Expansion Lowest finals crowd since WW1...

[MVille Swan]

The myopia in this thread is just staggering. When the Swans first moved to Sydney they were averaging crowds of 10k. This year marked the 23rd year in a row that they were the highest drawing sporting club in Sydney. Imagine if the AFL had panicked back then and pulled the pin as some in this thread are advocating they do now to the Giants.

The Swans' attendances rose after they made the 96 GF. Those kids that got swept up in the fever are now adults and likely members themselves. Success will capture the imagination of kids, who will grow up to become paying adult supporters in 20 years time. Success will help achieve this. A lot of people keep saying 'they've had so much success on the field and they have nothing to show for it", and to that I would counter what success? Two final wins?

Would it have been nicer if the Eagles crowd was bigger? Absolutely. But it's not the end of the world, and certainly not cause to pull the plug on the entire endeavor. My biggest question mark is why the AFL chose to price tickets the way they did. In an expansion market they should have been doing everything they can to encourage people to come along, not rake in a profit.

TLDR: Calm down, take a breath and give the 20 year plan a chance to execute.

Probably the most balanced post on this whole thread. 1996 was absolutely the turning point for the Swans. It took them
14 years in Sydney to get to a GF, and they didn't even have to win it, to start building interest in the team. You can't underestimate
the effect of the growth in junior footy in Sydney after the late 90s. Some junior clubs in Sydney have 15 or 20 times as many kids
as they had in the early 2000s. Like in all the southern states, if you grew up playing the game, you are much more likely to stay
following a team regularly as you get older. 35% of GWS members are aged under 20, they and the AFL have obviously put some
effort into this. Home and away games at Spotless are very family friendly, they mostly start at 4:35, tickets are reasonably priced,
and the atmosphere is more like a big suburban game than a mega corporate stadium experience. How can this possibly be a bad thing?
The negativity about GWS is surprising. Were people expecting 25,000 people would suddenly just show up every second week out
of nowhere.

 

[Colonial]

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[kaypee]

not sure what people want. GWS is a club built from scratch representing an area that is hostile to australian football, and, also hostile to eastern Sydney. WCE (and Fremantle) are probably the least likely supporters of any team to travel there (long way, they've got their own beaches plus everybody in Australia has been to Bondi, Circular Quay and Manly and shrugged. Beyong that Sydney has little to offer unless youre loaded or live there). I got lost out in western in Sydney a few months back and thought it was third word - traffic lights not working, rubbish everywhere)
GWS are fine. 20k would have been better, but 15k is acceptable all things considered.
GWS will be the smallest team for generations, but so what. (Gold Coast will go passed them)

 

[Garry Barry]

Also remember that the swans have already converted all the easy targets for AFL in Sydney. GWs are facing the same hurdles that a brand new team in Melbourne would face.

It always staggers me that any people actually turned up in the first couple of years.

 

[ChrisHunt313131]

That's right. It's a long term plan not a 5 year plan- that's why they pay Gil the good income- to plan for 25 years plus down the track - not 5 years.

 

[BIRDBRAIN]

Yeah great 30-40-50 year plan. Don't be short sighted, this is fantastic, the football paying public of Vic, SA and WA will just have to foot the bill for the hundreds of millions it will cost to prop up these fake teams for half a century! The AFL totally needs to take over these markets where noone likes AFL! They should be given enough concessions to ensure they win 25 flags over the next 50 years, that way the people that hate AFL will have to love it! Double Gil's salary for each flag they win I say. The AFL is the fairest and most legitimate sporting competition in the world.

 

[Bokonon_]

Yeah great 30-40-50 plan. This is fantastic, the football paying public of Vic, SA and WA will just have to foot the bill for the hundreds of millions it will cost to prop up these fake teams for half a century! The AFL totally needs to take over these markets where noone likes AFL! They should be given enough concessions to ensure they win 25 flags over the next 50 years, that way the people that hate AFL will have to love it! Double Gil's salary for each flag they win I say. The AFL is the fairest and most legitimate sporting competition in the world.

Well fair enough
But I dont think we could reasonably expect the start up concessions to last for 50 years personally.

 

[Colonial]

Yeah great 30-40-50 year plan. Don't be short sighted, this is fantastic, the football paying public of Vic, SA and WA will just have to foot the bill for the hundreds of millions it will cost to prop up these fake teams for half a century! The AFL totally needs to take over these markets where noone likes AFL! They should be given enough concessions to ensure they win 25 flags over the next 50 years, that way the people that hate AFL will have to love it! Double Gil's salary for each flag they win I say. The AFL is the fairest and most legitimate sporting competition in the world.

Says the fan of a club given a flag in its first 5 years and played finals almost every year after its 2nd birthday for a decade

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[nineteen eighty]

Yeah great 30-40-50 year plan. Don't be short sighted, this is fantastic, the football paying public of Vic, SA and WA will just have to foot the bill for the hundreds of millions it will cost to prop up these fake teams for half a century! The AFL totally needs to take over these markets where noone likes AFL! They should be given enough concessions to ensure they win 25 flags over the next 50 years, that way the people that hate AFL will have to love it! Double Gil's salary for each flag they win I say. The AFL is the fairest and most legitimate sporting competition in the world.

Rubbish!!! You completely misunderstand what the expansion clubs bring to the table...likely WELL over $100m in revenue (broadcast rights) above an beyond what the AFL would receive without them.

They not only pay their way but give back in spades.

 

[Rotayjay]

The Swans' attendances rose after they made the 96 GF. Those kids that got swept up in the fever are now adults and likely members themselves. Success will capture the imagination of kids, who will grow up to become paying adult supporters in 20 years time. Success will help achieve this.

I'm not comfortable with a team being given huge leg-ups towards success (at the expense of millions of lifelong supporters) in order to get 20,000 Sydneysiders half-interested in football.

 

[Garry Barry]

I'm not comfortable with a team being given huge leg-ups towards success (at the expense of millions of lifelong supporters) in order to get 20,000 Sydneysiders half-interested in football.

If we've learnt anything from expansion, is that it costs a whole lot more to start up a poor team, than a good one. You've got to hit the ground running.

 

[Mogwai]

If they are trying to build a supporter base why are they playing games at Manuka oval ..wouldnt playing every possible game at home be the idea

If anything, Canberra is chomping at the bits for any AFL team involvement - Manuka sellouts are extremely common, even for night games which are notoriously unpleasant and interest for rugby codes are declining. The proximity of the Riverina also helps, with Wagga only a couple hours away.

Canberra's geography, with Manuka in south-side and GIO in north-side has also helped the Giants get a foothold here. In the richer inner south, these families are more inclined towards AFL; very much affected by Swans' affulence. It's also a much smaller market, but the Giants have really rubbed on the sporting fabric of this town in their few years here.

If anything, the Giants should do a 6-5 split and press for a mixed-use stadium by the lakeside.

 

[DrMike]

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"What AFL team do you support?"
"Sydney"
"The Swans, hey?"
"What?"

 

[Colonial]

"What AFL team do you support?"
"Sydney"
"The Swans, hey?"
"What?"

Quality, would read again.

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