75 dollars

[tom9779]

If you want a seat on the wing Sydney Vs Essendon.

you cannot tell me that is not FRIKKIN RUDE.

Gold tickets 56 a head. - thats the pocket or if your an essendon supporter behind the bloody goals.

How on earth can the AFL charge that sort of bull$hit.

Enjoy watching a Western Sydney team ever getting a crowd if thats what it costs to go to the game.

[bomberflyer]

I remember going to watch Brisbane vs Sydney at Telstra Stadium about 5 years ago (now ANZ) and it was $80 in a forward pocket back then.

Ridiculous especially when they don't sell out and it's in western sydney (battlers territory). I'd be keen to find out how much they would charge to go watch the new team when it gets in. Bloody stupidity...but it's the AFL!!!

[robrulz5]

[quote="bomberflyer"]I remember going to watch Brisbane vs Sydney at Telstra Stadium about 5 years ago (now ANZ) and it was $80 in a forward pocket back then.

[quote]


That one would have been a Prelim final I believe.

[pevfan]

Have just got back from Sydney and am convinced now that your average Sydney sider doesn't give a Rats about the game. If voting with your feet is to be taken as any sort of guide they don't even seem overly fussed about their own "Mobile wrestling"code. The top attendance at the Rugby last week was 21,000 for their match of the day... Gold Coast V. Newcastle...pathetic!! but, as stated that was the best attended game and they aren't even Sydney teams.

I picked up the Sydney Murdoch Rag that was left lying around last Monday just to check out the sports pages...13 pages of Rugby 1 page on AFL. No ladder, no Best Players, no goalkickers i.e. SFA. Now I reckon if there was fair dinkum interest in the game up there, the Rags marketing department was make sure that there was more than 1 page given to AFL...there isn't so there wasn't.

IMHO the Melbourne based AFL boffins make the mistake of thinking that Sydney siders are just as mad about sport as we Vics/Melburnians...They aint, never have been, never will be. Sydney siders have other interests...their magnificent harbour for one thing, they'd rather be out cruising than going to the footy...any code of footy. I would love to see a survey of the people that DO attend the Swans games up there....I'd be willing to bet that the greater majority would be ex-pat Vics, Croweaters and Sandgropers, i.e people who were already died in the wool AFL fans.

And now the AFL want to start AND WILL STOP AT NOTHING to prop up another team up there. A move that along with the new Gold Coast side will only further dilute the talent pool. Then of course, I fully expect Essendon to be turned to once again to help boost the new teams just as we were with Brisbane and Port. We'll probably lose a Ryder or others of that ilk, just like we lost the Merretts and Dunells and the Wanganeens, Hardwicks and almost the other third of Ports early sides that were ex Essendon players.

Very rapidly becoming mightily P****d Off at this Communistic regime that is the AFL.

[dom_105]

We'll probably lose a Ryder or others of that ilk

They will have to pry him out of my cold, dead hands.

[Gyoza]

Have just got back from Sydney and am convinced now that your average Sydney sider doesn't give a Rats about the game. If voting with your feet is to be taken as any sort of guide they don't even seem overly fussed about their own "Mobile wrestling"code. The top attendance at the Rugby last week was 21,000 for their match of the day... Gold Coast V. Newcastle...pathetic!! but, as stated that was the best attended game and they aren't even Sydney teams.

I picked up the Sydney Murdoch Rag that was left lying around last Monday just to check out the sports pages...13 pages of Rugby 1 page on AFL. No ladder, no Best Players, no goalkickers i.e. SFA. Now I reckon if there was fair dinkum interest in the game up there, the Rags marketing department was make sure that there was more than 1 page given to AFL...there isn't so there wasn't.

IMHO the Melbourne based AFL boffins make the mistake of thinking that Sydney siders are just as mad about sport as we Vics/Melburnians...They aint, never have been, never will be. Sydney siders have other interests...their magnificent harbour for one thing, they'd rather be out cruising than going to the footy...any code of footy. I would love to see a survey of the people that DO attend the Swans games up there....I'd be willing to bet that the greater majority would be ex-pat Vics, Croweaters and Sandgropers, i.e people who were already died in the wool AFL fans.

And now the AFL want to start AND WILL STOP AT NOTHING to prop up another team up there. A move that along with the new Gold Coast side will only further dilute the talent pool. Then of course, I fully expect Essendon to be turned to once again to help boost the new teams just as we were with Brisbane and Port. We'll probably lose a Ryder or others of that ilk, just like we lost the Merretts and Dunells and the Wanganeens, Hardwicks and almost the other third of Ports early sides that were ex Essendon players.

Very rapidly becoming mightily P****d Off at this Communistic regime that is the AFL.

One of the best posts I've read in a long time. Well said.

[ealesy]

The NRL considered the 35,000 crowd for the International the other night as a good crowd.

Hell we can get double that for the mickey mouse International Rules Series we played against the Irish!!

[billyduckworth]

Spot on, pevfan. Sydneysiders have never been into sports to the extent of Melbourne.
Look at cricket, a sport followed throughout the land.
The MCG has always been double or even triple the capacity of the SCG.

The AFL are making a very big mistake, thinking Sydney can sustain 2 teams.
Tasmania or Canberra would be better choices, if they MUST have extra teams.

[tom9779]

Hmmmm.

I am going to stick up for the city i've now called home for the past 3 1/2 years.

I'm a firm believer that people are generally the same, but its the environment which changes.

People living in Sydney do care about sport. But there are some other factors at play which mean that yes the crowds at sporting events are 99 times out of 100 not as big as Melbourne these factors can be overcome in western sydney..

1. Football attendances: NRL is the main code up here, it is a game which unlike AFL actually is much more suited to the Television. All the action can be captured by 1 or 2 cameras. There is no play/strategy off the ball.
You talk to any genuine sydney sider(and they can be hard to find, particularly inner city) and they know everything about league. When its AFL, well they are a becoming a whole lot more educated. I would say a Sydneysiders understanding of AFL, is at least on par of a Melbournites understanding of Rugby League.
NRL on TV here rates, the NRL footy show rates. the NRL is not going under financially. crowds at games does not seem to be an issue.

2. Football diversity. Rugby vs Rugby League. Rich vs Poor, Establishment vs Working Class. Sydney is on one hand poorer for having a city divided, but is also richer. Football discussions at work for example will centre around not just RL, but the Waratahs and Super 14 and the AFL. This dilutes attendences.

3. Citizens(particularly inner city). Sydney is for 8/10 migrants their first and often only port of call. You have a very itinerant population in inner sydney.

4. Weather. For a few months footy is focused, but when it is 24-28C out, the sun is shining and you are surrounded by a beautiful harbour and beaches.... that is always going to make a compelling alternative to an arvo at the football.

5. Venues. Nothing compares to the MCG, it is one of the worlds great stadiums. Sydney's venue's are second rate in terms of capacity(scg) and atmosphere(homebush). Probably partly because of point 1. the crowds have never been there to support it and 2 because some dickhead took money under the table to create the lemon which is homebush.

I believe the Swans now have a firm and loyal supporter base. Yes there are thousands of fair weather fans, but there is also a healthy number of born n bred swans fans. It takes generations to develop that...

Western Sydney AFL will be a long hard slog, but it will be worth it. Unlike Inner City sydney, western sydney is not an itinerant population. people do not come and go. And it is working class. Football matters. This has what has made the bears a success in brisbane, the GABBA and surrounds have been(although changing rapidly) working class.

Now if only we could arrange for a terrorist to blow up ANZ stadium(ideally when noone is in though) at homebush. A decent stadium could be built.

Also a lot of kids are playing aussie rules in Sydney. The sport is a lot bigger here than people realise. The AFL is the sleeping giant.

But charging 75 dollars for the majority of seats at a home and away game? FFS. that is CRIMINAL.

[jimmyc1985]

I've got no doubt whatsoever that the Western Sydney and Gold Coast teams will be successful in the long term (10-20 years) - the AFL won't have it any other way. The problem i've got with it is the AFL will stop at nothing to make it work - the amount of time, money, concessions, etc. that the AFL will pump into these teams over the next 5-10 years to get them off the ground will boggle the mind.

A good investment is one where the rewards reaped outweigh the costs expended. Unfortunately, those at AFL headquarters are straight from the Eddy Groves school of management - they're willing to completely forget about the costs of the exercise in order to get chase some potential reward.

[nathanskinner]

thats a ridiculous price! Imagine taking a family..

[bomberflyer]

I remember going to watch Brisbane vs Sydney at Telstra Stadium about 5 years ago (now ANZ) and it was $80 in a forward pocket back then.

That one would have been a Prelim final I believe.

Yeah, that's correct - were you there?

I thought Sydney were gonna winner that night. Brisbane were playing on 1 leg...they kicked about 6 goals to 1 in the last quarter and smashed Collingwood the next.

Then add your $5 chips, $5 meat pies and $5 beers to that x 20...it was expensive and I'm a single lad...I feel for families.

[Madden]

Unfortunately, those at AFL headquarters are straight from the Eddy Groves school of management.

Let's not say things we can't take back...

[Crazyman]

Coming from Sydney, I can categorically state that the majority of Sydneysiders couldn't give a rats bum about any code or club...Most Sydneysiders are bandwagon supporters at best, however, there are a few diehard supporters of each club. But, to get more than 20k crowd at any game is a wonder to behold and Swans supporters only go to games when Swans are there and abouts...

The idea of having a 2nd Sydney team is ridiculous...the support will not come, the crowds will not come and the club will be propped up until eternity ceases as it will be shown up to be another AFL stunt to screw existing clubs...

The AFL should invest far more heavily in grassroots AFL in Sydney if they even want to try to get a second team up and running and as such, should wait another 150 years before considering to entertain the idea and even then canning it for another 150 years...

[tom9779]

Coming from Sydney, I can categorically state that the majority of Sydneysiders couldn't give a rats bum about any code or club...Most Sydneysiders are bandwagon supporters at best, however, there are a few diehard supporters of each club. But, to get more than 20k crowd at any game is a wonder to behold and Swans supporters only go to games when Swans are there and abouts...

The idea of having a 2nd Sydney team is ridiculous...the support will not come, the crowds will not come and the club will be propped up until eternity ceases as it will be shown up to be another AFL stunt to screw existing clubs...

The AFL should invest far more heavily in grassroots AFL in Sydney if they even want to try to get a second team up and running and as such, should wait another 150 years before considering to entertain the idea and even then canning it for another 150 years...

agree that the 2nd sydney team will be a battle.

disagree about sydneysiders not caring about code/club.

NRL regularly pulls over half a milllion viewers on a friday night in Sydney. Ok not as big as AFL in Melbourne, but big enough to show that people care, and big enough for 9 to carry it as prime time viewing.

Have no idea how the swans rate, but they regularly sell out their games. their attendences are decent, and they pull big crowds(50K+) when playing high demand games at homebush...despite it being a crap stadium in the middle of nowhere.

not as football mad as melbourne of those that support football. 50% of people in my workplace are league fans, 20% Union, 15% AFL, 15% Soccer.

[pevfan]

Crazyman wrote...

Coming from Sydney, I can categorically state that the majority of Sydneysiders couldn't give a rats bum about any code or club...Most Sydneysiders are bandwagon supporters at best, however, there are a few diehard supporters of each club. But, to get more than 20k crowd at any game is a wonder to behold and Swans supporters only go to games when Swans are there and abouts...

The idea of having a 2nd Sydney team is ridiculous...the support will not come, the crowds will not come and the club will be propped up until eternity ceases as it will be shown up to be another AFL stunt to screw existing clubs...

The AFL should invest far more heavily in grassroots AFL in Sydney if they even want to try to get a second team up and running and as such, should wait another 150 years before considering to entertain the idea and even then canning it for another 150 years...
Vice President of the SQF established by Filthy...



Here Here C/man. Very good article in todays Murdoch Rag (the Melbourne version) about how the Western Suburbs are already saturated with all the football codes trying to make their mark up there and how the AFL are at risk of letting the game wither on the vine in Tassie by just repeatedly ignoring that true Aussie Rules state.

It seems to me that while Sydneysiders ARE interested in sport, they just not interested enough to actually vote with their feet... with anything. I take it Telstra Stadium was only built because you got the Games. If you hadn't, Sydney would probably still be stuck with it's biggest ground being the SCG holding a max capacity of , what is it 35,000 or so. If Sydney was REALLY all that mad about sport(i.e. actually interested enough to go along and watch) they'd have built MCG type stadiums decades ago. After all. the've beaten Melbourne to just about everything else in the way of major infrastructure e.g. The magnificent Coathangar (I still marvel at that every time I'm up there), the Op House (Ditto), your Tube, your Public Transport (you might complain about it but I reckon compared to Melbourne's it's a terrific system, especially your country trains)...All of this stuff was built literally generations before Melbourne ever even started thinking about them. The ONLY thing we've beaten Sydney at is sporting stadiums and as stated, that's because we just go apedroppings over sport...ANY SPORTand Sydneysiders don't.

[Crazyman]

Coming from Sydney, I can categorically state that the majority of Sydneysiders couldn't give a rats bum about any code or club...Most Sydneysiders are bandwagon supporters at best, however, there are a few diehard supporters of each club. But, to get more than 20k crowd at any game is a wonder to behold and Swans supporters only go to games when Swans are there and abouts...

The idea of having a 2nd Sydney team is ridiculous...the support will not come, the crowds will not come and the club will be propped up until eternity ceases as it will be shown up to be another AFL stunt to screw existing clubs...

The AFL should invest far more heavily in grassroots AFL in Sydney if they even want to try to get a second team up and running and as such, should wait another 150 years before considering to entertain the idea and even then canning it for another 150 years...

agree that the 2nd sydney team will be a battle.

disagree about sydneysiders not caring about code/club.

NRL regularly pulls over half a milllion viewers on a friday night in Sydney. Ok not as big as AFL in Melbourne, but big enough to show that people care, and big enough for 9 to carry it as prime time viewing.

Have no idea how the swans rate, but they regularly sell out their games. their attendences are decent, and they pull big crowds(50K+) when playing high demand games at homebush...despite it being a crap stadium in the middle of nowhere.

not as football mad as melbourne of those that support football. 50% of people in my workplace are league fans, 20% Union, 15% AFL, 15% Soccer.

1. As you have said, pulls half a million viewers on a friday night
a) If they were true supporters, why don't they go to the game...on a Friday night, they struggle to sell out a 20k seat stadium and in an 80k seat stadium are lucky to get 30k through the gate...
b) Look at the programs that the NRL is up against (big bother - yes bother not brother and some crap 7 program...)
c) Look at how wonderful AFL coverage is in Sydney (NOT!!!!!!)

2. Swans only sell out games because when they do because are the only AFL team in Australia's most populated city...They struggle to fill the SCG on most occassions and even for blockbuster games only get around 50k on most occassions instead of the 70k + that should turn up...

3. Of those in your workplace, how many would you rate as true fans, as bandwagon supporters or as people who only go in the tipping comp and have no idea about who plays for which teams???

[Crazyman]

The ONLY thing we've beaten Sydney at is sporting stadiums and as stated, that's because we just go apedroppings over sport...ANY SPORTand Sydneysiders don't.

Could not agree more with the last comment Pev...melbournites would bet on ants crawling up a wall and draw a crowd of 5k for it...