Sydney is no longer one of the great sporting cities

Roar Guru

By Steve Kaless, 1 Jan 2009 Steve Kaless is a Roar Guru

Tagged:: ANZ stadium, Central Coast Mariners, Fernando Alonso, football, Formula One, Lewis Hamilton, motor sports, Olympics, Socceroos, Test match, western derby

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At the end of the Year 2000, Sydney looked at its reflection with a cocksure grin and felt with some justification that it held a reputation as one of the world’s great sporting cities.

The Olympics had been an absolute triumph and the Harbour city no doubt felt keen to tackle Melbourne for the crown of the country’s sporting capital. At that time it was widely felt (in Sydney, at least) that the gap had been closed.

It was a dead heat with everything to play for.

Fast forward eight years and oh how the mighty have fallen.

At the end of 2008, Sydney now sits a poor third in terms of its sporting stature, with little sign that things might improve in the short term.

As it stands, Sydney doesn’t have the glamour of the big events in Melbourne or the passion of Brisbane.

Like the lead in the pipes, which sent the citizens of Rome mad, the ‘theatre going’ set which gave Sydney such diversity for its sporting public now looks to be its downfall.

In the sports which Melbourne have a passion for, they destroy Sydney with the scale and passion in which they run things.

Can you imagine Sydney trying to run a Formula One GP? Lewis Hamilton trying to sort out coins for a toll, Fernando Alonso getting his e-tag sorted?

In a word, debacle.

Even Bathurst needs to be three hours outside of Sydney to make it work.

While for the rugby codes, which Sydney used to take for granted, Brisbane has moved in and picked up the mantle.

Origins have always been bigger in Queensland, but Brisbane this year realigned the centre of rugby league heartland to become the global capital of the sport.

Union Test matches are also now a far better event north of the Tweed. This year the Bledisloe kicked off with tickets remaining unsold in Sydney. Something unthinkable in previous years

Football isn’t spared. Bling FC is now well and truly rusted.

From being the glamour boys of the competition, Sydney FC are fast becoming one of the headaches for the FFA.

They are now arguably over-shadowed by the Central Coast Mariners, whose derby with the Jets is becoming bigger than their rivalry with Sydney.

Once deemed the benchmark of the competition Sydney FC are embarrassed by the achievements on and off the park by the Victory and the Reds.

Even Socceroos matches are preferred in either Melbourne or Brisbane.

And don’t forget Adelaide and Perth.

While they don’t have the profile or population to tackle Sydney, they do have a more tribal sporting public who probably show more passion for their chosen teams.

The Western derby or the grudge match between Port and the Crows couldn’t be replicated in Sydney.

Sydney have the Swans, who after years of handouts and leg ups still can’t stand in Sydney off their own steam.

What is to blame? Is it just the soulless ANZ Stadium which chews up marquee events and spits them out?

It certainly doesn’t help. As a ground for an event, it is a dog’s breakfast.

But for me it seems to run deeper than that.

While Sydney’s sporting public as individuals might be as mad any of their compatriots in other states, as a group they just come across as apathetic.

Maybe they’ve had it too good for too long, maybe they believed all their own press after the Games. Maybe they’d rather sit at home and watch it on their big screens.

Maybe they just don’t care.

Sydneysiders are often spoilt for choice, but it says something that many of the residents best sporting memories from residents come from out of town.

But that is what New Years’ are for: the chance to wipe the slate clean and start again.

I hope Sydney finds its mojo in 2009.

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The Crowd Says (18) | Page 1 of Comments

Spiro Zavos said | January 1st 2009 @ 7:39am | Report comment

Steve is right. The atmosphere at big matches in Sydney does not compare with Brisbane and Melbourne. I’d make an exception to this. The SCG remains a superb ground, redolent with history, for the cricket. The new Trumper Stand provides one of the great viewing spots for Test cricket anywhere.
But we get back to the ANZ Stadium problem. Brisbane and Melbourne have their biggest grounds near the centre of the city (right in the city in the case of Brisbane). The grounds are easily accessible and built for viewing AFL and league. Fans show their appreciation by being great fans.
The Wallabies are playing a Test at the SFSin 2009, a ground that CAN have atmosphere if the fans are up to it.

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Pippinu said | January 1st 2009 @ 9:56am | Report comment

Let’s also not forget Sydney’s basketball teams (if there are any left).

But we should look for positives, and surely Sydney has always been the soul and heart of Australia’s yachting fraternity.

As it happens, the Australian yachting championships are on at this very moment, at the Illawarra YC and on Lake Macquarie…

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Cherubos said | January 1st 2009 @ 1:22pm | Report comment

I blame the NSW Labor Government. The traffic and public transport to sporting venues is pathetic. It might work for the mega events like the NRL Grand Final & Bledisloe, but for the rest of the time getting around Sydney to see some weekend sporting action is a pain. Far better off investing in a new Plasma, beers and Foxtel.

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cosmos forever said | January 1st 2009 @ 3:51pm | Report comment

i certainly wouldn’t want to head anywhere to get to a sporting event after spending 90 minutes crawling through the m5 tunnels to get home…

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Mr Mac said | January 1st 2009 @ 3:51pm | Report comment

Spiro (et el) – what’s the solution?
These days we want grounds that are customised to the game.
I have never watched a Rugby or Soccer match at the MCG – I am sure it would not be as good as at Brisbane but then AFL would be useless there. As you point out the SCG is a Cricket ground (& AFL – but don’t some of their purists say it is too small) RL left it years ago
Knock down the SFS & build a 70K capacity ground? Maybe a Kev 09 project but I don’t think it would fit in the space. So where to?

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Sam said | January 1st 2009 @ 3:58pm | Report comment

Steve

Have to disagree with you about Socceroos and Wallabies. I think these teams get well supported in Sydney. Otherwise I can’t argue with what you wrote.

Cherubos makes a very good point. Much easier to watch games at home or at pub. Spiro, for me the SFS is actually a nightmare to get to. Homebush is a lot easier and I’d probably prefer the big games there. Although there is no real perfect place to for a stadium in Sydney I think.

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Cherubos said | January 1st 2009 @ 4:26pm | Report comment

Sydney doesn’t have a decent major event rectangular football stadium. I’m talking 80,000 seater. The government should build a replica or larger of Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium at Eastern Creek. Close down the race track, build huge car parks, access roads to the M4 and top it off with a rail line from Blacktown. Easy!

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Sam said | January 1st 2009 @ 4:43pm | Report comment

Cherubos

I think you’ll find there are people who will object to that (people who don’t travel west of Balmain so to speak). I would support a new stadium in the city if it was 5-10 min walk when you get of Central (maybe near Entertainment Centre). SFS is a good 30 min walk and when you get there you are practically in the Eastern Suburbs.

Otherwise make ANZ Stadium rectangular. It is our Olympic Stadium if anybody happened to forget…

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Jaredsbro said | January 1st 2009 @ 5:44pm | Report comment

Lol. Of all the Sydneysiders in here can any of you guys tell me how to get people not that interested in a BIG MATCH to attend, we here in Auckland have this issue about as much as Sydney and we’ve had the America’s Cup more recently (and defended it from the Ams)

I think it has everything to do with culture as y’all have said. Melbourne has one less code of football (in the regular BIG GAME stakes) and it still gets biggish crowds for the other two codes. And Perth used to be in the ‘Glory days’ But Melbourne’s also the centre of other kinds of culture: and Warnies doin pretty well in a place that has had its ups and downs with him

It’s actually an issue happening in many parts of the world. Seeing as we have heaps of brainpower here, what are we gonna do about it as Mr Mac said? Goodness I am planning on living in Sydney one day after I finish Uni, I’d like to think the issues sort out before I make touchdown there

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Harry said | January 17th 2009 @ 12:17pm | Report comment

The issue is that this problem has been a long time in the making.

Clearly infrastructure and the way the govt does not plan for much in terms of road, transport or new venues is self evident.

It does not help that the SCG trust seems to interfere with every long term planning decision that gets us shot in the foot. For example Parramatta Stadium when built was restricted because of a ” phony ” environmental issue, building Sydney Stadium as a multi-purpose venue (code for not a real rectangular ground), Sydney Council being lobbyed by “guess who” to prevent Redfern from being a full capacity NRL venue and therefore not rival the SFS.

I for one don’t think Sydney ends at South Dowling Street but sporting infrastructure is being decided by wealthy people who have not connection with the paying population. Consider if Sydney FC played out of a Western venue, would they not drag more families there?

Admittedly ANZ Stadium is hard to grasp when 15,0000 – 20,000 show up for games. But the transport, ease of access, convenience leaves the SFS for dead. You would think that rugby league, football, rugby union would get together and lobby to have a boutique stadium at Homebush at 30,000 capacity. This should be enclosed, super modern ……..how hard is this really??

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