It’s ANZAC Day and that means the eyes of the football world will turn towards a packed MCG for the biggest game on the AFL calendar outside the grand final to watch Collingwood play Essendon.
The brainchild of Kevin Sheedy, the first game of this modern tradition was played in 1995. Since then it has been a mainstay of ANZAC Day and has seen some intense football played and rivalries born.
The most memorable game for me was the 2009 game, as 85,000 people watched The Bombers get up by five points.
After losing David Hille early on things looked tough for the men from Windy Hill. Then Paddy Ryder stepped into the breach and ended up having a break-out game, winning the ANZAC medal.
The game was capped by a goal from David Zaharakis with the last kick on the rain-soaked turf of The MCG. It was AFL at its romantic best.
The match doesn’t come without discussion and the main subject raised at this time of year is the sharing around of the traditional game.
I’m a big fan of tradition as you are probably aware if you’ve read my article on the Port Adelaide wearing prison bars debate.
I don’t think the annual fixture between Essendon and Collingwood at the MCG should change. It is a tradition that will only build over time.
However I do think there are other options to build on the foundations laid by Kevin Sheedy, the Magpies and the Bombers.
The RSL receive a large proportion of the gate receipts for the game, and rightly so, but there is an opportunity being missed here.
Australia is blessed and hamstrung by the sheer size of the country. It makes travelling to see away games an expensive business. On the other hand, it gives the AFL eight captive markets on ANZAC day.
Now that the league has expanded it allows for a match to be played in each of the states and territories to honour the fallen Diggers.
The following intra-state derbies could be played: Brisbane versus Gold Coast, West Coast versus Freemantle, Sydney versus GWS, and Adelaide versus Port Adelaide.
The SANFL already has an ANZAC fixture, with the previous year’s grand finalists playing against each other, a perfect double header in the making. This leaves The Northern Territory, ACT and Tasmania.
Melbourne and the Bulldogs have roots in Darwin, having played home games there, and North Melbourne and Hawthorn both have a strong following in Tasmania.
This leaves Canberra and four teams in Geelong, St Kilda, Carlton and Richmond.
The Blues and Tigers rivalry means an extra game could be played in Melbourne and Geelong and St Kilda could start a tradition in the nation’s capital.
The TV rights and income that provides the AFL is a point of contention and to dilute that audience would be imprudent, however, if the non-MCG games were to be televised subject to blackout (meaning the game has to be a ticket sell-out before broadcasting) and played earlier in the day, this would allow a twilight game at the MCG, ensuring a TV audience and advertising revenue.
The roots are there, the appetite for football on ANZAC day is large and the tradition can blossom.
The receipts from one game attended by 100,000 people is great, however there is an option to play more than one game on the day.
Gate receipts from games played in seven other states would only swell the amount of donations a worthwhile charity receives.
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