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It's dead as a spectator sport and a television sport.
Sheffield Shield Popularity
- Thread starter El Dubya
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It's dead as a spectator sport and a television sport.
doesn't help when nearly every game is on during the week when everyone is at work. it's free to get in but on during the week. cricket aus seem to want to kill it themselves
I'm a member at Bellerive and used to work 5 minutes from the ground, walked down all the time in my lunch break for a feed and a beer. The standard of cricket is great and no worries getting a seat! I'd say the crowds usually below 100 ppl. Since I changed jobs I don't get accross anymore( last game I went to was the final)
It's cheap and a good standard of cricket, definitely worth a look.
It's cheap and a good standard of cricket, definitely worth a look.
Drugs Are Bad Mackay?
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The crowds were quite good in the late 80's early 90's. Games would usually start on Fridays and you'd get a couple of thousand each day on the weekends. When Hookes and Lehmann were going nuts in 1989 we got some great crowds at Adelaide Oval. The last session was always free so people would come down after work. Shield games used to be on free to air tv!
Blaming T20 is wrong. Blaming mid-week programming is wrong. The decline in Shield crowds started long before these came in.
Time poor society? More sedentary life styles with people preferring to get their sporting fix via television? I don't know.
Who are the people who were watching Shield cricket 25 years ago who aren't now? Maybe retirees used to go but the current batch don't?
Blaming T20 is wrong. Blaming mid-week programming is wrong. The decline in Shield crowds started long before these came in.
Time poor society? More sedentary life styles with people preferring to get their sporting fix via television? I don't know.
Who are the people who were watching Shield cricket 25 years ago who aren't now? Maybe retirees used to go but the current batch don't?
Good point. The decline in Shield crowds started to happen when International cricket started being played in Australia every summer i.e. in the '70s. Prior to that Shield cricket was the pinnacle for fans during summers when there was no International cricket on offer. The post Christmas Vic v NSW game at the MCG used to pull some very good crowds, with both teams containing a number of Test players.
IMHO, it is a real shame what has happened to Sheffield Shield over the years. For me, it was the most enjoyable cricket to watch, more enjoyable than a Test match. There were seasons when the Test team was in South Africa that all we had was Sheffield Shield, and it never let us down. We saw the emergence of talent such as Greg Chappell and Dennis Lillee in those seasons.
Test players would play a majority of Shield matches and the standard of cricket was the best you could see anywhere. I always remember when the players got back from the 1972 Ashes series, and I sat on the mound watching Dennis Lillee and Bob Massie doing battle with the Chappell brothers, both making 50s. I recall early one afternoon SA playing WA at the Adelaide Oval. I raced down there after my cricket in the morning to see SA pass WA with 9 wickets down, and the roar of the crowd was akin to a football match. These days, you can hear a seagull fart on top of the scoreboard.
I listened to two idiots on SEN one day discussing the point that seeing as nobody goes to Sheffield Shield anymore, they could save money by doing away with it altogether. Anyone purporting this notion understands little about the importance of honing players skills as they progress from grade to International level. It would be akin to throwing the baby out with the bath water. Sheffield Shield has been, and probably still is, the best local 1st class competition in the world, and a very large reason as to why Australia have been so strong in world cricket. It is a pity we do not see Test players dropping back to play Shield cricket any more as it was a vital learning experience for young players coming through.
I find it a great pity we have a new generation of cricket fans who understand little about the traditions of our game and the importance of Sheffield Shield cricket. Some may not even have heard of the concept. I also find it a great shame that we are catering to an audience who think the game is boring if two overs go by without at least one six or someone getting out. An audience who thinks the cricket season starts with the first ball of the Brisbane Test, and ends a little over 2 months later when the last silly shot is played in an International T20.
I honestly believe the ACB had a golden opportunity 20 years ago of promoting the Sheffield Shield and bringing it to the forefront of the cricket calendar, a decision I still think they will rue in the passing of time. Instead they took the easy option of lights, camera, action!!!! Promotion is everything in today's world, and the Sheffield Shield has been starved of it, that is why people aren't attending.
Test players would play a majority of Shield matches and the standard of cricket was the best you could see anywhere. I always remember when the players got back from the 1972 Ashes series, and I sat on the mound watching Dennis Lillee and Bob Massie doing battle with the Chappell brothers, both making 50s. I recall early one afternoon SA playing WA at the Adelaide Oval. I raced down there after my cricket in the morning to see SA pass WA with 9 wickets down, and the roar of the crowd was akin to a football match. These days, you can hear a seagull fart on top of the scoreboard.
I listened to two idiots on SEN one day discussing the point that seeing as nobody goes to Sheffield Shield anymore, they could save money by doing away with it altogether. Anyone purporting this notion understands little about the importance of honing players skills as they progress from grade to International level. It would be akin to throwing the baby out with the bath water. Sheffield Shield has been, and probably still is, the best local 1st class competition in the world, and a very large reason as to why Australia have been so strong in world cricket. It is a pity we do not see Test players dropping back to play Shield cricket any more as it was a vital learning experience for young players coming through.
I find it a great pity we have a new generation of cricket fans who understand little about the traditions of our game and the importance of Sheffield Shield cricket. Some may not even have heard of the concept. I also find it a great shame that we are catering to an audience who think the game is boring if two overs go by without at least one six or someone getting out. An audience who thinks the cricket season starts with the first ball of the Brisbane Test, and ends a little over 2 months later when the last silly shot is played in an International T20.
I honestly believe the ACB had a golden opportunity 20 years ago of promoting the Sheffield Shield and bringing it to the forefront of the cricket calendar, a decision I still think they will rue in the passing of time. Instead they took the easy option of lights, camera, action!!!! Promotion is everything in today's world, and the Sheffield Shield has been starved of it, that is why people aren't attending.
These are the cricket Bogans that I speak of - the number of them increases every year - Aaron Finch is their God. Soon they will overtake us traditionalists and then what happens?
eth-dog
Tier 1 WW Player
They haven't yet. Will do so soon unfortunately. CA ned to promote the shield more though
El Dubya
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Do they, or have they written it off as an expense to feed the national team. You obviously won't have a dominant test team if your domestic comp is s**t, but it seems to me, considering the empty stadiums and pay TV coverage, that Shield games run at a loss at CA just absorbs it.
There are so many conflivting things here it's not funny. As major stadiums continue to evolve, it's likely that loss makers like the Shield must move away from major venues at some point in time. Against that you have the fact that some states (such as Victoria) do not have an approved alternate First Clss facility. All well and good to take them to regional venues but that is a thing of the past unless they meet the standard - which I would suggest they won't.
Given the $$$ the game is generating it for now is a loss that the game can cover but that doesn't mean that CA should cease doing things to encourage people and mostly kiddies to attend.
El Dubya
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I would guess that they see Shield as done and dusted, they can't scrap it because it would destroy the national team, but to promote it would be throwing good money after bad.
I still think that by improving regional stadiums and suburban grounds we could make it much more accessible, especially for families, and really promote the game. Like another poster said you would still want these teams playing half their home games at the main state ground (MCG, SCG, WACA, Adelaide Oval, GABBA), so in two seasons each team would play at least once at each main state ground.
That way you're giving young players experience at every big ground, but also getting out and making the game really accessible.
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It's like the VFL, WAFL, SANFL. Reserves and second tier players. And the public know it.
Zach Package
Prespakis2Tsatas
And Andy Maher is their prophet
couldn't the same sort of rubbish be said about people who loved david hookes in the 80's or whatever. non-die hard cricket watcher likes some guy die hard cricket watches don't like. ok cool whatever.
I've always had a dream that one season we would put International cricket to one side and really work on our local game. There are so many ordinary Test teams floating around these days, why not give it a miss, sign up 15 of the World's best players on ACB contracts for 6 months and have them scattered amongst the 6 Sheffield Shield teams which would already be bolstered by Australian Test players. You could run a proper Sheffield Shield competition, and enough limited over games to keep those fans happy, and the cricket would be very high quality.
It would promote Sheffield Shield beyond our wildest dreams, keep the cricket public happy, and for an International flavor, schedule some Australia v World XI games. Please don't tell me it will never happen because I already know it wouldn't. Just a dream is all. I still have great memories of Gary Sobers and Barry Richards playing for SA, and while I was watching SA in that era, who needed Test cricket?
Of course, you would need a State 2nd XI competition to keep the next level of players in the mix.
I've always had a dream that one season we would put International cricket to one side and really work on our local game. There are so many ordinary Test teams floating around these days, why not give it a miss, sign up 15 of the World's best players on ACB contracts for 6 months and have them scattered amongst the 6 Sheffield Shield teams which would already be bolstered by Australian Test players. You could run a proper Sheffield Shield competition, and enough limited over games to keep those fans happy, and the cricket would be very high quality.
It would promote Sheffield Shield beyond our wildest dreams, keep the cricket public happy, and for an International flavor, schedule some Australia v World XI games. Please don't tell me it will never happen because I already know it wouldn't. Just a dream is all. I still have great memories of Gary Sobers and Barry Richards playing for SA, and while I was watching SA in that era, who needed Test cricket?
Of course, you would need a State 2nd XI competition to keep the next level of players in the mix.
Yes what a great way to destroy cricket in South Africa/New Zealand/Carribbean.
Great for you that you got to see Barry Richards, how much did South African's get to see of him?
Something similar could have happened if CA agreed with Cricket South Africa to tour South Africa during the Christmas period. CA could have heavily promoted the domestic competition as an alternative for families to attend.I've always had a dream that one season we would put International cricket to one side and really work on our local game. There are so many ordinary Test teams floating around these days, why not give it a miss, sign up 15 of the World's best players on ACB contracts for 6 months and have them scattered amongst the 6 Sheffield Shield teams which would already be bolstered by Australian Test players. You could run a proper Sheffield Shield competition, and enough limited over games to keep those fans happy, and the cricket would be very high quality.
It would promote Sheffield Shield beyond our wildest dreams, keep the cricket public happy, and for an International flavor, schedule some Australia v World XI games. Please don't tell me it will never happen because I already know it wouldn't. Just a dream is all. I still have great memories of Gary Sobers and Barry Richards playing for SA, and while I was watching SA in that era, who needed Test cricket?
Of course, you would need a State 2nd XI competition to keep the next level of players in the mix.
I fail to see how 1 season would destroy cricket in those countries. Richards played nearly 20 summers of cricket for Natal, 1 of those was spent in South Australia. He also played with Hampshire for 10 years. Once again, I'm not sure what point you were making.
I'm just saying that you are very vocal in your criticism's of anything to do with Indian greed, but would be happy to take players away from the international game so you can watch them for South Australia.
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Why don't Cricket Australia and the state cricket associations take the obvious route and actually promote the state teams and their fixtures? I don't know about other states, but you wouldn't know the Redbacks even exist here in SA if you didn't follow cricket. They get zero promotion anywhere. Why not try and give the state sides the same amount of promotion as you do the Big Bash franchises, and you might actually get people showing up?
Gak Attack
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I love going to shield matches. Really recommend for people with kids who like cricket too as for free you can see some current or future Australia players. Sit in the right spot and most will have a chat to you as well.
eth-dog
Tier 1 WW Player
MCG is ripping me off by making me pay $2 then...
I have cricinfo up all day during a Shield match and share commentary with a mate but never translated this to actually attending a match although going to head down once the season resumes with my 4y old and let him run amuck on the grassy banks.
It can really change your opinion of a player if you see him bat or bowl live. Worth going to at least an afternoon session from time to time for that reason alone.
