Phillip Hughes’ touching funeral: Just for once, Aussies show they have a softer side too

But Down Under, they don’t believe in giving a quarter, not that they expect one from you.

Hit a bump in life? Looking for someone to say it’s ok? No, you’re not getting an “Aww” from an Aussie. More like an “Aww, shake it off and get on with it mate.” For the rest of the world, Australia is all about brawny men guzzling beer, women with blonde hair speaking with a nasal twang and surf boards.

And of course, the sun, the sand and the shades. And speaking of shades, there were few at the Adelaide Oval who didn’t sport a pair on Wednesday afternoon. The sunglasses ranged from oval, to circular to the oblique. But they all were armed with dark lens, the darker the better. For, on Wednesday Australia wasn’t covering its eyes from the searing sun. It was instead trying its best to conceal its new-found tryst with its maudlin side. One that has surfaced and taken hold ever since Phillip Hughes was felled with a bouncer last week before he succumbed tragically to the resultant injury. And as they soaked in the emotionally-charged eulogies being read out from Macksville on the big screens placed around the Adelaide Oval, even the dark shades could barely contain the untold grip of sorrow that had gripped the nation.

Princess Diana moment

It wasn’t just the lady in red with the knitted purse who had tears rolling down her cheeks. It was the burly ex-serviceman to her left with the jowl and a dragon tattoo. And also the greying investment banker in his beige vest and coat to her right. It was almost like Australia was letting go of its inhibitions, all at once. With his unfortunate passing, Phillip Hughes had busted the myth of the Aussie stereotype.

On Tuesday, Greg Chappell referred to Hughes’ death and the subsequent outpouring of love and compassion from all corners as Australia’s Princess Diana moment. Once you hear a Chappell speak about anything with empathy, you know that the Aussies have gone a touch softer in the last week.

The ghastly death aside, it’s the fact that they’ve lost a young talent from the countryside with a bright future that has awoken this wave of sentiment across the country. In Archie Jackson and Victor Trumper, they’ve lost youthful cricketers at their prime before. Both their funerals were attended by thousands too. Just like David Hookes’ was after he was killed following an altercation with a bouncer in 2004. But if Hookes was the poster-boy of the quintessential Aussie male, blonde mullet, surfer looks and an audacious streak with the bat, Hughes with his humour and humility was the archetypal story of small-town boy making it big on the world stage. What stood out about the left-hander from Macksville, and which was touched upon by every one of his eulogists, was his loyalty.

Mateship motto

Here, they don’t just say ‘mate’. They say it for a reason. If anything, it’s one of the key elements to be an Aussie, this mateship. Win or lose, you always stick by your mates. Back them to the hilt and till the very end. It’s this motto that drives this great nation. Nowhere is this mateship more sacrosanct than on the sports field. And it was on full view as Hughes’ teammates, past and present, shed tears for their brother or ‘brah’, on Wednesday.

“Sportsmen are akin to royalty in our country. We don’t have kings and queens but we have those who play sport and win. And they do so with an Aussie attitude, they never give up, and we thrive on them,” said Colin, a bartender on Hindley Street.

The Australians have not just exhibited their adoration for their slain hero in terms of bouquets and warm messages; they’ve also taken to the sports arenas to do so. As we well know, an Aussie doesn’t walk unless he’s asked to leave by the umpire. Adam Gilchrist was an exception, a rare species even. But over the last week, batsmen, young and old, across the country have been walking off the field after reaching Hughes-related milestones. A schoolboy forfeited his innings when he was on 37 two days ago, because with that he claimed to have ‘completed the century that Phil couldn’t at the SCG’.

This is not to say that the Aussies have completely lost their uber machismo. Try leaving your car unattended near a gas pump at a station and go into a 7-Eleven for a quick coffee. You are sure to come back to a slew of four-letter pleasantries. Or try crossing the road when the pedestrian signal is still red for that matter.

But in the last week, Australia has shown everyone that it can actually shake off that robustly thick skin, and grieve. And bid adieu to a dear one with all the fervour it can muster. Not to forget, get the rest of the world to weep with it.