Greater Western Sydney Giants

[nobleoz]

Of course they don't give away free tickets for NRL games.....they just pay Souths $1,000's to play there!

[Jeffles]

There were predictions from HQ and club insiders hoping for over 40,000. That's why you shouldn't make predictions. It makes the 38k crowd look like a failure even though it was a pass.

[bazza]

Spot on, Simmo

And just to clarify:
GWS: 38,233

NRL western Sydney games:
Fri 13,788. Sun 21,701

Not to forget Waratahs: 18,830 & A-league: 14,494

Also 17,893 at Kogarah on Saturday night

[Nines]

There were predictions from HQ and club insiders hoping for over 40,000. That's why you shouldn't make predictions. It makes the 38k crowd look like a failure even though it was a pass.

Most predictions were between 35k ~ 40k.
Hoping for over 40k is not a prediction.
38k is right in the middle of predictions.
I really LOL when people try and negative spin this one considering
what constitutes a Sydney sporting crowd.

[dibo]

The clash is shaping as one of the most-anticipated AFL season openers in recent history.

I guess Egan's got a new job then, writing emails for the ANZ stadium events dept.

[Boba Fett]

Not a criticism, the AFL are great administrators of their competition and they were going to ensure a good crowd (which it was) by any means necessary and it made for a fine spectacle. But you can't exactly brag about a crowd and compare it unfavorably to others if you're literally giving tickets away.

NRL/Super Rugby/A-League teams have never given tickets away?

[yob]

I really LOL when people try and negative spin this one considering
what constitutes a Sydney sporting crowd.

What ever constitutes a Sydney sporting crowd it sure isn't 58% GWS supporters.

[nobleoz]

NRL/Super Rugby/A-League teams have never given tickets away?

Can't even give them away

[Simmo79]

There were predictions from HQ and club insiders hoping for over 40,000. That's why you shouldn't make predictions. It makes the 38k crowd look like a failure even though it was a pass.

Most predictions were between 35k ~ 40k.
Hoping for over 40k is not a prediction.
38k is right in the middle of predictions.
I really LOL when people try and negative spin this one considering
what constitutes a Sydney sporting crowd.

In the week's leading up to it that's what everyone predicted but when the fixture was first released the AFL would have hoped for as high as 60k. It wasn't that long ago that the Swans could draw crowds like that on their own. It demonstrates that the AFL can't stop the long slow slide, no matter how hard they try. But I guess that's just spin.

[Jeffles]

I think long slow slide is over the top and incorrect. If the Swans had the winning team they had in the middle part of the decade their crowds would move up, no question.

My original point was how the folly of prediction takes away from a good news story. AD played it down and said he'd be hopeful of 40k. That's not unreasonable. But then you had repoerts of the GWS execs chasing the record. They should have played it down. It gives te media an oppourtunity to spin - "the crowd was below the hopes of the new franchise" etc. WTF? It's a great crowd for a team with bugger all members in Sydney.

[Simmo79]

I'm criticising Nines and looking to the long game strategy rather than one week's public perceptions.

On Jeff's point the AFL's previously set the bar low so they could say stuff like "smashed through the 7,000 member mark" etc. It does pay to downplay expectations so you can tell everyone how well you exceeded them. But in Sydney it's usually a good idea to talk up the expected crowd to generate buzz and the "eventness" of a particular match. You have the opposite problem in Melbourne where talking up a crowd apparently leads to a lot of people thinking "f**k it, I won't get a good seat".

[dibo]

Stadium Australia crowds:

Year Average Attendance:
2011 30387
2010 35208
2009 36875
2008 45840
2007 63392
2006 44999
2005 39856
2004 43219
2003 49704
2002 42973
Total 43127

That's not a slide?

[Spirit of Santos]

NRL/Super Rugby/A-League teams have never given tickets away?

Can't even give them away

Auststadiums is not the place for Big Footy/League Unlimited tardism.

[Nines]

GWS, that's GWS got 38k to a game in Sydney.
It's not a Sydney Swans home game.
It's a GWS home game and the GWS attracted 38k.
That makes a very healthy start for the club.
They also sold $80k worth of merchadise.
Nice income but possibly a pointer that the GWS grapped some late fans.
The game attracted 1.3 million viewers.
That's an extra 1.3 million viewers now that there is an extra game underpinning the whole
GC & GWS expansion thing. With the GC making an operating profit last year the spectre of a Storm-like millstone around the AFL's neck is lessened.

[Simmo79]

oh FFS.