It's a losing battle... Just let them go!

The battle of Hastings, the Somme, Gallipoli; they all resinate in my mind as great battles in history; yet the whole State of Origin battle doesn’t seem to reach that level for me; maybe I just don’t get it.

Yes ladies it’s that time again – and no I’m not talking about the end of financial year sales- State of Origin is upon us once again, and once again my care factor is hovering around zero. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a keen NRL fan – being a Tigers fan since birth – but the hype that surrounds these three games is beside me.

It’s just a game like every other game. It could be my countless disappointment in the Blues over the past five years that has turned me off the game – considering the last time they won I was 14 years old! And a loss to their name after game one only confirmed my disappointment in the Blues.

My boyfriend and I decided to watch the first game on the lounge in front of the heater, I could deal with that – just as long as he’d let me cuddle up to him in the process. But 20 minutes before kick-off he got a call from his mates to join them at the local leagues club; at this moment his eyes lit up and looked to me for approval – not that he needed it since he already made up his mind. So I put on my good-girlfriend pants and let him go.

Feeling quite inspired – and not bored at all…honest (I wonder how well sarcasm translates online..?), I thought I’d write a pre-warning for game two for all the girls to prevent any heartbreak or complete and utter frustration towards the guys tonight or in the coming weeks.

Don’t bother organising a night out with any individual carrying the Y chromosome because the answer will be no. Anything that could hinder their ability to wholly commit to popping their bottoms on the lounge or ducking down to the local pub to watch the game is a no-go.

So before you book a romantic dinner or hire The Notebook to snuggle up on the couch with your guy, forget about it because it’s not gonna’ happen. Just like our need to straighten our hair, the need to watch the State of Origin is almost genetic in males and goes against human nature not to have their eyes glued to that screen.

Since federation there has been a rivalry between the New South Welshmen and the Queenslanders that can only be resolved on the footy field. It’s the NRL’s best of the best battling it out for 80 mins to determine which state is superior; I mean how else would you figure it out?

But is it really about the football, or an excuse to share a bromance with friends? A friend of mine, Brenton McIntyre, revealed to me that State of Origin is “good chance to catch up with mates and have a few beers.” Well that makes sense seeing as boys aren’t the type to ring each other and have a chat about their days.

But rest assured I’ve compiled a list of activities for you and the girls to fill up these lonely Wednesday nights.

> You could just watch the game (aghh blasphemy!)? There are plenty of good looking lads on the field (I would know I’ve enjoyed doing my research), keep an eye-out for Mitchell Pearce, Josh Dugan (even if he isn’t there tonight!) and Billy Slater; trust me they are man-candy when it comes to the squad.

> If you haven’t jumped on the Angry Boys bandwagon then what are you waiting for? Conveniently airing at 9pm Wednesday nights on the ABC, you’ll be able to laugh yourself silly or sing along to the Glee finale on TEN, rather than sobbing in your room reading Twilight for the 7^th time.

> Check out a movie at our local cinema – I checked out Water for Elephants last weekend and it was fantastic, plus if you can’t find a plus one, no one will notice you sitting alone.

> Go out for dinner – girls never need an excuse to catch up and have a gossip over a meal so why not send out some texts and escape the NRL frenzy.

> Opt for a girls-night-in, considering no guys are home. I’m feeling a Gossip Girl marathon, mud-masks and lots of chocolate.

Spare yourself the heartache and prepare for a night away from the guys; although as the old saying goes “if you can’t beat them, join them!”

At the end of the day it’s just sport, girl!

This week we have Brian D’Lima and Brendan Burke on the panel as we dig into the following issues in sport over the past week:

Show Outline

Tennis

• Australian Open
  • Women’s Final
  • Men’s Final Preview; Federer vs Murray
• Hewitt Forced into hip surgery, lengthy injury

Cricket

• Australia looks for clean sweep over Pakistan
• India win series vs Bangladesh
• India vs South Africa – Dravid most likely out, cheekbone injury
• U19 World Cup Final (AUS v PAK)

Football

• Transfer Wrap Up
• EPL Wrap Up
• A-League Wrap Up
• Arsenal vs Manchester United Preview
• African Cup of Nations – Ghana vs Egypt Final Preview

NRL

• Willie Mason Saga – 7 teams ruled out signing
• NRL All Stars v Indigenous All Stars