Playing matches in NZ

[sverik25]

This has been brought up a few times as a possibility and I'd like to know what everyone thinks about it. To me, I'm not quite sure that NZ has a big enough market for footy to justify it, and whilst I know financially it would probably be better for the club to have an extra home game in Wellington, it means one less game that I get to go to.

Thoughts?​

 

[VDS66]

It's a great untapped market in terms of supporters, members and sponsorship.

 

[Kildonan]

Saints look at doubling NZ games

GREG BUCKLE April 24, 2014, 8:38 am

Matt Finnis has been St Kilda's chief executive for less than two weeks but he reckons he has a solid grasp of what the Saints need.

They must give total effort to their New Zealand project to make it work, and commit to a rebuilding phase on and off the field.

"What I've also learnt over nine years at AFL Players' Association is some of the things that really establish the truly great clubs (who) seem to be able to buck the intention of the draft and salary cap and have this sustained success," the former AFLPA chief told reporters on Wednesday.

"That real clarity of vision that they have and the continuity of that ... to relentlessly achieve that goal is something that I've really admired at clubs like Hawthorn and Geelong and Sydney."

While the Saints have climbed to ninth after five rounds, premiership success for this year at least looks unlikely.

Keeping pace with the big boys in football-department spending means making sure the club's finances are ticking over. Finnis says he's proud of St Kilda's vision to become the first team to host games overseas for premiership points.

Last year St Kilda lost to Sydney in Wellington on Anzac Day, and on Friday the Saints will host Brisbane at Wellington's Westpac Stadium.

The Saints' five-year deal in Wellington expires after the 2018 season.

St Kilda's commercial projects general manager Ben Davies says the deal will be reviewed after next year's game, which falls on the 100th anniversary of Gallipoli.

"We'll get to a discussion about whether a second game works in that market," Davies told afl.com.au.

Finnis says the key to commercial success in New Zealand is to keep fronting up. Put in the effort.

"When you look around the world where sports want to expand, you need to do that with a consistent face to the game," Finnis says.

"In this case it's St Kilda. So that regularity of coming back to Wellington year on year, with the support and growth with the work AFL New Zealand is doing in the schools, the dream is that AFL becomes a regular feature on the sporting calendar in New Zealand.

"We've got a pretty bold target by 2018. We'd like to think we could have up to 10,000 New Zealand-based members of the club.

"That gives you a sense of the fact that we're serious about it."

Promoting the Saints' brand in their Melbourne heartland includes attempting to have training and administrative bases in Seaford, while maintaining a profile at their former home grounds at Moorabbin and Junction Oval.

"Maybe I'm greedy but I'd like to think we could have a presence in all those places," Finnis said.

 

[hayes]

We made more from one game in NZ last year then we did in 8 Etihad games. There's some food for thought!

 

[saintersown]

I think its a great idea.

Financially I think I remember hearing the club makes as much in one NZ game as they do in 8 at Etihad. Yes the game attendances are going down, but that's to be expected in a new market, last year was the first game, ever so it brought a lot more excitement, however, if we maintain a strong and positive influence after a years or two, maybe less, the attendance will plateau and then begin to increase.

Last year we had approximately 22,000 this year it's estimated at the moment to bring in about 17,500-19,500.
I'd assume with a win that next year the number would be around fifteen thousand and if we get a second game, a total attendance for both games of around 28,000 in a worse case scenario.

I think its a great idea, helps out the club and continues what will hopefully become a great tradition.

 

[CALL ME SNAKE]

We made more from one game in NZ last year then we did in 8 Etihad games last year. There's some food for thought!

Yes that's the whole point right there
Im pretty sceptical myself of the Kiwis ever truly embracing the AFL. But even if they don't and this whole NZ concept gets scrapped in a few yrs. It still would've been a huge financial bonus to help get us through this rebuilding stage of our footy club. For a couple of yrs our home crowds will be low & our membership numbers the same. The AFL are pretty much tipping a truckload of money on our doorstep just so they can have some type of 'international' foothold.
If its works we end up with a few thousand more members like the Hawks have in Tassie. If it doesn't work, then lets just keep taking the AFL's money while they are dishing it out
Its a win/win IMO

 

[mysainters]

Choice.

 

[Stan_Darsh72]

Choice.

as bro.

 

[Rors]

Choice az bro, lets pull a couple of largies out of the chilly bin to celebrate....

Woah, beached az Bro

 

[God Save Max King]

We made more from one game in NZ last year then we did in 8 Etihad games last year. There's some food for thought!

We WHAT?? That's extraordinary, but I'm not sure if crowds will stay at a high standard. I don't really want to play against good clubs in New Zealand. Would prefer to have Saints vs Brisbane/Melbourne/Western Bulldogs/North Melbourne and the like there.

 

[Squizz]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/a...s-in-new-zealand/story-fnp04d70-1227444694047

The Saints have a financial commitment from Wellington City Council, which pledged support to host the past three games with the option of hosting the next three. Although Wellington remains keen to push on with the AFL venture, it is believed to want to scale back its annual $500,000 commitment, possibly by as much as 40 per cent.

“There’s certainly an appetite from our end, and the AFL is keen to support us in that venture. Wellington has provided very positive feedback for the games to continue,’’ Bains said.

“We expect that there will be a recalibration of financial commitment, but we’re hopeful and expectant that it will still be at a level that makes the game commercially viable for St Kilda and the AFL.’’

Wellington’s main consideration is not crowd figures, rather the number of tourists who come to town for the match.

About 4500 Australians travelled to Wellington for the inaugural match against Sydney, but that number dropped to about 1200 against Brisbane in 2014, nearly all of them Saints fans. It bounced back to almost 2400 for this year’s Anzac Day match against Carlton.

Nathan Burke suggested last year that the club benefited as much financially from one match in Wellington as it did from six matches at Etihad Stadium, and Bains said that figure rang true at the time although “it might not be quite as dramatic this season given that our attendances are up for home games’’.

With Anzac Day due to fall on a weekday over the next three years, the Saints are also open to discussing other dates for the match.

 

[Mowman]

Hate that we have to play Home games in NZ, because of the s**t deal at ethid stadium. The sooner the AFL take the Stadium over and we don't have go to NZ the better

 

[sverik25]

Hate that we have to play Home games in NZ, because of the s**t deal at ethid stadium. The sooner the AFL take the Stadium over and we don't have go to NZ the better

As it is I think it's kind of cool that we're playing one home game a year in NZ. It's ground breaking in its own way. But yeah, if we played any more over there I'd probably start getting annoyed.

It's bad enough at the moment considering people already discuss relocating us to NZ. Could you imagine if we started playing two or three home games there?

 

[my name was taken]

Finacnially makes sense. In terms of breaking into that market for the future, I dont see it. It's hard enough getting the rugby states on side let alone a rugby nation.

 

[Mindtraveller]

We WHAT?? That's extraordinary, but I'm not sure if crowds will stay at a high standard. I don't really want to play against good clubs in New Zealand. Would prefer to have Saints vs Brisbane/Melbourne/Western Bulldogs/North Melbourne and the like there.

This was brought up a while ago.
8 games at etihad = 2 games at MCG = 1 in NZ in terms of profit. NZ is guaranteed cash though by afl/nz.
At least if we play 2 games it doubles our chances of winning,. I'd hive it 2 years of 2 games, we'll need to win all 4 and start to see more nz members instead of people flying over. I liked the anzac mstch though

 

[St Kilda Death]

Im all for it, as long as the afl is making it rain. Cash that is, on our club.
Dont understand the naysayers.
If the hawks, the biggest and most successful club of the afl era, can have 4 home games "overseas"...
No reason we can't.
Hawks members get entry to 4 replacement away games at the G.
Im sure with all the money the saints make from NZ they will be more than happy to shout us all in to an extra away game at the G, or E.

 

[dewah07]

did we ever get a replacement game for our membership?

 

[Dopey BJ]

did we ever get a replacement game for our membership?

Actually I think it was Richmond last year

 

[King_Steele]

Actually I think it was Richmond last year

Yes it was.

 

[sverik25]

did we ever get a replacement game for our membership?

The game against the Bulldogs in Round 6 was this year's replacement.

 

[Mindtraveller]

I thought it was the melbourne game next week?

 

[dewah07]

Actually I think it was Richmond last year

I meant for this year.

 

[sverik25]

I thought it was the melbourne game next week?

I thought it was the Bulldogs game, might be wrong though, so maybe check the Saints website during the week.

 

[Nutsngum]

It was the Bulldogs game 100%.

 

[dewah07]

The game against the Bulldogs in Round 6 was this year's replacement.

errrrrrrr