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Greater Western Sydney coach Kevin Sheedy believes his AFL club shouldn’t be alarmed by the modest turnout for their first match at the revamped Showground Stadium.
Despite an intriguing subplot of Sheedy matching wits with James Hird, GWS attracted a crowd of only 11,887 to the 25,000-seat stadium at Sydney’s Olympic Park on Saturday night.
It was the Giants’ first home game in Sydney since April 15 and against Essendon, a team ordinarily capable of drawing a decent crowd – let alone when they’re in fine form and taking on Sheedy, a much-loved figure among fans for his 27 seasons of service.
While the Bombers’ supporters turned up – earlier in the week, 30 per cent of tickets were snaffled by Victorians – there wasn’t the sea of orange many GWS officials would have hoped for.
But Sydney is a city known for fickle sports fans who crave success, and Sheedy says it will take time for his club to prove themselves.
“We’ve got no right to come into Sydney and expect everybody to turn up because we have,” Sheedy said after his side’s 66-point loss.
“That’s the good part about building the club – earning respect. It will take a generation.
“We need people in Sydney following the Swans and the Giants and knowing that they’re the two clubs representing AFL.”
The AFL scheduling Sydney’s Etihad Stadium clash with St Kilda as Saturday’s twilight match was a major mitigating factor. With no buffer between the games, anyone with a major interest in the Swans’ fixture would have stayed away.
© AAP 2013
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The Crowd Says (125) | Page 1 of Comments
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- AFL, GWS Giants
May 28th 2012 @ 7:49am
Cman said | May 28th 2012 @ 7:49am | Report comment
The 11,887 will be the biggest crowd the Giants will get at that stadium.
Crowds should drop to about 6000 to 7000 a game from now on.
May 28th 2012 @ 10:18am
Macca said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:18am | Report comment
I only saw the second half of the game on Saturday night but given the capacity is 25k it seemd to me that the stadium was a long way from 1/2 full. They must have some pretty good bars to have had 11,887.
May 28th 2012 @ 11:21am
Lazy Ted Failyou said | May 28th 2012 @ 11:21am | Report comment
You could very well be right ‘Cman’.
But, as this team still provides tv content and contracts and deals have been made with various governments the Giants are there to stay forever baby.
On top of that, the old, historical clubs of Western Suburbs Magpies and Balmain Tigers RL clubs are no more. And they had 100 years head start.
The A-League club will probably lurch from crisis to crisis, we all know that from the get-go.
Eventually, in time, your kids will learn to love our game of Australian football even if you stay ignorantly loyal to that northern English game.
May 28th 2012 @ 1:12pm
Victer said | May 28th 2012 @ 1:12pm | Report comment
Lol
May 28th 2012 @ 7:50am
Football United said | May 28th 2012 @ 7:50am | Report comment
TBH 11,000 is fine, sydney is crowded and afl is not number one nor is GWS the top sydney team. they really shouldn’t expect more than 15,000 and i doubt it’ll ever get more than that. AFL has got these massive unrealistic expectations on their interstate teams to make the same crowds as the melbourne teams.
May 28th 2012 @ 8:04am
Brewski said | May 28th 2012 @ 8:04am | Report comment
TBH 12,000 is not really fine, when we are talking about the AFL, i wonder what sort of a crowd they would have got, if they had won 3 games and been pretty competetive in others ?.
I think the AFL and GWS were hoping for more, but in reality their form does not warrant it, as Sheedy says it will be generational, and they must earn respect, but i am betting that it will happen.
Seems to be a great stadium from what i saw.
May 28th 2012 @ 8:13am
Saints fan said | May 28th 2012 @ 8:13am | Report comment
Give them 3-4 years they get their draft picks, build a strong group of players they will be a force
The early signs are there, when there success comes which it will . the band wagon will start
and alot of people wil jump on it then they will be looking to jump next door to play at anz
May 28th 2012 @ 8:17am
Cameron said | May 28th 2012 @ 8:17am | Report comment
Being in Sydney, you wouldnt have known the match was on due to the saturation coverage state of orgin got up here. Besides, when they start winning, the crowds will start to come, re: Sydney 1996. As Tony Lockett used to say – “Sydney loves a winner”. After 15 years of hard toil and being denegrated and ignored in the Sydney media. And those who say that was super league war, well I think you will see increased crowds despite this. Sheedy was right on the weekend when he said you need to earn respect to win over the Sydney public, and this will take time
May 28th 2012 @ 8:27am
Rough Conduct said | May 28th 2012 @ 8:27am | Report comment
This is really unnacceptable stuff RC. Please refrain or you’ll be on moderation. Thanks, Roar Mods.
May 28th 2012 @ 9:24am
Rough Conduct said | May 28th 2012 @ 9:24am | Report comment
Oh C’mon.
Not very often do we get to sink the slipper into AFL regarding their all conquering, proves-we-are-a-better-code attendance figures.
May 28th 2012 @ 9:28am
Kasey said | May 28th 2012 @ 9:28am | Report comment
Its amazing isn’t it. All I suggested was perhaps if Association football was given the same “don’t worry, these things take time” attitude that AFL footy seems to get considering the HAL is only 7 years old , then this constant barrage of “geez – soccer’s in crisis” would look a whole lot different wouldn’t it? who would have thought that my comment would be considered not fit to print. Who is scared of a little criticism now?
May 28th 2012 @ 12:01pm
Lazy Ted Failyou said | May 28th 2012 @ 12:01pm | Report comment
Understand your view entirely, I love soccer BUT local soccer does not attract enough interest in any market. Put it this way, the Giants may never improve their attendances or tv ratings but in the rest of Australia, Vic, Tas, SA, WA AFL is a religion and gets blanket coverage.
May 28th 2012 @ 8:33am
Brick Tamlin of the Pants Party said | May 28th 2012 @ 8:33am | Report comment
GWS is going to struggle big time and their second season is going to be even harder,what people are also over looking is the fact that in a couple of years big Melbourne clubs are going to come in a snatch their young talent(same with Gold Coast)and im afraid after a few years of getting hammered in front of no-one a club like Collingwood is going to be abit hard to resist.All this talk of threatening for a flag in 5 years well thats more spin than you’ll see at a figure skating tournament.
May 28th 2012 @ 8:50am
Cman said | May 28th 2012 @ 8:50am | Report comment
And crowds aren’t their only problem the TV audience on Saturday night with no other sport on Free 2 Air but the AFL in Sydney GWS’ clash against Essendon only pulled 29,000 viewers.
May 28th 2012 @ 9:57am
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 9:57am | Report comment
That 29k on 7Mate would be 7Mate’s largest audience in Sydney for Saturday. That’s actualy pretty good.
For example, last Saturday, Heartbeat, 7Two, was the 3rd highest rating program on the multi-channels, but only got 42k in Sydney, and 7Mate is the 3rd of 7′s channels.
Still, 7Mate rates better than both of 10′s multi-channels and rates better than 9′s GEM, but rates lower than GO.
I also note that 30k tuned in from Brisbane to watch the Suns on 7Mate on Saturday afternoon – and that is excellent.
May 28th 2012 @ 10:02am
Kasey said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:02am | Report comment
29k is good is it?
Sounds like less than a third of what the W-League gets on ABC to me(90k) . Considering people I know in Sydney had this game being plugged relentlessly on radio, TV and newspaper, no matter how you slice it, the debut night was a crushing disappointment for the AFL. to think otherwise is surely a sign of denial.
May 28th 2012 @ 10:08am
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:08am | Report comment
I just told you, 29k would be the highest audience 7Mate receives in Sydney on Saturday.
The ABC figures you are quoting are national figures, by all means, lobby the ABC to pay more money for the W-League – no one is stopping you.
May 28th 2012 @ 10:12am
Kasey said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:12am | Report comment
I’m having deja-vu here. All last season we had one particular poster on here, in serious denial about the viability and continued participation of a certain football team called Gold Coast United. GWS are already showing signs of being a similar epic fail. Those that drink the kool-aid from Melbourne are in a serious state of denial. The festering sore of red ink on the AFL balance sheet can only last for so long whilst struggling Melbourne teams wonder why it continues.
May 28th 2012 @ 10:23am
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:23am | Report comment
Kasey
Yeh, I said GCU would survive after the end of the season, and I was right.
What of it?
May 28th 2012 @ 10:26am
Kasey said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:26am | Report comment
Funny. I was actually referring to QSAF and his epic levels of denial that there was even a problem at GCU simply because Clive would continue to pay the bills.
May 28th 2012 @ 12:40pm
mds1970 said | May 28th 2012 @ 12:40pm | Report comment
If the Giants take the field wearing “freedom of speech” jumpers, we know the end is nigh……
May 28th 2012 @ 10:04am
Fussball ist unser leben said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:04am | Report comment
29k ratings in SYD on FTA TV would be similar to the figures the W-League has been averaging in SYD on ABCTv for the past 3 years.
May 28th 2012 @ 10:05am
Kasey said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:05am | Report comment
great minds think alike;)
May 28th 2012 @ 10:09am
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:09am | Report comment
Which is more than what the A-League gets – and???
May 28th 2012 @ 10:12am
Kasey said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:12am | Report comment
The A-League FTA component you mean?
May 28th 2012 @ 10:25am
Fussball ist unser leben said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:25am | Report comment
TC … we’re talking about 29k on FTA TV in SYD.
That figure is absolutely embarrassing. And, 68k on Foxtel for each of the new clubs is a big FAIL, when the average AFL game rates 180k on Foxtel.
And, given the huge support for Essendon – particularly when they’re flying – you’d assume the vast majority of Foxtel’s 68k viewers for GWS v ESS would have been living in the vicinity of Map 28 in the Melway?
May 28th 2012 @ 10:26am
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:26am | Report comment
Kasey
you and fussball are grabbing national figures for the ABC (a primary station I might add), and comparing them to Sydney’s figures on 7Mate, a tertiary station.
And to be honest, I’m not 100% sure where you’re getting the ABC numbers from anyway.
A bit like Paris having a population of 2 million?
Are we into that sort of accuracy? You and your best mate?
May 28th 2012 @ 10:41am
piesman2011 said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:41am | Report comment
Dont forget there would be some watching it on Foxtel as well. However most of the people watching Foxtel would have been watching the Pies V Crows game it was on at the same time and rated 300K + if I remember.
May 28th 2012 @ 8:50am
Christo the Daddyo said | May 28th 2012 @ 8:50am | Report comment
Stadium looked great – apart form the surface, which looked like it needed another few weeks to get settled in.
I was a bit surprised at the crowd – I thought it might have been closer to 20,000 for their first game at the proper home ground. But Sheedy is right, it will take quite a while for the crowds to build up. Which is why the AFL has always talked about a ten year strategy.
I presume all the people who are mouthing off about the Giants are the same people who claimed the Swans would never succeed in Sydney either.
May 28th 2012 @ 8:58am
Cman said | May 28th 2012 @ 8:58am | Report comment
The Swan’s have won a couple of battle for support in Sydney but have lost the war.
The Swan’s are always finishing in the top 8 but crowds are dropped year after year and TV ratings are diabolically bad.
May 28th 2012 @ 9:13am
Ian Whitchurch said | May 28th 2012 @ 9:13am | Report comment
These ratings will clearly stop the AFL from getting any sort of decent television contract. Oh. Wait.
May 28th 2012 @ 9:50am
Cman said | May 28th 2012 @ 9:50am | Report comment
The AFL didn’t get 1.2 billion TV deal because they put GWS or the Suns in the comp.
Just like the NRL will get over billion without teams in Perth or Adelaide. they both have great comps.
Years from now people will pinpoint GWS and the Suns as where AFL went wrong.
They had a great comp but got an exaggerated sense of their own importance or abilities.
May 28th 2012 @ 12:27pm
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 12:27pm | Report comment
Let’s touch base in 154 years to see if you’re correct there.
May 28th 2012 @ 11:50am
JVGO said | May 28th 2012 @ 11:50am | Report comment
6 months ago Sheedy was talking up a third AFL team in Sydney. He has had a serious reality check since then. To stem the haemorraging the AFL should immediately give Sydney back to the Swans and walk GWS either to Canberra or Tassy. The fundamental Melburnian belief that the mystical properties of AFL will somehow be revealed to sports fans with a wider point of view like Sydney siders is a fallacy, although of course Vics will never be convinced.
May 28th 2012 @ 12:31pm
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 12:31pm | Report comment
JVGO
nothing mystical about it.
Kids love kicking a footy, so get the game into all the schools in Sydney – they’ll love it, and improve their hand to eye co-ordination.
The central philosophy of Auskick is good, clean, fun sport, safe environment, learn new skills, improve hand to eye co-ordination.
Believe me JVGO – you would not want to compare the kicking skills of your average 12 year old Melburnian with a 12 year old from Sydney.
This is the thing we should address as a nation – help combat obesity – billion dollar funding of the Olympic movement has been a monumental failure in Australia.
May 28th 2012 @ 12:39pm
JVGO said | May 28th 2012 @ 12:39pm | Report comment
You carry on like a fool C, honestly. Maybe the NSW education department should put regular RL, RU cricket soccer and basketball et al back into schools as it was in the old days. They provide pretty much zero regular competitive sports for kids now, maybe some tunnelball once a week, or something the girls can play too, like netball or Aussie rules.
This idea that AFL is any way superior to other activities is merely an obsession you have, an act of faith, it bears no relation to reality.
May 28th 2012 @ 9:11am
Kasey said | May 28th 2012 @ 9:11am | Report comment
I’m mouthing off at the Giants, because with all the free-kicks they’ve been given(whether by virtue of the AFLs Largesse or from the media being on a softly softly approach) they could still only get 11k to a marquee event game(events being what we all know Sydney Sports fans love to attend. I agree with Cman. the giants won’t go close to an 11k crowd again this year. Whether the AFL announces the true figures, now that will be interesting. Pictures were taken of vast banmks of empty seating last weekend. If another 11k crowd is announced and there are even more empty seats, questions will surely be asked about the ability of the AFL media dept to spin their way through this obviously disappointing number.
May 28th 2012 @ 11:18am
Australian Rules said | May 28th 2012 @ 11:18am | Report comment
Kasey
I can tell you’re enjoying this article, which is great.
By all means, feel free to “mouth off”…and I agree it’s a woeful crowd.
But…dont then cry “leave us alone” the next time someone criticises something about the A-League: like crowds, or sponsorships, or failing clubs, or owners, or tv ratings, or memberships, or media exposure…….
May 28th 2012 @ 12:33pm
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 12:33pm | Report comment
Yes, I can see it now the next the A-League gets a 5,000 crowd – woe is us – no one gives us a fair go – boo hoo hoo.
May 28th 2012 @ 9:05am
aflhype said | May 28th 2012 @ 9:05am | Report comment
1993 and 1994 is alot different to 2012 – how many more options do we have with internet, pay tv and following other things in our life. Is this X and Y generations interested in following a team through thick and thin when they have a lot more options? When 2 traditional Melbourne clubs, apparently with huge membership bases, such as Carlton v Melbourne draws less than 30,000 in Melbourne on a Sunday afternoon how much hope does the GWS have? 18 teams is way too much and the difference between exciting games Adelaide v Collingwood and GWS v Anybody or Melbourne v Anbody is just to big of a gap for a market like Australia (no matter how much you want to hype it up) and will never close because to strengthen one team you are robbing the next. It is not like there is a wordlwide player market. With fans watching their dollar in these economic conditions it is clear fans are picking the games they will watch and that will not be ones where their team has no hope of winning. Look at WCE and Adelaide crowds are up and the also rans are down. When your team is out of contention 5 rounds in, it leaves a lot of dead rubbers to come.
May 28th 2012 @ 9:32am
Ads said | May 28th 2012 @ 9:32am | Report comment
I disagree with the comments on here that the Giants won’t pull a crowd greater than 11K again this year. Are you all forgetting that Collingwood plays them in Round 18? They’ll get 20K when the mighty pies play at Skoda!
May 28th 2012 @ 9:42am
Kasey said | May 28th 2012 @ 9:42am | Report comment
You mean ‘more’ fans will turn up after a full year of being humped like Paris Hilton and the team not even being in the same postcode as finals contention play a flag favourite for one more thrashing? tell him he’s dreamin.
May 28th 2012 @ 9:41am
Fussball ist unser leben said | May 28th 2012 @ 9:41am | Report comment
So, GWS is expected to take a generation to consolidate its fan base but, when assessing the HAL, the big crowds & loyal fan base must be generated overnight.
There is no clearer example of double standards & hypocrisy in the media.
It’s interesting to note the Foxtel ratings from the week-end:
GWS v Ess: 68k
GCS v Pt Ade: 68k
Those ratings are similar to the average Foxtel ratings for HAL this year. Of course, the AFL has invested tens of millions of dollars marketing the new AFL clubs; FFA has invested nothing.
May 28th 2012 @ 10:06am
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:06am | Report comment
GWS v Ess was up against another match on Fox which rated 318k – let me tell you, 318k is very high.
It was also on FTA, and was the 9th highest rating show for Saturday.
May 28th 2012 @ 10:36am
AGO74 said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:36am | Report comment
TC
My litmus test is – did it beat (in Sydney) The Iron Chef?
May 28th 2012 @ 10:41am
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:41am | Report comment
I don’t know – I rely on the top 20 shows for my ratings info.
Once again, SBS is a primary station, and 7Mate is a tertiary station, at a guess, I’d say the figures are comparable.
May 28th 2012 @ 10:53am
AGO74 said | May 28th 2012 @ 10:53am | Report comment
Cat – just relax mate. GWS got pantsed in the ratings. 7mate may be a tertiary station but everyone with digital TV (which is now the majority of Australians) still has access to it. If there is such a thing (based on ratings) as a “tertiary primary” station then SBS is it.
May 28th 2012 @ 11:27am
The Cattery said | May 28th 2012 @ 11:27am | Report comment
SBS One’s audience for Saturday was 7.9% and 7Mate’s was 3.0%.
It definitely makes a difference.
I note you didn’t put the Iron Chef ratings for Sydney down – spoil a good story?
May 28th 2012 @ 11:29am
AGO74 said | May 28th 2012 @ 11:29am | Report comment
I don’t have a clue what ratings Iron Chef got Cat. GWS could have beaten it for all I know. If they did it still doesn’t change they only got 29k in a city of over 4 million.
May 28th 2012 @ 1:18pm
Mark Young said | May 28th 2012 @ 1:18pm | Report comment
It was Eurovision on SBS1 Saturday night, not Iron Chef
#justsaying