Edwards gets a taste of the big time
richmondfc.com.au
By Jennifer Witham
April 23, 2007
EVEN a 32-point loss couldn't dampen the excitement youngster Shane Edwards felt on Friday night after playing his first senior game.
While conceding it was disappointing not to be involved in a win on debut, Edwards said the buzz of running out at the MCG was second-to-none.
"It was really exciting. It was nothing like I'd expected," he said after the match.
"It was a lot louder and it was just really good. I was pretty anxious and I just wanted to get out there and run around as much as I could.
"You can't even stand still out there. It's a really good feeling."
While crowd figure was a fairly modest 36,821, Edwards said he could have been tricked into believing the ground was at full capacity by the roar that went up when the Tigers fought back early in the fourth quarter.
"It felt like there were 100,000 people there. It was really loud," he said.
"We couldn't hear each other call for [the ball]. It was a great feeling, especially when it was our supporters."
He also said the pace of senior footy was a step up from what he's used to.
"In the first warm-up, I was pretty nervous, but the coach just told me to have a look around and get used to the environment before the game started," he said.
"I'd been told it is really quick and it definitely was. I just tried to blend in and keep up with my opponent as much as I could."
Edwards had plenty of support from his family and friends who made the trip over from North Adelaide to see him play alongside fellow debutant Jake King.
"I had my mum, my dad, my brother, my girlfriend and four of my mates from back home in the crowd," he said,
Edwards is confident the worst of his homesickness is behind him. The fact the club placed him with a host family is helping him adjust to life away from home.
"I was missing home at the start, but I'm starting to get the hang of Melbourne now," he said.
"I'm still missing my friends a lot and I miss Adelaide at times. I'm living with a host family in Avondale Heights and they treat me really well.
"I'm not by myself and the club has really looked after me, like they look after all the new guys. We don't have to do anything for ourselves."
http://richmondfc.com.au/Season2007/News/NewsArticle/tabid/6301/Default.aspx?newsId=41789