow in the end zone.  There was Reggie, waving to the red and green faithful.  Like the  proverbial rabbit, I hopped down the bay to wave him down.  What followed was a veritable juggling act of sorts; trying to unravel my poster while fiddling with my iPhone camera and my camcorder.  I looked pretty dorky like some amateur paparazzi with all my cameras and posters.  But this was one opportunity that I would not let slip through my fingers.  Mustering my courage and throwing all caution to the wind, I saw Reggie greeting a nice couple along the fence barriers separating our bay from the field, and that is one good thing about the venue at Allianz: you really feel so close to the field and the action on it.

 

I took a deep breath, picked up my poster, and unraveled it before Reggie.  Like a nervous child, I cooed out, “Reggie!  I made this for you!  I came all this way for you, all the way from New York!”  What followed was a fist bump and a hug.  For about five seconds, I felt like time stood still.  This was more than just a hug, it was rite of passage as a Souths fan.  I can’t fully explain why this moment felt so magical.  Perhaps underneath my red and green paraphanalia, I’m just a kid at heart.  Or perhaps I still felt enchanted by Bunnymund’s ass-kicking awesomeness from Rise of the Guardians.  Or maybe that as a giant bunny circles the field, a team nicknamed “The Bunnies” are giving the opposing team the beating of their lives!

 

After my initial hug, I did something that normally, I don’t enjoy doing: selfies.  I’m honestly not that photogenic and I find selfies to be a bit annoying.  This, however, was no time to be proud.  I whipped out my iPhone, and begin clicking away.  I still don’t take a good selfie, but it didn’t matter.  Despite my awkward smile, I was very happy.  Meanwhile, I still had my camcorder rolling.  With one hand, I was doing selfies, while my other hand was pointing  my camcorder at me in a “selfie-esque” way.  I looked like such a clumsy dork, but I was too excited to care.  Thankfully, the same couple who I saw a few seconds earlier said they were more than happy to film me with Reggie.  And at that moment, I felt like the luckiest Bunnies fan in the world!  I mean, can you think of any other fan who’d come thousands of miles away for a moment like this?!  The only other Rabbitohs moment I’d love to be a part of would be Souths winning the Grand Final!  Still, I wouldn’t trade this crazy moment for anything else.  Maybe another meeting with Reggie?

Oh, and on one more note, you know how I have always praised Souths fans for being loyal and kind?  Well, I wasn’t aware of this at the moment I was doing selfies with Reggie, but one of my Rabbitohs friends from Twitter and Facebook was repeatedly snapping photos of me with our long-eared leader.  It wasn’t until the following morning that I discovered on Facebook that my friend from Facebook shot and uploaded nearly a dozen shots of me and Reggie, and in such high definition too!  If there’s one thing I can say, it’s this:  “Thank You, Elizabeth!  Good on ya!”  As for Reggie, let me just say this: “This world could use a few more Australian bunnies!”

TO BE CONTINUED…

NEXT TIME:  Despite the happy tones, I’m afraid I must delve into a darker place in the next part of this story of Souths VS Easts…