THE WEATHER is warmer, dense bushland borders one side of the field, and the rules are slightly different – but Brisbane Lions' Irishmen Colm Begley and Pearce Hanley say country footy isn't all that different from the grass roots level back home.

On Saturday, the two international rookies made the trek up Bruce Highway to Pomona, 166km north of Brisbane, as part of the AFL's Community Football Weekend.

The pair took in a hard-fought match between Pomona and Sunshine Coast rivals Nambour, and enjoyed what they saw.

"It's definitely different to the AFL, but it's good to see where it all comes from – the roots of the game," Begley said.

"When I got here, the first couple of people I ran into were telling me all about the 35-year history of the club. They haven't managed to win a grand final in that time, but they still loving playing the game, and you can see the camaraderie.

"It reminds me very much of back home in a lot of ways. It's a small ground with a small clubhouse, but that's matched by people with a lot of passion."

While Begley is into his third year of Australian life, Hanley only arrived at the Gabba late last year and is still adjusting to the Queensland climate and the “new" game.

"Me and the sun usually don't match – but this is great," Hanley said.

"I had to make sure I put the sunscreen on before I came out here. The winter weather here is actually better than summer back home

“I've been carrying a football around the whole time just to get used to things, but I'm still learning about the game.

"The first few games I was just following my man and didn't know where to go. A couple of the lads shouted to me to get out of the way, which is pretty hard when you don't know what's going on.

"I'm just concentrating on sticking to my man and keeping my mouth shut!"

As for the standard of the State Association Division 3 North clash? Well, Begley hopes to one day replicate the longevity of some of veterans still running around in 25C temperatures.

"It's tough out there – some big fellas and a lot of hard hitting," Begley said.

"I probably expected that, but some of the guys are really good players as well. A few young kids have got talent, and there are also a few men over 50 running around as much as I do in a game."