Sport in Australia is an institution; a major part of Australian culture and our identity. So what are the issues at present? With so many different sports and the strange relationships between codes, how do we make sense of the growing competitive sporting climate that encapsulates our national identity?
With expansion on every competitions agenda and derogatory comments thrown against rival codes, what purpose does such a competitive and bullying culture between codes and leagues serve?
Firstly, I believe in the media and in certain groups there is this idea about codes and sports that people only support one thing.
There is this misconception that people are only able or choose to follow one code or variety of sport and that they are incapable of following more than one club, code or national team in a season, or at all.
Most people do not have an exclusive allegiance to one code and embrace our national sporting teams of all varieties at the biggest events.
People from all walks of life, from all codes and clubs put down their affiliations when the Socceroos are playing a knockout clash in the football World Cup or when our national cricket team is playing the fifth test against England to decide who will take home The Ashes.
Anyone watching the English supporters at The Ashes this summer wouldn’t be surprised to see a football shirt on every second English fan, Birmingham City or Arsenal- they all love their cricket and stand side-by-side to support their national team.
Whether it’s the Wallabies against New Zealand, rugby league against New Zealand or netball against New Zealand, everyone will get behind our national teams particularly in the biggest rivalries and sporting events at the international level.
This is why it was so shocking when the multi-million dollar earning Andrew Demetriou made slanderous comments against our national football team, who were playing a pre-World Cup farewell match against New Zealand at the MCG.
To talk down an important Socceroos fixture just for the self-benefit of his code or some random status principle is immature and undermines the common AFL supporter, telling them they aren’t allowed to follow the Socceroos if they ‘really’ care for their brand of ‘footy’.
Not only was Demetriou undermining one of Australia’s most popular national sporting teams, he was showing that the AFL felt intimidated and concerned about footballs growing support, particularly in Melbourne.
But what’s the problem? Why should other codes feel so intimidated from not even a league match but a national team fixture?
Most codes don’t treat other sports this way and it shows that the AFL has some real issues in terms of the way it views Australian society and how they take the Melbourne public’s support for granted.
Apparently, according to Demetriou, “Soccer wants to kill your sport (AFL)” and there is by no means room for two Melbourne A-League clubs to play in summer, in the AFL’s off-season? Let alone the occasional Socceroos match that gives the MCG a whole new atmosphere.
You never hear the AFL complaining about the Olympics and how it might steal their supporters once in every four years. Of course this would be ridiculous, but so is the fact that the AFL is intimidated by football and the A-League which is played in the summer and has a schedule clash with matches for about two weeks.
A clash most likely avoided through a schedule change for next season, hardly stressful competition for fans.
So what is the point of all this bickering and in-fighting in the broader context of Australian sports? Not much really.
Why should a competition in summer hinder crowds or support for the main codes of winter? Shouldn’t other summer codes be more concerned? Well I could say quite surely that most of the smaller codes in Australia (i.e. everything but AFL and NRL) try to work constructively in the general sporting community and help each other grow.
The AFL can’t bash on every code, whether it’s rugby league or football like it’s the only important thing in Australian sports.
With the least international competition out of all the major leagues you’d think the AFL would be trying to make friends rather than excluding and bullying alternate codes for their weaknesses, for example the AFL constantly taking the moral high ground in contrast to the NRL which has actually had less controversial issues in its history.
Alternatively, the NSW Swifts netball team has a logo of the Sydney Swans on their kit which shows a partnership that can help both codes gain support and identity within the jungle of sporting teams in the largest cities, an example of constructive leadership where the AFL is a minority code in NSW.
If someone wanted (although unlikely) they could probably attend every match of their cities sporting team in five different codes. There aren’t many direct scheduling overlaps and most games are held on different days if there is a week/round clash.
It all comes down to the individual and how much of a ‘sports’ enthusiast they are in general. People won’t experience the same thing if they go to a basketball match compared to a rugby league match so why should people have to choose?
You could say Melbourne is largely an AFL city, but it still draws over 50,000 to rugby league State of Origin match, supposedly a foreign sport.
People like different sports for different reasons and want to have a variety of ‘sports cultural’ exposure.
To say one city only supports one code is narrow minded and people should start to be defined as sporting enthusiasts rather than an AFL enthusiast who might watch the occasional cricket match to entertain themselves during the warmer months.
Sports are just too different to say they compete directly with each other whether its surfing and hockey, boxing or F1; sports in this country will never be solely dominated by one code and you can’t ask the public to choose.
People will always have their main love, be it football or ice hockey but you can’t turn around and tell these people they shouldn’t be watching the Olympic swimming or Melbourne Cup just because they have a direct passion for one particular code.
Australia might have too many codes for our population, but as long as the sports hungry public show their passion for whatever they love, and how ever many teams they love; whether its Collingwood and the Wallabies or Brisbane Roar and Mark Webber, sports will still be strong and we will dominate multiple codes for years to come.
grogboy
Guest
Most fans don't buy any tickets or merchandise ever... simple as that... [survey of 39 workmates that all follow teams in various ball games... all follow more than one code] so we can easily support multiple codes by your argument... We all have TV's and that's where most of the money comes from...
Jaredsbro
Roar Guru
Sorry I didn't respond to this in time MLF (again damn it!) I see your point. I was just saying that the code wars resembles a fight over 'our way of life' which is in my opinion what led to some of the World's Civil Wars. One of the aspects of the Northern way of life seems to be this question (perhaps even existential) about the what our sporting market (cultural and financial) should be like. And one code to rule them all which is what I perceive the AFL's marketing logic to be is an act of war, in a sense. The 'revolutions' in Arabica aren't actually too different from this. They are fights over freedoms, and many in the North feel their freedom (and the long-established tradition of playing the game your father played and feeling quite entitled to watching the game your father watched, is being brought into question by these attempted changes in the market. I'm personally in favour of the Giants and Suns bringing us more options, but to understand the everyday man/woman that's my point of inquisition and they tend to feel like a war's started. I wouldn't actually be surprised if the DT and other papers came to these concerns late and started profiteering off them. I highly doubt the media actually started it...but it has now brought it into the Melbourne sporting landscape.
Australian Football: Central Coast Represent
Guest
nah mate im dead serious. are you?
Australian Football: Central Coast Represent
Guest
Thankyou? Notice my name is Australian Football, not Soccer. I dont care for the game.
Twatter
Guest
Central Coast Rep. Congratulations on the win by the Mariners tonight, into the grand final and qualification for the Asian Football Champions League. A great night for the Central Coast and Australian Football. Well done mate.
Australian Football: Central Coast Represent
Guest
football tonight? what are you talking about? are you talking about the game at southport betweent sydney and gold coast or gws and north at albury, because there about 8 hrs away?
Koops
Roar Rookie
Big difference between teams and clubs, for EX: there is actually 93 teams in the fixture for AFL QLD this season, including the Northern teriitory, GC Suns and BL ressies who contribute one team each. They are spread across 7 divisions, and except for the last 2 divisions all have reserves. http://www.sportingpulse.com/comp_info.cgi?c=1-109-0-143941-0&a=FIXTURE&pool=0&round=0 I also might add that there are around 35 to 40 under 18 teams.
Bondy
Guest
Central Coast Bloke. That with you're satistics they great (insignificant) being from the central coast you'll be off to the football tonight central coast mariners. By the way how many football clubs are there on the central coast i would suggest a shirtload certainly a lot more than aussie rules clubs.
Australian Football: Central Coast Represent
Guest
I will never face that, because i dont believe its true, maybe now, but in the near future, we're set for a change.
Australian Football: Central Coast Represent
Guest
Check this out:- Footy: Northern Territory:- Barkly - 9 teams Central Australia - 10 teams Gove - 4 teams Katherine - 11 teams Elcho Island - 7 teams Groote Eylandt - 5 teams Tiwi Islands - 8 teams Wadeye - 8 teams NTFL - 18 clubs Queensland:- Brisbane - 41 teams Cairns Juniors - 10 teams Cairns - 7 teams Capricornia - 6 teams Darling Downs - 9 teams Mackay - 7 teams Mt Isa - 5 teams Gold Coast Juniors - 13 teams Northern Rivers - 8 teams Sunshine Coast - 11 teams Townsville - 10 teams Wide Bay - 7 teams Summerland - 6 teams New South Wales:- Central Coast 10 teams Illawarra - 11 teams Newcastle - 10 Teams North Coast - 7 teams North Coast Juniors - 8 teams Riverina - 9 teams Sydney North and City - 23 teams South Sydney - 7 teams West Sydney - 15 teams Broken Hill - 4 teams Central West - 6 teams Hume - 13 teams Mid North Coast - 4 teams Northern Riverina - 9 teams Sapphire Coast - 9 teams South Coast - 9 teams Tamworth - 7 teams Sydney AFL - 23 teams AFL Canberra - 8 teams So there you go. The number of teams competing in leagues throughout the North East.
The_Wookie
Roar Guru
christ 83 - 1800 players in ten years is a damn good growth rate. good find.
Koops
Roar Rookie
Interesting article from Townsville, http://www.citylifemagazine.com.au/Townsville/online_magazines/11mar/index.html 1,400 kids running around kicking the sherrin, burley, faulkner, on Townvilles ovals playing Australian football. Had no idea AF had built this base in Townsville, please note that in the first paragraph that it is duly pointed out that RL is king, so no'one is saying that AF will take over. Perhaps a team is needed in NEAFL from Townsville, the grass roots base is there. In 2000 83 people were playing AF, in 2010 1,800
Australian Football, Only Australian Game
Guest
ok, well you organise it, and we'll see who's correct.
Australian Football, Only Australian Game
Guest
What rugby supporters don't understand is what they are saying is true. If someone who loves playing and watching footy, moves into Brisbane or Sydney, they dont understand how rugby is exciting. Coming from an exciting, accelerating, bone crunching, specky taking, hard tackling, big bumping, strong marking, skillful game like Australian Football, AFL, Aussie Rules, Football, Footy, they simply dont understand rugby and how its popular at all. Well there lucky people they've come from a footy part of Australia, unlike me who, i have lived on the central coast all my life and i still dont understand the game. Looking forward to next when im going to be a member of GWS and the Swans (12th year) and theres going to be a game in Sydney every week.
Australian Football, Only Australian Game
Guest
probably more, thankyou for picking that up, my bad.
JVGO
Guest
Can you please lay off the sentimental guff Lefty, (also the ridiculous hyperbole) you're starting to make me feel physically ill.
Koops
Roar Rookie
Seem to be different people, the old Australian football (soccer)was KB, (with avatar), the new Australian football has no avatar. Weird though as the name is the same.
MyLeftFoot
Roar Guru
With the father-son, it's a case of trying to hang onto the tradition and romantiscim of it, on the one hand, and the equity of the draft on the other. Yes, you're right that draft sharks can force clubs to pay a high price for their father-son selections, but I think they have got the balance almost right (personally, I'd rather see it in favour of tradition/romanticism a tiny bit more).
MyLeftFoot
Roar Guru
Our diggers played games of aussie rules on the battlefields of Nth Africa and the Somme - celebrated in digger history in a manner that would not quite ring true for any other game.
Jaredsbro
Roar Guru
Yeah about the footy club is the community stuff, isn't it more of a case of taking the community for granted a little bit more than it used to be? In essence not much has changed, but the idea that a community is one and the same as a football organisation also defeats the purpose of living in a free country, where the point is to avoid authoritarianism, rather than valourise it! Edit: The father-son thing is really cool...but all too often taken advantage of by salary cap sharks, which is a spit in the face of such an awesome tradition for mine