I couldn’t help but notice how small the crowd appeared at the Force game on Friday night. Around 19,000, which is about half of what was achieved three years ago.
There’s been a lot of chatter of late about the financial stability of the Force and where they are headed. Could that be out of Perth? Could the loss of Firepower, its money and the economic downturn have hit the Force that bad?
The Force recently announced they were abandoning their current venue to move to another stadium with a vastly smaller capacity and very limited corporate facilities.
It appeared to me at the time that this was the move of a team desperate to cut costs.
Then today the West Australian have jumped on the bandwagon with an excellent article about the dwindling crowds and financial position of the Force. The West even pose the question about the ARU relocating the Force to Melbourne.
It appears they have some financial problems. But the biggest concerns are whether they know this.
Why?
We’re two months into this calendar year and the Force’s chairman, in the article, is quoted as saying that they haven’t done this year’s budget yet. This flawed me.
If a business cant prepare a budget in a challenging economic climate, some big questions need to be asked. Is it case of a lost calculator or are administrators preoccupied?
So, this does beg the question: if the Force do get into a financial mess, what will the ARU do?
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February 17th 2009 @ 10:46am
AC said | February 17th 2009 @ 10:46am | Report comment
Remy, have you ever watched a game of rugby at Subi? It’s absolutely crap. They’re moving to ME stadium because the ARC and trial matches have shown that it’s a vastly superior viewing experience. 19,000 to a game and they’re going broke? Get a grip!
February 17th 2009 @ 10:58am
Simmo said | February 17th 2009 @ 10:58am | Report comment
I think rumours of the Force’s demise have been greatly exaggerated.
February 17th 2009 @ 1:03pm
Remy said | February 17th 2009 @ 1:03pm | Report comment
AC,
I have been to Subiaco Oval a few times and I dont think its that bad. The Corporate facilities are very good actually. Better than SFS. Its not that different to ANZ Stadium.
I also went to an ARC game at ME last year whilst in Perth. The stadium is not up to national standards. Its really quite bad and has no decent facilities. ME might be great for the punter in the outer, but does it provide a professional venue that corporates will pay thousands to entertain clients at? No way.
As for the trial match, I suspect a few tickets were given away to bump up the crowd. And dont forget the oppponents were the Crusaders . The Force cant play them every week.
February 17th 2009 @ 1:18pm
sheek said | February 17th 2009 @ 1:18pm | Report comment
Hell’s bells, having established the Force, the ARU aren’t going to let them go without an almighty fight. No matter what some Easterners might think.
Sure, they’ve got their problems, but nothing insurmountable, I would think. Besides, I would rather the club struggle a bit in the early years – helps build character & tradition. Not too much struggle to stifle growth though!
Considering they had to start from virtual ground zero, unlike the Brumbies, I think the Force have done exceptionally well. Their playing style remains crap. But that’s a product of throwing together players from many different backgrounds & styles.
If they keep building upwards slowly, then that has to be a positive.
February 17th 2009 @ 1:19pm
allblackfan said | February 17th 2009 @ 1:19pm | Report comment
Remy, the main attraction for moving to ME is that it’s a square ground.
The facilities may be sub-standard but as long as the ground is the right shape, that’s the important thing.
February 17th 2009 @ 1:26pm
Mike said | February 17th 2009 @ 1:26pm | Report comment
Stuff the corporate facilities, the missing 20,000 people aren’t corporate schmucks. They are rugby fans and they are crowding the pubs in Perth instead to watch the game. 19,000 is still a larger crowd than any of the other Australian teams can muster, and it is strangely enough, the same amount who turned up to fill Perth Oval (as I prefer to call ME stadium) for a trial game not three weeks ago! Fans like myself and many I have spoken to, are boycotting Subiaco because it is such a poor venue to watch rugby at. Not because the “facilities aren’t up to scratch”. We would much rather stand on a grass hill and be able to see the game and enjoy a festive family atmosphere than sit surrounded in concrete, squinting to see either the field or the big screen.
When WA Rugby first pitched for the team, one of the key factors in their favour, was that the WA government was going to hand out something like $15m (maybe it was more, I can’t remember) to develop Perth oval as a rectangular stadium for both the rugby and soccer to share… and that was meant to be by 2008! As yet, there are no changes to the ground, but I would still go to watch a game there in a heartbeat, whereas I wouldn’t turn up to Subi even if you gave me a free ticket.
The people of Perth love having the Force, and I love turning up to my local to watch a game to find the place full of others with the same attitude. I remember trying to find somewhere to watch the S12 a few years back, and used to struggle. I had to find a pub full of TVs and not full of AFL/League fans, and ASK the publican if he could switch one of the screens in the corner over to the rugby so I could watch it.
The other day I was at my local on the Saturday afternoon, the pub was reasonably quiet, and yet the dozen or so folks there were all glued to the Crusaders v Chiefs game, then subsequently the Flowers v Canes game. We only turned our heads briefly to see the Warriors beat the Tigers in the final over. During this time, Johnny Mitchell, some of the other coaching staff and a couple players also turned up. Likewise, there were a few Blues players there too. I had a chat to John and he was open and friendly, and even more people turned up to watch. I shook my head afterwards, and couldn’t believe how great it was to have Perth really become a rugby town.
There is no danger of either lack of funds or support, I assure you.
February 17th 2009 @ 1:30pm
True Tah said | February 17th 2009 @ 1:30pm | Report comment
Mike
the Tahs averaged more than the Force did last year, and I suspect that will be repeated this year.
Good to hear that there is still interest in the Force in WA.
February 17th 2009 @ 1:40pm
Mike said | February 17th 2009 @ 1:40pm | Report comment
I haven’t checked stats, but I certainly didn’t get that impression having attended mid-season games at Canberra, Sydney and then Perth three weeks in succession. The Canberra and Sydney games were all-Aus derbies too. And that, was the last time I ever went to Subi in spite of the huge crowd and great atmosphere.
From memory of those three games, the crowd at Bruce was something like 15000, the SFS 18000 and Subi more like 30000. This year is different though, without a doubt.
February 17th 2009 @ 3:16pm
Remy said | February 17th 2009 @ 3:16pm | Report comment
Allblack and Mike, dont get me wrong, I think the Force offer a lot to Australian rugby, I’m just curious as to what is going wrong from a business sense. And sport is a business. How can the Force not have a budget? Most pre-schools even run a budget !
I also recall the Force promoting the fact that they would move to ME and that the goverment had pledge $20m – $30m or more to redevelop the stadium to a decent stadium. This was mooted at the time the Force came to life.
However, I also recall reading a few years ago that the Force had dumped MEquity as a preferred venue and jumped in to bed with the AFL to lobby the WA govt to have subiaco oval redeveloped. Was that a wise move by the Force? Its seems to have backfired on them somehow.
Since then, I’ve read that government officials have withdrawn the funding to redevelop ME stadium. I guess you cant blame them as the money was there, but the Force decided they didnt want it….. but now they’re back cap in hand?
I know Joe punter is more important to the Force and rugby than an overpaid corporate banker who’s prepared to spend thousands per year on his corporate suite, but we do need these big spenders involved. You only have to do a quick calculation to realise the cost of a seat in a suite is around 10 times that of one in the outer at the average game – hence the importance of having a fair number of corporate boxes and suites. They do generate a lot of revenue, clearly.
February 17th 2009 @ 5:40pm
matta said | February 17th 2009 @ 5:40pm | Report comment
ok its about time the ARU figured out its much better for the game to be played at packed smaller venues than empty large ones.
if you were a father with no preference of code looking to take his kids to something exciting and saw the force game last week or the Adelaide United V Melbourne Victory which would you choose? I know I would choose the soccer – as a funny man once said “its the vibe”. People like to be somewhere that feels tribal and fun..its the walk to the ground shoulder to shoulder…its the line up for a pie…
ME will hold 19,000 so not only does it become a supply and demand thing, but I bet people will be happy to part with a touch more cash to be there over Subi – for the atmosphere.