49ers soaking up Melbourne atmosphere | 04:26
For a team that insists it is “acclimated” to Australia, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan was not as convincing as his players.
Speaking ahead of San Francisco’s NFL season-opener, beginning from 10.35am — the earliest start in NFL history — on Friday at the MCG, Shanahan is going viral for his bewilderment at Australia’s east coach standard time zone.
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His press conference on Monday provided the most telling picture of the storied NFL franchise’s Australian journey with players and media figures continuing to be bamboozled by details of what they will face when they step out in front of 100,000 people against NFC West rivals Los Angeles Rams.
Shanahan showed he doesn’t know what the hell is going on when describing Australia as “the future”.
49ers shake off jetlag for MCG clash | 02:52
“We’re a little confused with — when I look at my clock and it says a time and then I try to see my family’s time and then it says the time, but it says yesterday. I don’t even get how that’s possible,” Shanahan said with a grin.
“So I feel like I’m in the future. And then also when we play on Friday, which I think is a Thursday in the US, we’re such creatures of habit. So I call today Tuesday.
“No, wait, sorry, I call today Wednesday. Which is the first day we put in a game plan. But I think it’s Monday.
“However, though, it’s Sunday in the present. So, like I’m gonna mess that up all week if you guys ask me. But today is just our first day of the game plan, which is a Wednesday, and we’ll put in some on a Thursday.
“Friday’s the final part of the game plan. Saturday, we walk through and we play on Sunday, which is a Friday in Australia and a Thursday in the US. So, don’t ever make me do that again.”
Kyle Shanahan signals a goal. Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images.Source: Getty Images
There is a theory among some American commentators that Shanahan was using his time zone conundrum to avoid putting out an early injury report.
“Because we’re technically in the future, from where we’re from, and the Rams are in the present, I don’t have to talk about injuries until tomorrow,” Shanahan said on Monday in Australia, or Sunday in the US.
The two-time NFC conference championship winner was confused about plenty of other things.
“I don’t see kangaroos and crocodiles everywhere. I was expecting to see that. It looks like a very normal, cool city,” he said of Melbourne.
With some 49ers players attending Friday night’s elimination final between Geelong and Carlton at the MCG, many players and staff have enjoyed soaking in Aussie rules football.
While Shanahan did not see the game in person, he enjoyed watching some of the sport’s quirks — especially the goal umpires’ signalling a goal with elbows and index fingers whipping up and down.
“It looked like an awesome atmosphere,” he said.
“I didn’t get to see much of the game, but the coolest is how they do the scores like this, instead of like this That’s cooler. It’s like a six-shooter. I wish we did that.”
Niners coach’s birthday wiped out
The 49ers coach hit hardest by the time zone challenges is defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, who lost his 50th birthday in transit.
Morris never got a chance to celebrate his 50th birthday on September 3 after leaving the States on September 2 and arriving in Melbourne on September 4.
‘Holy cr**’: Aussie detail blows America away
Video is going viral of NFL commentators realising how different Friday’s event will look with fans navigating the challenge of being miles away from the on-field action.
It is estimated the oval playing field has dimensions of 173m long and 148m wide.
An NFL field is 110m long (including the endzone) and 49m from sideline to sideline.
A video of 49ers radio producer Mike Hohler sharing his first impressions of the iconic stadium have gone viral.
“Holy crap, this place is huge,” he said.
“I think sitting up high will be the way to go.”
American sports journalist Dontay Atkinson also said:
“The MCG is huge-huge. It’s going to look different to see so much open grass around the gridiron,” he posted on X.
Players turn Melbourne into 49ers home team
Having players on the ground promoting the event has turned the already-popular San Francisco franchise into Australia’s team.
With the team winning five Super Bowls from 1982 to 1994, the Niners gained huge popularity as Australians began to take an interest in the sport.
Preparations are underway for the NFL game on the MCG Picture: SuppliedSource: Supplied Source Known
The AFL logo seems a mile away front the front row. MCG transforms. Photo: X, Matt Walsh Media.Source: Supplied
It has been estimated the MCG will be filled with up to 90,000 49ers fans despite the event being a designated home game for the Rams.
The Los Angeles franchise was awarded international marketing rights to the Australian market in 2022 as part of the NFL’s global Markets Program for international growth.
However, players have not been seen on the ground this week with the team taking the gamble of a fly-in fly-out strategy to keep players’ body-clocks on California time.
By electing to snub Melbourne marketing opportunities and any potential of evangelising the franchise to a country of 28 million, the Rams have handed San Francisco home ground advantage and market dominance.
The Rams confirmed last week the team would not be arriving in Melbourne until Thursday — one day before the game. The two teams have taken very different approaches in marketing and sports science with the Niners arriving a week in advance to get their bodies acclimatised with a new sleep pattern.
The Rams will be holding a training session on Thursday just hours after they land and staff are on the ground hosting promotional events.
The so-called Rams House: The LA Tailgate Experience site in Southbank includes free entry, entertainment and a floating 22-yard football field on the Yarra River.
However, the 49ers struck last week and planted a flag in the heart of the city.
Players have also been on a charm offensive by indulging Melbourne’s self-proclaimed status as the world’s coffee capital.
Superstar running back Christian McCaffrey is one of many.
“The coffee is unbelievable,” he said.
“I don’t know why nobody talks about that as much as they should have beforehand.
“The food’s awesome. The people are really nice.”
Making public shows of affection for Aussie rules football is also the perfect touch to persuade any neutral fan to wear red on Friday.
Linebacker Fred Warner put a cherry on top after watching the Cats end Carlton’s late season surge.
“I didn’t get to go out there to that game and watch, but I did watch some clips on YouTube and it seems pretty intense,” he said of the local sport.
“Anytime you’ve got no pads on and you’re running full speed into each other it’s like whoa. “That’s kind of insane.”
Welcome to the future.