The home game for any team used to be sacrosanct in the AFL. It was the opportunity to use a parochial home crowd to try and intimidate both the umpire and the opposition and generate a win for the home team.
Since the decision was reached by the AFL to play all Melbourne-based games at either Etihad Stadium or the MCG the concept and value of a home game has diminished somewhat between the Victorian clubs.
The Victorian clubs do still have an advantage against those pesky interstate teams who regularly travel to the Victorian capital during the course of a season.
The one Victorian club that has retained its traditional home ground, and as a consequence its home ground advantage, is Geelong.
The Geelong Football Club has an enviable record down at Simonds Stadium and it is currently transforming before our eyes into one of the great boutique stadiums in the AFL.
In an era where other clubs are looking to play home games away from their traditional fan-base, Geelong has actually made a request to the AFL to increase the number of games in Geelong up to at least eight per season.
This request so far has gone unheeded and will see the town again host seven games this year.
Blockbuster fixtures to be played in Melbourne include games against Hawthorn and Richmond at the MCG and Essendon and Carlton at Etihad Stadium.
Geelong generates enormous revenue when playing at Simonds Stadium and they have the added benefit of having an extremely one-eyed crowd at their backs, much like the teams from Perth and Adelaide.
While Geelong is doing great things off the field, there are several Melbourne clubs that are struggling financially due to a combination of factors including, but not limited to:
– Form (particularly if they have been struggling for a number of years)
– Stadium deal (particularly those at Etihad Stadium)
– Traditionally a smaller support base.
Melbourne, St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs all encompass one or more of the above issues in an era of high off-field spending by power clubs such as Collingwood, West Coast and Hawthorn.
What Melbourne, St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs also all have in common is that they are all taking at least one home game to another city this year following the leads of Hawthorn (Launceston), North Melbourne (Hobart) and GWS Giants (Canberra).
I for one think that it is a positive for the AFL, the club involved and the area that hosts the game that more teams are considering taking home games out of Melbourne.
Let’s now take a look at what those clubs have agreed to do with their home game(s) this season.
Melbourne
The Demons have extended a sponsorship partnership with Tourism NT to play three games this year in the Northern Territory.
One of those games was the recently completed NAB Challenge match against Geelong at Alice Springs and the Demons will travel twice more to the Top End for home games in Alice Springs against Port Adelaide in Round 11 and in Darwin against Fremantle in Round 16.
It is a great initiative by the Demons and the NT Government which brings top level football to those locations in addition to the work that the Demons do in the community leading into those games with their Community Camps.
Further to this, they have taken what would have been two very low drawing games at the MCG to places that love footy and will no doubt pack those grounds.
For me the Demons need to consolidate this relationship and extend the deal to be five games a year with two in Darwin and two in Alice Springs for multiple years, preferably five years. The additional game is a NAB Challenge fixture which can be rotated between Alice Springs and Darwin each year.
They have the opportunity to really build a strong relationship with the Northern Territory in the way that Hawthorn have with Launceston which should generate both more members to the club and more revenue.
The Demons also have the ability to benefit from the conditions in the Top End by playing there regularly so they will know exactly when they need to arrive to prepare to give them the best chance to win their games and build a fortress against the travelling team.
St Kilda
St Kilda played the first ever AFL game for premiership points in Wellington, New Zealand last season on ANZAC Day where they lost to Sydney in front of a crowd of 22,183 at Westpac Stadium.
The Wellington City Council confirmed that every hotel in the area was at capacity with an estimated tourism impact of $8.5 million. The Saints last year confirmed that they are going to play on ANZAC Day in Wellington for the next five years through to 2018.
I for one commend St Kilda on their vision of taking a match to a new location that is economically beneficial for both the club and the city of Wellington.
At the end of this five year deal they should look to increase this to two games per season and strengthen their ties to Wellington and the AFL presence in New Zealand.
Western Bulldogs
Cairns will see AFL action again this year courtesy of the Bulldogs taking a home game to Cazaly’s Stadium against the Gold Coast Suns in Round 17.
This comes on the back of a three-year one-game deal that Richmond had at the venue against the same opposition until the conclusion of the 2013 season.
The Tigers achieved “home” crowds at Cazaly’s Stadium of 10,832 in 2011, 10,961 in 2012 and 11,197 in 2013. There is momentum that has been building in Cairns over the past three years and the AFL would be silly not to continue to provide games in the city.
The Bulldogs, much like the Saints, are struggling with their current stadium deal at Etihad and have taken the opportunity to take what would be a low drawing game in Melbourne to tropical Far North Queensland.
The Bulldogs have the opportunity to try and solidify a relationship and commitment to the region by increasing the number of games played in Cairns to five per season.
They can make it four games in Cairns during the regular season plus an additional NAB Challenge game in Townsville every year also.
At a time when the AFL have just gone through an expansion phase we will not see any further teams in the competition for some time yet.
What this means is that regions such as Tasmania, Northern Territory, Far North Queensland and Canberra will continue to see visiting teams play games for premiership points in the foreseeable future.
I have previously hypothesised on where the AFL might expand to next in this article.
The above clubs, the AFL and the football public stand to gain enormously from continued associations in areas that are not currently serviced regularly by an AFL club.
I feel as though the key when taking games to these areas is to make sure that the games matter and that means games for AFL Premiership points, not just NAB Challenge or practice games.
In addition to the aim of spreading the game as far and wide as possible across the country it also gives the AFL chiefs at the Docklands and ability to monitor the demand for the game and assess the “next cab off the rank” for an AFL team.
The above Victorian teams can continue to sell 11 home game memberships to their Melbourne fans with a simple arrangement that the difference be made up with an away game at either Etihad or the MCG when facing a fellow Victorian team.
If my proposal for each of the above-mentioned clubs went ahead and the agreements that Hawthorn and North Melbourne continue, it would only see 16 games moved away from Melbourne over the course of a season.
This is not unreasonable at all when you consider the amount of games still on offer in the Victorian capital.
My suggestions help the AFL to continue to ensure that the game is played multiple times in every State and Territory in Australia and have a presence in New Zealand each year.
Over to you Roarers – do you agree that more games played in Northern Territory, Far North Queensland and Wellington is a benefit to the club, the AFL and the cities involved?
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.
We’re taking a look at one player from each team that needs to make a difference this week, starting with the ANZAC Day games.
West Coast defender Tom Barrass will miss the Eagles' clash with Gold Coast, after the AFL Tribunal upheld his one-match suspension for a dangerous…
Has there ever been a team more “quietly” unbeaten and on top of the ladder, like Geelong this year? The Cats are a game…
Geelong coach Chris Scott has hit out at the AFL Tribunal's decision to clear Charlie Cameron for his dangerous tackle on Jake Lever, saying…
Round 5 of the AFL provided plenty of action, from big scorelines to upset wins and pressure starting to build on some clubs and coaches already.
The AFL Players' Association has come out swinging against the league for their decision to hand Port Adelaide forward a three-match suspension for using…
