Defending champions the Rockdogs have assembled a huge squad, featuring members of Saskwatch, Modesty, Bodyjar and Big Scary, as well as Cup veterans Ash Naylor and Kat Spazzy, and team captain Nick Cooper (My Dynamite). “Coops is an awesome captain,” says ‘Dogs defensive player and Scotdrakula drummer Evianne Camille. “He’s so good at encouraging everybody and he can play really well.”
The Triple R 102.7FM/ PBS 106.7FM Megahertz are determined to reclaim the Cup after a few disappointing years. In order to do, Megaz co-captains Cat McGauran (The Breakfast Spread, PBS) and Chris Gill (Get Down, Triple R) have formulated an intricate plan. “It ends with us drinking champagne from the Cup,” says Gill. “There definitely is a combined Triple R/ PBS wonder twin powers activate-type vibe about to be unleashed.”
This year is the Cup’s 21st anniversary. During that period of time, the on-field battle between local musos and community radio personnel has become an unassailable component of Melbourne music mythology. Who’d have thought a sporting contest would so aptly embody the solidarity underpinning Melbourne’s music scene, eh?
“Being involved in music, a lot of people are quite apprehensive to rap about sport,” says Gill. “They think it’s like, ‘Oh you’re into music, that’s high culture.’ But it’s like, ‘This is Melbourne – come on.’ It’s a little more blurred here. Football itself, as opposed to rugby, is a lot less of a violent sport. [Rugby’s] a bit meat and potatoes, whereas football’s a bit more of a stir-fry. There’s a lot of different types of players and a lot of different things happening, and a lot of different types of people are represented in the audience. We’ve had lots of involvement from spectators on the day, which has, let’s just say, been rather naked and magical.”
21 years into its existence, the Community Cup isn’t struggling to pick up new followers. A hefty percentage of those who attend quickly become unofficial Cup ambassadors. This is precisely what happened with Camille.
“I am telling everybody, all the time,” she says. “I ran into one of my high school teachers, who I haven’t seen in 15-20 years, and was like ‘You’ve got to come to the Community Cup.’ And she didn’t know what it was. Now that I’m part of it, I think that everybody knows about it – and if they don’t, they definitely should.”
This will be Camille’s second time wearing Rockdogs colours, after debuting in 2013. Strangely enough, she was more or less oblivious to the Community Cup prior to strapping on the boots. “I got nominated because they needed some more girls,” she says. “So I joined very late in the game and it was terrifying. I’m terrified of the football, which makes playing a little bit hard.”
2013 was a particularly noteworthy year for the Cup, as the game ended in a tie. “I was like, ‘Oh, this is great, community spirit’,” says Camille. “But everyone was like ‘No – we have to win.’”
Indeed, after witnessing a combined training session, Gill, assumes a far more competitive standpoint. “We were awesome,” he deadpans. “Dave Larkin [Dallas Crane/ Rockdogs] was talking down his fitness, and if the rivers of sweat pouring off him were any indication, he might be right. We have Jazzy John Bailey [Stolen Moments, Triple R]. He’s an Englishman and he hasn’t got a lot of clue about the game, but boy can he run. That is the magic of the Community Cup.”
BY AUGUSTUS WELBY
