For the United States’ World Cup match against Australia, Locust Point resident Rebekah Austin took her partner, who is from Sydney, Australia, to the site of Austin’s weekly trivia night.
M8 Beer, an Australian-style brewery in South Baltimore, wasn’t a hard sell. They arrived for the taproom’s watch party shortly before the 3 p.m. kickoff, sporting the red, white and blue of America and the yellow and green of Australia, respectively.
“We thought it was a place we could coexist,” said Austin’s partner, Frank Ciarliero. “But yes, we’re enemies for the day.”
Ciarliero wasn’t the only Australian at M8, which is the home base of the city’s Australian rules football team, the Baltimore Dockers.
“I thought safety in numbers,” said Australian native Russell Cocks, who works near Baltimore.
American fans outnumbered Australians in the two-story taproom.
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“I don’t think it’s going to be much of a rivalry,” said Dan Kohner, who wore a U.S. women’s national team jersey at the upstairs bar.
On the pitch in Seattle, at least in the first half, Kohner was right. The Americans dominated possession early, attacking Australia’s defensive setup from the first whistle.
The Americans in South Baltimore erupted with “USA! USA! USA!” chants when forward Folarin Balogun’s cross forced Australian defender Cameron Burgess to fumble the ball into his own net in the 10th minute to make the score 1-0.
“I thought it’d be a pretty cool spot to come and have a mixed crowd cheering for both teams. Makes for a good atmosphere,” American fan Matthew Black said.
Australians and Americans alike reloaded on beer.
“They’re out of the Bondi Break!” a fan yelled to his friend at a nearby table, referring to the brewery’s “easy IPA,” whose name is a nod to the iconic Bondi Beach in Sydney.
A contingent of the Baltimore Dockers set up shop in the corner of the upstairs bar farthest from the projector screen.
“Don’t care about the atmosphere, just care if Australia wins,” Aussie native and Federal Hill resident Will Twizell said.
Twizell — who stayed stateside after college at Mount St. Mary’s University when he landed a job at Morgan Stanley in Baltimore — wore an Australian Tim Cahill jersey. When another reveler unbuttoned a yellow-and-green shirt to reveal that his jersey also bore the name of Australia’s all-time leading goal scorer, he and Twizell embraced. Only a little beer was spilled.
There wasn’t much to celebrate on the pitch for the Aussies. Those in attendance released a collective “Ohhhh!” when midfielder Cristian Volpato’s 22nd-minute shot went askew.
When Baltimore-born defender Alex Freeman pounced on a loose ball in Australia’s box and muscled it over the goal line in the 43rd minute, the Americans celebrated.
But then, as the video assistant referee evaluated the goal for a potential offside, one Socceroos supporter led his mates in chanting, “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!”
Those chants subsided when the referee confirmed a goal. 2-0 United States.
Halftime followed shortly thereafter.
“I feel absolutely terrible and it hasn’t been very good at all,” Ciarliero said at the intermission.
His partner, sitting next to him, had a more optimistic view.
“Very, very happy to have a two-goal lead going in,” Austin said.
In the 51st minute, an Australian defender disrupted Balogun’s fast break, prompting divergent reactions.
The Aussies collectively groaned 10 minutes later when, during a seemingly promising possession, Volpato sent a cross over his teammates’ heads and out of play.
A shocked Cocks could only place his hands on his head. Before the game, he said the key was luck. And it appeared the Australians were short of it.
Twizell called the American goals flukes and declared, “defensively we look good.”
The 77th minute brought a test for the Australian-American couple, Ciarliero and Austin, who passionately debated whether Australia should’ve been awarded a penalty kick for a potential American handball. The Socceroos would have no such luck.
“Do you know if there’s a large Australian community in Baltimore?” Kohner, a regular at M8, asked at one point. “I didn’t even think there’d be this many people here.”
Aussies screamed as an attacker whiffed on a promising chance in the U.S. 18-yard box around the 84th minute. The game appeared to be nearing its conclusion.
Both sets of fans chuckled when the referee needed assistance for apparent cramps before stoppage time.
Then the final whistle blew. Fans queued up to close their tabs or refill their pitchers.
Unlike in Boston, where reports suggest Scottish fans are drinking the town dry, there was plenty of beer for both sides.
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