The AFL pre-season belongs in the suburbs
Columnist
By Ben Somerford, 11 Mar 2010 Ben Somerford is a Roar Expert
Eagle Nic Naitanui gathers his own ruck knock during the AFL NAB Challenge match between the West Coast Eagles and the Carlton Blues at Medibank Stadium, Leederville.
Maybe it’s the frustrating search for parking or the smell of the local junior footy club’s sausage sizzle, or perhaps the sight of the dodgy scoreboard and antiquated timer, but watching Aussie Rules at a suburban venue certainly has its charm.
Indeed, my senses were on ‘nostalgic overdrive’ on Saturday morning as I made my way into Perth’s trendy, coffee-sipping suburb of Leederville to witness the NAB Challenge match between the West Coast Eagles and Carlton at the modest Medibank Stadium (or what was formerly known as Leederville Oval).
Another 6,000-odd others might have felt the same way, as they took up the opportunity to get a glimpse of their side before the season proper gets underway.
And with bounce-down for the game at the unusual timeslot of 10.30am (to ensure the Blues could get an early afternoon flight to Melbourne, so they could arrive back home at a reasonable hour) there was an odd
under-9′s Auskick feel about it all.
But the footy on display was, of course, of a decent standard with Nick Naitanui thrilling and Chris Judd, well, dividing opinion (amongst cries of ‘We miss you Juddy’) against his former employers.
The buoyant crowd, who weren’t exactly crammed into the rafters but certainly filled up the best vantage points around the ground, lapped up the entertainment in an enjoyable start to the weekend.
The experience left me longing for more of the same.
But, of course, once the important stuff gets underway in Round One another couple of ten thousand fans want to get in on the act and the AFL inevitably satisfies their demands by returning to those grandiose stadiums dotted around our fine land.
Don’t get me wrong, I love watching footy at the ‘G, or Docklands, or Subi, but they certainly offer a different experience or atmosphere which is a world apart from that which I had out in suburbia.
If you head down to your local state competition, such as the VFL, SANFL or the WAFL, you might get a taste of it and it has certainly got its charm.
Last year, Richmond legend Matthew Richardson said, “Suburban grounds are the bedrock of our game.”
He added: “I played at the Junction Oval when I first came to Richmond, in 1993. We had a reserves game down there. I think it was against Melbourne, and I’ve got good memories of that ground as well.
“It just felt more like where I’d come from, I guess – more like Tassie, playing on a ground with one grandstand, where you might have a few cars parked around the edge.”
But such is the nature of the big-business AFL nowadays, suburban venues are a thing of the past at the elite-level.
It is now over a decade since Footscray stopped playing at Whitten Oval and Collingwood ceased usage of Victoria Park.
Nevertheless, while the future of the AFL pre-season remains clouded, with NAB’s sponsorship set to expire after this season and with the addition of new clubs confusing the format, it appears bringing elite-level games to the suburbs in pre-season could breathe life into the regular season’s precursor.
These opportunities certainly offer some sense of community about the clubs, who can at times appear superficial and money-focused.
Indeed, the Fremantle Dockers announced yesterday they’ll play their final pre-season game at their training headquarters at Freo Oval this weekend.
The decision was a result of AC/DC’s ‘handy-work’ on the Subiaco Oval surface after two concerts over the weekend, but it will be interesting to note the response to the game in Fremantle.
But when you consider last weekend’s two NAB Cup semi-finals attracted barely 16,000 spectators in total (albeit with the St Kilda-Fremantle attendance ruined by a freak storm), then there’s every reason to take footy to the suburbs (although ironically at no other venue in Melbourne could the Saints-Dockers clash have been played considering the conditions).
Indeed, the suburban venues and surfaces need to be up to standard, and the flooded oval in Alice Springs for the Adelaide-Collingwood NAB Challenge match wasn’t a fortnight ago, but that can be worked on.
The evidence of this year’s NAB Cup shows that the pre-season competition doesn’t attract the crowds (with averages around the 13,000 mark) to justify the incessant use of Docklands or Subi or AAMI.
And while the AFL already makes an effort taking games to regional areas, moving city-based games from empty stadiums to more intimate local venues could restore some of that elusive charm to pre-season.
The current state of the pre-season competition, which is struggling to breathe, needs it so the AFL could win many friends by annually taking footy to the people and back to the suburbs.
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bever fever said | March 11th 2010 @ 9:23am | Report comment
I agree, the only reason why i have been thinking about going to see the Dockers play this weekend is that they are playing at South Freo’s ground.
I watch some AFL footy on tele, but i much prefer to watch West perth play in the WAFL, where i can lie on the grass have a few beers , have a kick with my kids or listen to a coach try to pump his boys up at 3/4 time.
Bill Monaghan down at WP is a bit of a unknown but IMO a pretty good coach, or at least speaker, could hardly hear the last coach at the huddles, bit like the quiet speaker off Seinfeld.
Sven man said | March 11th 2010 @ 10:58am | Report comment
I think the Nab Challenge games do a pretty good job of bringing games to the suburbs. I’d be disapointed if every pre season match was played out of suburbian grounds as I enjoy getting to see the young players who arent likely to be seen during the season proper, something that I think would be lost due to those sort of grounds not having the facilities to support decent media coverage.
Al said | March 11th 2010 @ 11:21am | Report comment
VISY Park is hardly situated in the “suburbs”, it’s pretty much a 5 minute tram ride from the CBD on the number 19 tram. If they were playing games in the suburbs, they would also be playing at Moorabbin, Western Oval, Casey Fields, Frankston etc.
Damo said | March 11th 2010 @ 11:22am | Report comment
At the end of the day, the AFL are doing a great job by being able to get a pre-season(!) competition televised on national TV, with sufficient enough ratings, along with a major sponsor on board. The NAB Challenge games are in place for the very reason to connect with grassroots footy, and that is terrific. However, there is nothing at all wrong with the pre-season format (along with the extra revenues) which is why I believe there will still be a televised pre-season competition next year, even with Gold Coast joining the league.
Republican said | March 11th 2010 @ 12:40pm | Report comment
In the suburbs of NZ as well no doubt!
For those sceptics who are dismissive of the AFL’s forays into NZ, today’s NZ Herald announces the Bulldogs expedient treatment of home demos Darwin and Canberra for the bacwate i.e. Wellington, NZ’s capital.
I have been expressing my concerns re this for some time on Roar to no avail and this is likely to be the thin edge of the wedge in the AFL’s ego driven agenda to grow the game from the top down in plonking an entirely Australian concern there in search of the corportate tele $.
This has naught to do with grassroots nurturing whatsoever when you consider NZ has absolutely diddly quality players and only contempt for the game beyond some curiosity and a collective obsession to perhaps beat us at our own game while Darwin has the largest per cap support for our code in the country.
Agai,n NZ trumps local demos but this time in our national code. Appauling.
davelee said | March 11th 2010 @ 1:48pm | Report comment
Yeh but Damo isnt that the point. The AFL’s pre-season may not be the same next year, with NAB pulling out and GC ‘confusing the format’. Demetroiu even said in2012 with 18 clubs, there might be 26 rounds and no PS.
but there’s gotta be a PS for clubs to get ready, they cant just jump straight into the regular season. so whhichever way that happens there’s gotta be some pre-season matches and playing them at local suburban stadiums, to me, sounds great.
I thnk its about clubs playing in their local regions (not taking footy to regioal centres like the NAB Challenge), so freo in freo, st kilda in moorabin, collingwood at vic park,ess at windy hill and that kinda thing. I’d love it to happen. Stadiums like Subi or the MCG or Docklands arent in these areas, so its nice for the fans, to get back to the roots.
ruckrover said | March 11th 2010 @ 5:57pm | Report comment
Hey Republican – the game was so popular in NZ in the late 19th century it was called for a time “Australasian Rules”. And there is quite a grass roots growth in NZ these days too – http://www.nzafl.co.nz
ren said | March 11th 2010 @ 6:26pm | Report comment
i went to hands oval last year to watch freo and carlton. it was awesome, the granstadn, grass banks and people sitting in trees to watch the game.
Republican said | March 11th 2010 @ 6:59pm | Report comment
ruckrover
Are you suggesting that this is a good enough reason to totally shaft local demographics of the calibre of the NT and the ACT? I am incensed at such a proposition.
NZ doesn’t hold a candle to any region you care to mention in this country. What happened in NZ in the late 19th C is ancient history and grossly overstated since nearly all the players were Australians anyway and it was not at all popular actually. Please, there is absolutely no excuse for this expedient treatment of those undyingly loyal supporters of the game not to mention the kids who are drawn to the game and given false promises of rhetoric hard sell everytime they come to town and visit the schools. What a load of bull.
Mark my words, this is the thin edge of the wedge in what will prove to be extremely disenfranchising for those who do support the game in a city i.e. Canberra if a country as ignorant and full of contempt for all that is Australian, is afforded such privilege.
What a painful irony that Wellington the capital of NZ would ever be considered as an AFL base of any kind over the indigenous games own capital. This is absolutely unforgivable and Australians need to wake up to themselves if they value the cultural significance of our game, or else simply continue to watch it degenerate into just another generic brand of global corporate sports – tainment which if this site is any indication, seems quite likely.
Wayno said | March 11th 2010 @ 10:41pm | Report comment
Republican says- “Mark my words, this is the thin edge of the wedge in what will prove to be extremely disenfranchising for those who do support the game in a city i.e. Canberra if a country as ignorant and full of contempt for all that is Australian, is afforded such privilege.”
Nicely put and bang on the money – constantly denigrating on one hand and hanging on like hell to Australia’s coat tails with the other. It would be an absolute tragedy for the AFL to look to NZ at the expense of developing local markets.