A MONTH ago, Maxime Tanghe had barely heard of Australian Rules football.
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But the French exchange student has come a long way in that time literally and will umpire not one, but two matches at the 2014 AFL International Cup in Melbourne today.
Tanghe, 17, will run the boundary in the 11th-12th playoff featuring Pakistan and his home country France, plus the 17th-18th playoff between Indonesia and India.
The temporary St Brigid's College student and Wimmera Football Umpires Association boundary umpire will be joined on the field by two fellow Wimmera umpires.
Association secretary Kingsley Dalgleish will make his second International Cup appearance, goal umpiring both matches, while his son Seb, 14, who has umpired for a couple of years, will make his first appearance and join Tanghe as a boundary umpire in the second match.
The association has now been represented at the past three International Cups.
Dalgleish said Tanghe one of a number of French exchange students to visit the region and try umpiring in recent years had quickly developed his umpiring skills.
"I think he's done about 10 games in four or five weeks," he said.
"He's a highly rated handball player in France, so he's got a good awareness and knowledge of sport.
"He's picked up the rules really well."
Tanghe said umpiring had its challenges, especially when he was required to control a full side of the ground, as he will do in both games today.
"I've Skyped with my friends nobody knows footy," he said.
"When you have one side to yourself it's more difficult to have a good look at the ball and know if it's a free kick."
Both boundary umpires will also officiate in Horsham District Football Netball League's finals at the weekend.
Tanghe is set to run in the senior final tomorrow and the reserves game on Sunday his final two matches before heading back to France on Tuesday.