Having been exposed heavily to rugby union over the last year and a half (thanks to my girlfriend), I decided to head out to my first ever Wallabies Test on the weekend.
With expectations high and stylishly armed with jackets, beanies and gloves, my girlfriend and I charged down to the stadium ready to see England get smashed (unfortunately that didn’t happen).
I had never been to a sold-out game at Allianz Stadium before, nor was I ever old enough to experience a State of Origin game there pre-1999. My experiences thus far have been watching my Panthers play the Roosters each year or so, unaware of the type of atmosphere a big crowd could generate.
What we walked into and experienced was first class: 45,000 passionate and educated fans there to support their team. It had me thinking from the outset, what kind of atmosphere would a rugby league game have at this ground with this same number of people in attendance?
The pinnacle of rugby league is arguably State of Origin. So I dug up some statistics on the venues the Blues have occupied, observing what impact the venue has on their success. My original theory was that ANZ Stadium was detrimental to NSW success, and a smaller, more Suncorp Stadium-like venue would help them to succeed (like most fans, I’m clutching at straws, thinking up ideas to help because I’m sick of losing the Queensland every year).
Surprisingly, since taking home games away from Allianz to ANZ Stadium, the Blues have won 15 times compared to Queensland with only eight wins, with one game ending in a draw. Queensland have absolutely dominated this three-game series for more than a decade, so the wins column in favour of NSW was reassuring.
The other obvious draw card for the NSWRL is that the crowds at Homebush far exceed those of Allianz Stadium. The drama with ANZ Stadium however is the atmosphere. For such a big ground, it’s hard to get a decent seat compared to Moore Park. In saying that though, statistics don’t lie, the Blues win more games there than not.
Looking forward, there is welcome news of construction at ANZ Stadium to reduce the stadium’s capacity. This should create seats that have the crowd on top of the action, giving the upper hand to the Blues again.
Combining a greater atmosphere with Queensland greats retiring in the next few years should see NSW continue to grow into a team that can once again dominate the Origin arena.
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