The Western Bulldogs in Wellington is a great idea

 
Michael DiFabrizio Columnist

By , 12 Mar 2010 Michael DiFabrizio is a Roar Expert

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Jarrod Harbrow

Jarrod Harbrow of the Western Bulldogs look dejected as they leave the field after the AFL 2nd Qualifying Final between the Hawthorn Hawks and the Western Bulldogs at the MCG. GSP Images

Yesterday’s news that the Western Bulldogs will be seeking two home games at Basin Reserve in the New Zealand city of Wellington, possibly as early as next year, is a positive for the game.

I touched on the topic of teams expanding beyond their existing support bases earlier in the week, and this is a great way for the Dogs to go about doing just that.

Whilst the club has already sold home games to Sydney, Darwin and Canberra (and are continuing to do so in the latter two markets this year) the fact they are willing to forgo their existing agreements to solely go after Wellington is testament to how serious they are this time around.

It doesn’t seem like some quick cash-grab, especially considering in Darwin they are now effectively supporting Port Adelaide’s push into the region and in Canberra they are supporting Sydney. With these current games, there doesn’t seem to be much in it for them other than money.

On the Wellington plan, Dogs chief Campbell Rose said, “The fundamental idea is to establish a major event of sustainable proportions that creates a sense of occasion.” In that sense, it’s a bit like the NFL’s hosting of games in cities like Toronto, London and Mexico City, on a slightly smaller scale, no doubt.

Of course, as Hawthorn have showed in Tasmania, the key to making any foray beyond traditional club markets is to look beyond the dollars.

You’ll remember that originally both Hawthorn and St Kilda played games in Tassie, but it was the ongoing commitment from the Hawks, even after their much talked-about resurrection on and off the field, that got them the extended supporter base they now have.

So long as the Bulldogs can wrap their head around that concept, the opportunities for them are huge.

New Zealand has a population well over 4 million. The Wellington region’s population is on par with Tasmania’s and the Wellington city’s population is a fair bit higher than that of Launceston.

Kiwi teams have a presence in most other Australian leagues – the Wellington Phoenix are currently storming through the A-League finals, the Warriors are a big part of the NRL, the Breakers get decent support by NBL standards, plus of course there’s the Super 14 and netball’s ANZ Championship, which have teams across both countries.

Furthermore, as Rose pointed out yesterday, New Zealand is closer to and cheaper to get to than Darwin.

So who’s to say there isn’t room there for Aussie rules, even if it is in a minor capacity?

Taking the club out of it, any push into New Zealand should be welcomed. The fact it’s a sports-mad country not all that far away makes it intriguing more hasn’t been done already.

During the off-season, it was Hawthorn leading the charge across the ditch, putting together a grassroots program with AFL NZ, signalling their intentions to use the country as a future recruiting ground. Even the national teams from the U/16 level up will now be known as the NZ Hawks.

Both clubs should be applauded for their initiative. It’s about time the sport got more serious about New Zealand.

Follow Michael on twitter @mdifabrizio
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