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On the eve of the Western Sydney Wanderers semi-final tie with FC Seoul, it has been revealed that should the Wanderers make the final, which is played over two legs, Parramatta (Pirtek) Stadium will not meet certain AFC requirements.
With a capacity of around 22,000, it has already been suggested that ANZ be where the Wanderers home leg is played rather than at Parramatta Stadium. Required to accommodate a mass of officials, reporters and fans if the Wanderers do make the final, Parramatta Stadium’s limited size may well mean one of the team’s most important games will be played away from home.
Now don’t get me wrong, Homebush is still under the spectrum of Western Sydney, but this will be the Wanderers’ first competitive match in the venue meaning any sort of advantage gained by familiarity is lost.
But what is familiarity compared to the fans that fill the seats you say? Well in truth, I suspect a shift to ANZ will, rather than detract from the home crowds number, only enhance them to meteoritic levels.
With free public transport conveniently situated at Olympic Stadium, I can see no reason why 80,000 can’t show up donning red and black.
But regardless of the lift such a crowd will provide the Wanderers, won’t the team lose some of its advantage by playing on an unfamiliar pitch?
If this shift does happen, where should the Wanderers call home?
With a rapidly expanding fan-base, memberships for the forthcoming season have just tipped over the 15,500 mark. The Stadium may well struggle to met the growing demands of the football club.
Provided each member claims their allocated seat this season, very little seating remains for away fans and non-members.
This is a problem that can very easily be fixed however, by simply relocating roughly 15 kilometres up the road. ANZ Stadium, with a capacity of around 80,000 will be more than equipped to house every Wanderers fan and then some.
But such space is itself a problem. With an average attendance of 13,000 last season, I’d struggle to see – even with membership on the rise – 25,000 turning up for every Wanderers game.
This then leaves upwards of 50,000 vacant seats, a sight no-one likes to behold – particularly on television.
So it’s a choice between two evils. You can either have a packed stadium weekly, where fans are missing out. Or you can have a half-filled stadium that allows every football fan and his dog to attend.
Now this is a tough choice as there are two factors we must consider. First the Wanderers ties to Parramatta Stadium, having housed the Wanderers for what will be at least three seasons, can the Wanderers abandon their home for the allures of a mega-fortress in the form of ANZ?
But therein lies the problem. For this mega-fortress, in having such superior space may well mean the Wanderers play their home-leg of the Asian Champions League final, if they make it, away from their traditional home.
So that’s our second consideration, should we not familiarise ourself with the stadium we’ll be expected to play our big matches in?
Personally, I’m struggling to find answer to this question. Located within walking distance of Parramatta Stadium, I can see both the positives and negatives of a shift in venues.
NRL sides including the Parramatta Eels have struck a compromise in their search for an answer to the question by simply picking both. The Eels are contracted to a few games at ANZ each year, which allows for bigger crowds and players to familiarise themselves with the stadium without abandoning their traditional home.
Should the Wanderers do the same?
But with an upgrade to Parramatta Stadium seemingly on the horizon, is it best just to wait it out rather than even contemplate following in the NRL’s footsteps.
With talks in April of a $120 million upgrade that would see Parramatta Stadium rise to a capacity of 32,000, this appears to be an ideal solution to the Wanderers conundrum. But with talks of an upgrade previously scrapped in 2007 and 2010, I for one aren’t getting my hopes up.
As we await to see what emerges from these talks of an upgrade, can you feasibly see the Wanderers and it’s RBB in ANZ?
It is still Western Sydney after all. If they make it, it will be where the Wanderers will play one of their biggest games ever.
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