Mel Buttle: How to be a supportive partner
Talk about dedication. Mel Buttle outlines the steps she’s gone to this week to be a supportive partner. And what she’s learnt along the way.
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I’ve been on a learning curve, my partner plays soccer and with the season in full swing, I’ve been doing my best to learn why the whistle blows and the referee points.
Up until this year, all I’ve known about the game is whoever scores the most goals wins. Terms such as offside were a mystery to me, and to be frank even after a few weeks of dedicated research they still are.
My research on what offside is has spanned from Wikipedia to the old blokes in the clubhouse bar who drink pots of XXXX Gold like water while the matches are on.
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It’s still about as clear as mud, but it’s a good one to have up your sleeve to mutter under your breath to make it seem like you know what’s going on, “offside by a mile ref” is a suitable use of the term to endear yourself to your fellow supporters.
I’m a supportive partner, so I’m at every game, even the ones in the cold, in far-flung locations such as Strathpine. I achieved a personal best a few weekends back where I watched the under 18s and the seniors with no seat and no hot chips.
It got so cold that I put on all the clothes I keep in my car as emergency clothes, you know the ones? The jacket you put in there in case of a natural disaster event, and the jumpers you meant to take to St Vinnies in January but deep down you can’t part with the one that has a pug on it.
I was never big on soccer as a kid, as a Brisbane girl it was rugby league all the way. Just by growing up here, the rules of league and a deep passion are absorbed by osmosis.
Soccer, or football as the true believers call it, hasn’t come naturally to me but here’s what I’ve managed to pick up so far; a corner happens every so often for reasons. The goalkeeper can pick the ball up, on occasion. Whistles blow at regular intervals to signal things to the players. The players try to score goals, it’s quite challenging. Each goal is worth one point, goals can take quite some to organise. I’ve done quite well I think.
