Yes, I know this is yet another fluff piece on the GWS Giants. And yes, I know I’m a critic of people looking to write such pieces just for fun and, for a lack of a better phrase, to piss people off.
Hypocrisy, thy name is me. Right?
Well sure, I have at times been guilty of commentating on topics such as crowd numbers between the AFL and NRL which has been somewhat cheeky, however I like to think of such topics as thought-provoking.
And that’s what I’m trying to do here.
See, I’m faced with a conundrum.
GWS are playing spirited football. On field, they play a real team orientated brand of football, they are absolutely inundated with talent and it’s bloody scary to think how dominant they will be in four or five years’ time.
Off field, they’ve done a lot of things correctly: They’ve engaged with the community, set up a nice little nest at Breakfast Point which helps the team gel incredibly well and they’ll be financially stable for the foreseeable future, at which point they’ll most likely be a well-run team both on and off the field.
But at the moment, the crowd numbers are significantly underwhelming, and must be of a growing concern among league administrators at AFL House.
You’ve most likely heard certain phrases bandied around in an attempt to put on a façade that will convince people that everything is alright: “It’s a long term plan”, “We don’t expect to see results straight away”, “Rome wasn’t built in a day”, you get the drift.
But when eleven-odd thousand rock up to your first game at your new home ground and the second game has four thousand less than the previous, you have to start looking at the reasons behind these shortcomings.
Well, the Richmond game that drew seven thousand was played in pouring rain, which doesn’t help bring people to the game. As I’ve stated in another article, the problem could lie with an identity crisis of sorts, with the Giants failing to wholly commit to a specific area and playing home games at several venues. And one can’t deny the fact that Australian Football isn’t a major sport in Sydney’s west.
Those reasons alone could be the answer to the question.
However, I believe the problem lies deeper. Not just with Australian Football or the area it’s played in, not the weather, not even the identity crisis.
Sydney, in my opinion is a city that; teamed up with its citizens’ love of watching games on TV and the fact it’s so spread out geographically, means that overall, it’s generally poor at attending sports events.
The NRL has attendances averaging in between 10-20,000 for twelve teams. Rugby union has the Waratahs, who represent the whole of New South Wales, yet they only average 20,000. The A-League has Sydney FC, a team that represents an entire city and state, yet only averages 12,000 per match, even though association football is among the most popular codes in Sydney. And the AFL still averages around 15,000 between the two Sydney teams.
It doesn’t say that the AFL is more popular than football, and it doesn’t say that league is weak.
It simply means that Sydneysiders enjoy their living rooms more than travelling to Parramatta Stadium and forking out a lot of money for the associated costs that come along with sporting events.
I love going to Crows games, eating a Vili’s Pie and drinking a Farmers Union Iced Coffee. But then again, that’s the culture.
Many Croweaters, Sandgropers and Victorians have grown up going to the footy in rain, hail or shine to support their team.
The fact that Sydneysiders choose their couch over a bucket-seat at ANZ Stadium is a simple way to figure out why things are the way they are in Sydney.
It doesn’t mean they’re lazy or don’t support their club as much as Melbournians support their favourite AFL team.
People from Sydney love their league, and by looking at the television figures, their tradition of sitting in front of the TV with the kids and having a quiet beer and a packet of chips is just as important to them as a day at Football Park with a barbecue set up behind a Land Rover is to a Croweater.
So there it is, Roarers. What do you think? Is GWS in for decades of lacklustre crowds? Have I hit the nail on the head in regards the different cultures that divide Melbournians and Sydneysiders in the way they support their team or sport of choice?
Or is it just another fluff piece? I bloody hope not.
db swannie
Guest
Wrong about the swans..Buldogs i think have more members & a bigger home crowd average Swans crowds,ratings & memberships have been steadily declining.
Col Quinn
Guest
Can someone hear a Ferrari reving in the background?
John Seabrook
Guest
Australian football will never supplant Rugby League in NSW, let alone Sydney's western suburbs. Even the devil himself, Demetriou, has admitted this. That doesn't mean its prepared to wither on the vine either. We need to revisit this subject in years, not months. Whether it swims, just treads water, or sinks, is out of our control. That's because most of us have some sort of 'agenda' on this issue.
Damo
Guest
The Crushers name was something to do with the sugar canes farms and the machine that made the cane into sugar was called a Crusher, their logo was a steam train that took the sugar out of the area. Not sure what it had to do with Brisbane, however it is iconic for Queensland... However I could be completely wrong
Kasey
Guest
In other words:: I want to believe that Soccer fudges its figures because the other sports have admitted to it or been caught, so I'll just lump them in with the others...Lance Armstrong thread for you.
Col Quinn
Guest
Sorry Guys, meant the prelim final that Sydney won. Sydney then won the GF
John
Guest
The crowd stats I got were of wikipedia. I consider that reliable enough (for this debate anyway)
Kasey
Guest
Punter I personally find it funny to read when AFL fans use the "well we get bigger crowds than your lot so our sport 'must' be a better one" argument. Whilst ARF is a good sport that I enjoy watching, that argument or implication fails to take into account the special relationship between Melbourne and the AFL and the specific sporting culture of that city IMO. We see when the game is transplanted to other locations such as GC and WS that relationship in clearer light.
Australian Rules
Guest
Um...so the Mavericks was "too American" but the "Broncos" was dinkum Aussie?
Punter
Guest
I find it funny when people argue about; AFL attendances, it is one of the best in the world. ARF only a niche sport in Sydney, believing the Sydney media, no Sydney is a Rugby League town & ARF is a niche sport in Sydney. Football is only played in Europe & 3rd world countries. It is the WORLD game played & followed by all countries in the world.
JamesP
Guest
Plenty of AFL supporters on the Gold Coast (and plenty of talent produced from that region). Fastest growing city in Australia (currently 600k and will hit a million soon). As for Sydney, well the Swans have been there for 30 years, and have the biggest membership base and crowds of all Sydney sporting teams. Sydney itself has not produced many AFL players (aside from some handy captains in McVeigh and Lenny Hayes), but Southern NSW and ACT have produced dead set legends of the game (and I am not going to name them all). Surely you can see that it would be negligent of any progressive self respecting organisation to not put another team in Australia's biggest city?
JamesP
Guest
Mick Mc, as the below article shows (link at the bottom) Demetriou has nothing but respect for the NRL) "I'm on the public record as saying we don't expect to dominate, particularly in this market," Demetriou said. "If we can increase our penetration and increase awareness of AFL in NSW, particularly in Greater Western Sydney, that would be a real bonanza for us. But I'm under no illusions that we would dominate in this territory. NRL is well embedded, as it should be. It's been here over 100 years and you've got to respect that. "I actually enjoy rugby league. I've got enormous respect for the NRL. I think it's a great competition, it's not unlike ours. It's got a great history, particularly here in NSW and we learn a lot from the NRL. "As I said before, we just want to give people another option. It's OK to follow GWS and OK to follow Penrith, I hope. http://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-premiership/afl-ceo-andrew-demetriou-to-discuss-the-battle-for-western-sydney-in-interview-with-fox-sports-news-on-tuesday/story-e6frf3e3-1226289672916
JamesP
Guest
Jaceman, Col has been shown up before for being the fake supporter he is (not unlike Fussball and his beloved Hawks!) :)
JamesP
Guest
Jaceman: No dramas :) Sean: when you find solid evidence of an AFL official saying his numbers are dodgy, please post it. Until then, you can go on believing Ron - who has been clearly caught out and is trying to save face via deflecting the blame i.e. we do it so everyone else does it (Which has been addressed adequately by poster "Australian Rules" via a comment further below).
Jaceman
Guest
Simmo, I am not sure what the seating plan proves and Demetrious stands by the figure Meanwhile, AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou has defended the size of the 7538 crowd that attended Saturday's GWS-Richmond match at Skoda Stadium.
Strummer Jones
Guest
I think the AFL just stay put for now. I know it was a small crowd, but if the weather was the same as it was Monday here (which was absolutely perfect relative to this time of year) then they MAY have got say 14,000 (which is why I thought a study of the crowd/weather correlation would have been a good investigative journalist piece rather than this "I just wanted to hear peoples opinions" defence). Now lets say they got 14,000. I think that would have been a good number IN THE CONTEXT of where GWS is now. If I were in AFL HQ now, I would not be concerned at this point. Give it 3 years or so and then lets see what major changes, if any, need to be made. As someone else wrote here in the comments, I think there is more upside in Sydney for GWS than there is for the Suns in the Gold Coast. They have a ceiling whereas GWS arguably don't. I agree with your comments that this year, the number of GWS playing grounds is a mess! Next year should be better. I went to the Blacktown game. It IS IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE and I think they will only give it a go for 3 years and then abandon it. p.s. I will take your word for it that the crowd was 19k and not 16k.
dishes
Guest
To be clearer I just think think the AFL underestimated the importance of getting the "brand" right. Obviously they spent a lot of time and money on it, but I just don't think they nailed it. These new clubs with American-style nicknames (Suns/Giants) could have been branded better. I remember the Melbourne rugby league club considered "the Mavericks" before they realised it was too American, and instead chose "Storm".
Jaceman
Guest
CQ SMH 20/6/12 Nearly 5 pages of NRL 1/3 of a page on AFL (mumford) and short snippet on Missen suspension (1/20 of a page at best) That is more accurate reflection than your analysis which of course is only one day. When I was in Melbourne last week heaps of pages on AFL but a page of NRL..
Jaceman
Guest
St KIlda v Swans in a GF - not in 150 years or did you mean Swans v Essendon - not them either
Redb
Roar Guru
You have no facts just guesses and err a seating plan lol