Dave O'Shea picks up a footy for being awarded BOG in the Grand Final last weekend.

Dave O’Shea has been known to sleep with the footy. Last weekend, he played for the Swannies in the Indochina Cup held in Vientiane, Lao. This was his first ever tour with the Swannies. When told that he would be playing four games in one day, he replied, “That’s great!! (Pause…) Five would be better…” Below, the first timer tells us what the weekend was like.

The butterflies kicked in Friday lunch time. It was time to leave for the airport. The thoughts rushing through my virgin brain were, “Do I have my passport?” “Do I have enough time to make the flight?” “What did I forget?” “Is it best to take US dollars or withdraw money when I get to Laos?” By the time I got past check in, I grabbed a beer and started to relax. From then on, everything was a complete hoot…

The Friday night was a warm up of what was to come. We checked out the venue that we knew we would return to on Saturday night after all the footy was finished. First impressions were quite good. Food was nice, the beers were flowing and the atmosphere was electric. The hardest thing about the night was staying in control. This could be a mistake a virgin could easily make. With four games of footy coming up, it was important not to get too carried away. I was in bed by 10:00pm.

On the other side of the Mekong River from Vientiane is Thailand!

I didn’t have the best nights of sleep, Friday night. I couldn’t stop thinking about footy. Even when I got to sleep, I was dreaming about footy. But eventually Saturday morning came and I was ready to go. Phil Ghasseb (another first timer) and I woke up early and went for a romantic walk and a stretch along the lovely Vientiane boardwalk. Right across the river was Thailand.

Eventually, it was time to get on the bus and travel to the ground. The bus ride was full of excitement and anticipation. Four games of footy; this is going to be great.

The ground was behind a tobacco factory. My first thoughts were that the surface was very hard looking and the oval was quite small. I then noticed that the goal posts on one side of the field were wider than the other side. But this was ok because the end that had the narrow goal posts was closer to the centre square. Anyway, the good thing was that we were about to play some footy.

It was like playing footy in country Australia.

It was finally time to open the day. Hearing the Laos anthem for the first time was enjoyable and hearing the Aussie anthem bought back memories from home. It was like playing in “Country Australia” as the ground was surrounded by beautiful gum trees which provided some shade that we could use for our warm ups.

Game No. 1 – Lao Elephants Vs Thailand Tigers

The first game was between Thailand and Laos. This gave our team the opportunity to watch the game and scope the talent that we would be up against later in the day. Thailand looked good in this match and won convincingly in the end. It seemed as if they would be the team that would provide us with our greatest challenge.

Game No. 2 – Vietnam Swans Vs Cambodian Eagles

Our first game was against Cambodia. They were a tough team and were ahead at half time. We had to dig deep in the second half and eventually got on top. We were a bit rusty in this game which is understandable considering it was our first game of the tournament. It was ok as it’s no good playing your grand final in the first day of the game. However, we knew we would have to get better if we wanted to walk away with the trophy at the end of the day.

Game No. 3 – Lao Elephants Vs Vietnam Swans

There was a quick break and then we were back at it again. This time against Laos. Although they had the home ground advantage, we were able to get on top and run out winners. We were now 2 from 2 and looking good for a final spot.

Thailand beat Cambodia in the last game of the day and this meant that they were also 2 from 2.

We were supposed to play Thailand in the last game of the day; however the organizers used some common sense and realized that there was no point having a dead rubber so they decided to play one final of 4 ten minute quarters.  Everyone was happy with this decision.

Play Off for 3rd – Lao Elephants Vs Cambodian Eagles

Cambodia and Laos also had their round match cancelled and played a 3^rd v 4^th final of 4 ten minute quarters. This was a great game and was close the whole time. Lao were down by 6 points and looked to be out the match with a couple of seconds remaining. But in one last effort they sent the ball forward and a grab was taken from one of the Laos natives on the buzzer. He had a kick after the siren to tie the match. He was 30 meters out and on a 45 degree angle. Everyone in the crowd was willing the ball to go through. He slotted the kick straight through the middle and the match ended in a draw. He later said in an interview that he had been dreaming about that moment ever since he was a young boy.

What a great thing for Asian footy.

Grand Final – Vietnam Swans vs Thailand Tigers

Now it was time for the big match. The Swannies were all ready to go after a big break, and it certainly showed on the field. Led by super coach Nat, we played the best game of the tournament. Thailand was shattered and had no answers for our constant onslaught of pressure. We ended up winning convincingly booting 8 goals to 1.

Skipper Dukes picks up the Player of the Tournament.

Tournament Silverware

Vietnam also cleaned up at the presentations. I was awarded best on ground in the Grand Final; our Captain, Dukesy won player of the carnival; Sammy got to put his fingers in the Johnny Walker box and pull out a winning ticket held by no other than Danny Armstrong (a former resident Swannie who flew in from Shanghai to be part of the action for one more time). He received a 4 litre bottle of Johnny Walker black.  It was going to be a great night for the Swannies.

A mega night it was. We went back to the same venue from the night before. This time we were able to eat as much as we wanted and have a few celebratory drinks – including Danny’s 4 litre bottle!

What a trip it was. It was a great way to lose my first timer status. BOG in the Final and Swannies cleaning up all the awards.

I can’t wait for the next one.