I’m in Jacksonville early to see visit family and to have a bit of a winter break before the big game next Saturday. I went to the ‘Best of Jacksonville’ event at The Museum of Contemporary Arts last night. This was a fund raiser that showcased food and drink from the best restaurants in the city and the Rabbitoh team was invited to attend.

I arrived a bit late and the museum was already packed. It’s a two story building with the interior lined with various auction tables and food stations that could only be glimpsed through of the throngs of people that surrounded them. The team was already there, mingling as best they could. I have to say that when I saw so many familiar faces all at once it was a daunting task to truly be sure as to who was who! Other than seeing them on the Souths’ website, at Telstra for a few games and on my little bitty computer screen when Setanta streamed a rare webcast, my ability to recognize the individuals on the team was hampered and limited.

It was also a bit awkward for me to just go up to these gentlemen and introduce myself when I surmised that they would be taken aback that I knew their name and was familiar with the team and footy in general. As we all mutually winded around this packed art gallery I just went with the flow and talked to anyone I recognized, welcoming them to the States and explaining as best I could, when inevitably but understandingly asked, how and why I was a fan of the Souths. As surreal as the situation seemed to me, it was still a lot of fun to actually meet them!

I spoke to many of the players, very briefly, not wanted to intrude on their evening. Because of the extremely loud background music any real conversation was near to impossible but once they had gotten over their bewilderment about me I had a good time talking to everyone, congratulating them on the previous season, commiserating about jet lag, asking them about their impressions of Jax and wishing them luck in the upcoming game. They seemed to be having a good time with each other as they navigated this situation and were welcoming to anyone who approached them to chat. Many said they were looking forward to enjoying themselves and experiencing a small part of the US but wanted to focus on training to continue to get ready for the new season.

Everyone was gracious to me and I look forward to seeing them all in the upcoming events. When I was talking to Dean Widders, who is as intelligent and affable as he appears on SSTV, he asked me if I knew of any other fans that might be coming to Jacksonville. I told him that I was certain that on game day there would be more people enthusiastically cheering for Souths than Leeds. He seemed surprised but also pleased that could be true!