The amount of Collingwood fans I've met out this way is ridiculous.
The match up makes sense.
Fixture 2025 draw any news or leaks? (Fixture Link in OP)
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The match up makes sense.
theprospector
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Surely the biggest club in the land should open our season with a bang in front of 80k at the G.
Silly to force 20k Collingwood fans to drive up to that dump in Western Sydney,
Silly to force 20k Collingwood fans to drive up to that dump in Western Sydney,
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Remember back in the day when there was a bit of consistency?
i.e if you play away round 1 one year the year after you will play at home in round 1..
why has this changed?
i.e if you play away round 1 one year the year after you will play at home in round 1..
why has this changed?
Should be a national round.
No games in Vic, big contests in qld and nsw
beside the seaside
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Opening round is insane. All well and good to promote uo north but why not have it just all be interstate or something. To have teams get an extra bye is just such a joke.
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Even though my team benefits from it, I'm against round 0 as a matter of sporting integrity.
But if they insist on this ridiculous concept at least have only non-Vic teams involved so it at least attempts to even out the disadvantages of being a non-Vic team.
But if they insist on this ridiculous concept at least have only non-Vic teams involved so it at least attempts to even out the disadvantages of being a non-Vic team.
hawkman
Hall of Famer
Who are GC and GWS going to draw from the non Vic teams that provide a decent crowd?
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I'd rather they just play a full round 1. FWIW I also think we should play GWS at home up first because our flag unveiling will be a sellout anyway so may as well play against the team with the least amount of supporters and a game neutrals will want to watch.
FWIW the first game last season should have been Collingwood v GWS at the MCG. Reigning premiers should always open at home.
hawkman
Hall of Famer
I agree it should be just round 1.
Just pointing out the problem of round 0 being just non Vic teams. GWS v Freo would see the stadium half full which is the last thing the AFL wants and needs
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Hearing the AFL want Geelong to open both Gather Round in SA and Opening Round in QLD/NSW. The interstaters have been heard loud and clear - 'we want more Geelong'.
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It's what the AFL wants not having to play Geelong again next year would be great though
theprospector
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Correct on all fronts, as per usual with your posts
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It just becomes a dump when Collingwood fans are there.
Cleavy
Hall of Famer
always $$$$
My best mate is a Collingwood fan and the fans that arrived this year were lovely.
The fans get a bad wrap.
I'd go a step further and say, as of right now, Collingwood are likely the only team that can guarantee a sell out in western Sydney and you're probably limited to a few Vic teams + Brisbane in terms of opposition that can pull a sell out on the Gold Coast. The Suns sold out games against Richmond, Essendon, Collingwood and Brisbane this year. This is why I think they've chosen Essendon for the Suns in opening round. Ultimately, the AFL wants every opening round game to sell out and have a presence in those northern markets at the same time the NRL gets going. Even Brisbane playing Geelong in opening round is a good idea because it should guarantee a sell out after their epic prelim from a few months ago.
Other Vic teams like St Kilda and North are unlikely to draw sell out crowds in any of the northern markets. So you can view them in a similar way to the SA & WA teams.
You have to consider what the AFL is actually trying to achieve with opening round and the fact that it appears to be working for the most part. The reason opening round exists is because the AFL has data that suggests the NRL gains too much momentum / gains too many casual sports fans by having a week or two head start on the AFL in the northern markets and it affects the northern teams later in the season. They want to be in all the northern markets on the same weekend that the NRL begins playing games in those markets. That happened this year with the NRL games in NSW & QLD starting on the March 7-10 weekend, just like the AFL's opening round games.
Did it work? Well, the Lions sold out 8 of 11 Gabba games this year (not including the finals sell out against Carlton) and the Suns sold out 4 of 9 Carrara games this year. That's the best result we've ever seen in Queensland so it's clearly it's working in the sunshine state. The Swans pulled great crowds this year too with an average of 38k showing up to SCG games. GWS need more time before they start showing similar positive results, but the AFL know that and are in it for the long haul. That's why Collingwood are heading to western Sydney again so they can guarantee at least one sell out next year.
We hardly get any opposition fans out this way, bar the derby.
It's European soccer kind of snobbery.
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- #120
You must have been lucky. GF this year was so much more pleasant this year especially the parade. No ferrals booing just Swans and Lions fans cheering their team.
Why do you think that is?
I think on the Gold Coast we actually have a fair amount of Collingwood, Essendon, Richmond and Carlton fans who live in south east Queensland and will show up when they play here. It's not so much about the travelling fans for us.
Would be fantastic if it was a draw. Unfortunately it a fix instead.
I can find something to like about most teams because I like footy in general.
People who boo opposition teams should boo themselves.
The area it's in has a bad wrap among Sydneysiders in general.
It really doesn't inspire attendance.
Giants fans this year have made it an attractive option by being incredibly vocal but they need to keep going.
We have no favourable southern migration to help us.
Fair enough. There's no doubt the Queensland teams have benefitted greatly from the post-COVID migration from Victoria (plus SA, WA & TAS to a lesser degree). I don't see that changing any time soon and it looks like both QLD teams will be highly competitive on field in the short to medium, so the game is just going to keep growing here. It's all about building on momentum that's already been established and that's partly why it's important to retain opening round.The area it's in has a bad wrap among Sydneysiders in general.
It really doesn't inspire attendance.
Giants fans this year have made it an attractive option by being incredibly vocal but they need to keep going.
We have no favourable southern migration to help us.
I'm not sure how GWS can get the momentum going in a similar fashion. The Giants have been highly competitive for close to a decade now with 7 finals appearances in their last 9 seasons. I guess all you can do is just stick to it and hope it eventually turns like it eventually did for the Swans. I still think it's a good look for the Giants to pull a sell out crowd in opening round and Collingwood guarantees that.
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