Pictures of Princes Park

[Justin]

Inside the Legends Stand

[Justin]

Inside what used to be the Hawthorn Stand, but now called the Richard Pratt Stand



















Entrance to visiting change rooms is down these stairs.

[Justin]

Old social club gates. The pegola on the left was built by Sam Rowe (A carpenter by trade) while he was recovering from cancer.



Old club shop



Ald Gardiner Stand

[Justin]

Inside Carlton Heroes Stand

[Justin]

Old Tv Studio







Exterior shots

[Justin]

Back of scoreboard

[yob]

And another thank you.

This one is pretty distressing viewing to be honest. To consider the relative positions of Geelong and Carlton 15 years ago, and where they are now both as clubs and the state of their home grounds. Princes Park could have become so much more. Chuck in a ground share with North Melbourne (or succeeding in their covert take over) and this could have been a serious stadium, and maybe even change the course of history with ground rationalisation. Even if North survived a takeover they'd be in a better state than living on rent assistance at Debtihad.

[Rob]

And another thank you.

This one is pretty distressing viewing to be honest. To consider the relative positions of Geelong and Carlton 15 years ago, and where they are now both as clubs and the state of their home grounds. Princes Park could have become so much more. Chuck in a ground share with North Melbourne (or succeeding in their covert take over) and this could have been a serious stadium, and maybe even change the course of history with ground rationalisation. Even if North survived a takeover they'd be in a better state than living on rent assistance at Debtihad.

It was clubs like North that demanded they be released from playing there. The AFL actually bought out part of the contract Carlton had with the AFL to schedule games there upon request of every club but Carlton. Even Carlton voluntarily moved to Etihad eventually.

The reason is that crowds of 8000, no matter what the venue, do not make money.

[yob]

^^ The ground averaged 22,000 in each of its last 3 full seasons (not including the final season because it only had one game scheduled, albeit with over 30k).

After the Legends Stand was built, Princes Park hosted a regular season crowd of 8k or less a whopping once. Go back as far as 1996 to find the next one.

Carlton was volunteered by its club president Ian Collins to relocate to Docklands, headed by chief executive Ian Collins.

[Rob]

^^ The ground averaged 22,000 in each of its last 3 full seasons (not including the final season because it only had one game scheduled, albeit with over 30k).

Without looking, i'd expect that they would all be Carlton games. 22k is a pretty sh*t average for a 'big 4' club.

After the Legends Stand was built, Princes Park hosted a regular season crowd of 8k or less a whopping once. Go back as far as 1996 to find the next one.

Crowds were sh*t. That's why clubs didn't want to play there. The idea was that people would pay a premium to sit in the shiny new legends stand, and the clubs would make a mint. Problem was that no-one wanted to do that, they wanted to pay their budget GA price and sit where they wanted, as was the culture in Melbourne at the time (and remains today).
Victorians will not rock up to third rate venues. They complain about Docklands FFS.

[yob]

I'd take less revenue at a higher margin.

Works for Geelong.

However it's hard to argue with people who want shiny things. Especially the ones that can't afford them.

[Justin]

^^ The ground averaged 22,000 in each of its last 3 full seasons (not including the final season because it only had one game scheduled, albeit with over 30k).

Without looking, i'd expect that they would all be Carlton games. 22k is a pretty sh*t average for a 'big 4' club.

After the Legends Stand was built, Princes Park hosted a regular season crowd of 8k or less a whopping once. Go back as far as 1996 to find the next one.

Crowds were sh*t. That's why clubs didn't want to play there. The idea was that people would pay a premium to sit in the shiny new legends stand, and the clubs would make a mint. Problem was that no-one wanted to do that, they wanted to pay their budget GA price and sit where they wanted, as was the culture in Melbourne at the time (and remains today).
Victorians will not rock up to third rate venues. They complain about Docklands FFS.

This picture shows the admission price to the Legends Stand, I wouldn't call that a premium price. Crowds didn't show up because the ground wasn't any good, no other reason.

[yob]

It was natural to fixture the small Victorian clubs V Interstate games at the cheaper venue. Fixture those games at Docklands and suddenly Princes Park is popular.

Lies, damned lies, statistics.

On the premium price - you did have to pay extra to sit in the stand. That is a premium. Dictionary definition of the word.

[kilonewton]

The problem with Princes Park in the later years was the Legends Stand. (And Ian Collins' conflict of interest). In one fell swoop, the outer disappeared and was replaced by a poorly designed, cheap feeling stand that you had to pay extra to sit in. The rake of the seating is too shallow so you were peering around the big boof head of the bloke in front of you, only to be looking directly into the afternoon sun for most of the season. Which is why I used to stand in front of the Heatley Stand a few metres away from Vince Colosimo and his mates.
And as much as he contributed to the downfall of the club, taking John Elliot's name off the stand so quickly was just poor form, almost as much as him naming it after himself in the first place!

[yob]

The Legends Stand shared the same flaw as the entire ground - the Oval's orientation within a rectangle, which meant the largest envelopes for building were in the pockets which are traditionally the worst viewig areas for aussie rules. No day light between the posts. Is it a goal, is it a behind.... nooooobody knoooows.