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In the lead up to the first ever Super Rugby final to be played in Sydney (and the Waratahs first grand final appearance since 2008), there’s been a lot of talk from across the ditch and at home about the decision to play the game at ANZ stadium.
It’s a bit of thinly veiled psychological warfare from our Kiwi counterparts; simultaneously trying to undermine the Waratahs confidence and have a shot at Sydney-siders for not being able to get off our collective butts to support one of the state’s oldest football teams of any code playing in its first ever Super Rugby home final.
Now, I personally can’t stand ANZ Stadium for round robin games, as even when you’ve got 30,000 people there it feels like you’re in an empty parking lot. But that’s not the story when it’s packed to the brim.
Going there for the Bledisloe Cup, the NRL Grand Final or State of Origin is a pretty special experience, just because of the sheer size of the place and how it looks when full. The noise at Allianz Stadium is generally better, but ANZ was ferocious when the NSW Origin team broke their eight year drought there in Game 2 this year.
But sadly, whilst the Waratahs are set to break the Super Rugby record for highest Grand Final crowd (a technical win only though, given the smaller capacities of the other stadiums it’s been played in), the game currently doesn’t look like it will get over 60,000.
Now, 60,000 wouldn’t be a bad result of course, and would justify the game’s scheduling at ANZ that the ten year contract the ARU signed with the stadium ensured.
Of course, the game really should be a sell-out, but it seems that the sad reality is there just don’t seem to be anywhere near enough Waratahs fans in this state of 7 million or city of 4.5 million people that feel they should get out and support the team’s quest to break their 19-year Super Rugby premiership drought.
Whether this is poor marketing on the part of the NSWRU or a symptom of the game’s diminished place in the Sydney sporting landscape is hard to tell.
As someone brought up playing and following both League and Union, I was hoping the NSW Origin success might spark a bit of cross-code solidarity here. For instance, seeing Blatchy’s Blues snap up tickets for NSW’s attempt to break a drought in the other rugby code would be immense and add a real sense of colour and festival to the match.
Not only that, but it would make the ground just that much more hostile for the Crusaders and silence their nonsense about this not being a home game for the Waratahs. In fact, getting their 15,000+ crew together would give the game an organised support base that could make the ground more hostile than any other Waratahs home game in history.
Before anyone talks about ticket prices, this isn’t an expensive game for a Grand Final. Bronze tickets are only $36 and only $27 if you’re a student. Hardly breaking the bank for a once in 19 year match.
So come on Sydney and NSW! If you follow union or league, or even AFL or football, get out and support the NSW Waratahs! You could be part of a historic effort to help NSW’s other boys in sky blue end another massive drought! So lets show the kiwis what a home ground advantage really looks like!
Go the Tahs!
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.