This weekend was my last AFL game for the year. The last time I will see Hawthorn run out onto the MCG for Season 2009 (unless by some miracle Fremantle beats Essendon, we beat Essendon next week and pigs fly). After such a stellar season least year, it’s hard to believe we sucked so much this year, but AFL is one of those sports that, thou we try, is completely unpredictable from week to week.

But the underlying subject of this blog is not Hawthorns ‘one hit wonder’ status (although we could debate that all day), or whether the Grand Final this year will be Geelong and St Kilda – its about what one wears to the game. Melburnian through and through, I never fail to dress for fashion rather than warmth to attend a football game. On trend as I might look, I am always freezing, sitting Southern Stand level 1 at the G and wondering why I don’t learn from week to week.

This week jeans, a long sleeve t shirt, cardi, flats and Hawks scarf seemed a great idea at 5.30pm when I left the house and it was still daylight. Come siren for quarter time, my bare feet had turned an eerie shade of purple and the person next to me was stuttering with the vibrations from my shivers. When will I learn that footy season = winter and winter = cold! Double layers of socks are required, and long sleeve t shirts and cardigans should be paired with coats and scarves.

But as cold as I was, a brief look around the spectators yielded girls in Hawthorn (and Richmond) Guernseys with bare arms, one girl in knee high boots and short shorts, and another in a dress clearly designed for a nightclub and not a night football game.

All this begs the question – what is appropriate footy attire? Quite often we go for a meal before or after the game, and trackies with your team jumper won’t cut it on Hardware Lane. If you are lucky enough to be MCC or in a corporate box, suits are the order of the day – but how can one show team support in a Peter Jackson number?

With Melbourne being the home of football, and football being a winter sport, I really think the only way to go to the football is to choose warmth over fashion. It’s ok to wear multiple layers and several scarves. Ultimately, it’s about showing support for your team. Bring out the colour – yellow and brown for me – and banish the dreary Melbourne black for a few nights a year. Pull on the striped jumpers, beanies and scarves, and wave your flags with passion and pride. You might look like you’ve gained 10 kilos and yellow and brown might not be the most flattering of colours but you are part of something bigger.

The irony of this blog is that the reason I can’t attend the games in the coming weeks is because the Melbourne Spring Fashion Week is on, and I am a volunteer. So it really does come down to choosing footy or fashion – and given the choice – I’m all about the fashion.