A dinky di Australian melo-drama.
Australians will tell you two up is the fairest and simplest form of gambling. Enjoy

MATES.

We were just there talking, leaning on a fence,
Talking about things we’d done, when he sounded tense,
Don’t take offense old man, do you know what it means to be a real mate?
I said, “Think I do, some who will stick by you, no matter what the fate”.

He said,” Yeah that’s right, a true mate will stick through thick and thin,
I had a mate like that or thought I did, until he let me down and done me in,
All for a few lousy quid. Listen just a while I’ ll tell you what he done,
We’d worked around the sheds together, on the biggest runs ,

Humped our bluey’s on the track, it truly wasn’t fun,
We took the rough times and the good sharing every one,
Wed trudge along for miles and miles and hardly ever talk,
There wasn’t need for any words, we knew what each other thought.

Until one day we hit this town, way out west near Bourke,
There was nothing really going there, no sign of real work,
We wandered down the dusty street and wound up in the pub
And that was when the trouble came now listen here’s the rub.

The bar man leaned across the bar and told us with a grin,
There’s a game of two up out the back, your welcome to join in,
That’s if you’ve got a bob or two, you can see the pennies fly,
Maybe have a bet or two, just careful on the side.

So we front up at the betting ring and hear the players cry.
A quid or two he heads ‘em, on the tails I’ll have five,
One blokes betting evens which some are bound to do,
So we rustled up a fiver and joined that eager crew.

Come in spinner was the call as we went to place our bet,
I’ll bet ten he heads ‘em one bloke yelled out louder yet,
I’ll have five of that my mate called out, some one said your set,
I looked at him in sheer surprise, You mean on tails you’ve bet?’

I always back the tails, said he, I said, I always bet on heads,
As we watched the pennies skyward fly, I had a fearful dread,
He’s headed ‘em was the cry, as with our money we parted,
As we left that rotten two up school, I was almost broken hearted.

A mate he called himself, al the years we’d been together
We’d shared in all the ups and downs, many storms we’d weathered,
I thought I knew him really well, could trust him with my life
I didn’t think he’d go against me or cause me any strife

I never thought he’d cost me the last few bob I had,
So we parted company then and I felt really sad,
But if you can’t trust a bloke, that’s what makes friendships fail
If your the one that bets on heads and he just backs the tails.

JW 11/02