Crowds - Dropping like flies

[MacMum]

Because you don't live there,

...but my son does, and has done so for many years... I am very familiar
with the gold coast..

I know it well enough to want to live there one day..

 

[patfullfankezz]

Considering how much fun the footy is compared to watching it on TV (and no annoying commentary!) why wouldn't you go to the footy?

Then again, I'm completely and utterly Lions crazy and would go if there was a blizzard at the Gabba and I had to walk from Perth.

It's sad though, a lot of people I said "See you next season." to simply said "Probably not.".

And these people actually live in Brisbane where it's easy to get to the game.

 

[Grimreepah]

I'll thrown one in from left field...

2 more teams in the competition

=

less chance of one's team winning a premiership

=

less interest in one's team.

 

[AndrewD]

,loss of regular fans who now follow the Suns (whatever number that may be)

I think you just can't underestimate how important that has been. If you look at the attendance figures 2006-2010 you'll find they're still reasonably healthy despite the team only having one moderately successful year.

Year Finished Av. Attendance at Gabba
2011 15th 20,462
2010 13th 29,933
2009 6th 29,172
2008 10th 28,128
2007 10th 28,848
2006 13th 26,630

Roughly 9K disappeared in 2011. 4-5K might be an acceptable figure for the band wagon supporter but the rest, I'm certain, are now GC members. Not surprisingly, the Lions had roughly 4.5K fewer members in 2011. You also have to throw in the people who don't join as members but attend games and that might be an extra 3K.

End of the day, the club has to start doing a lot more work to develop support in the community and not rely on them being the only team in town. A successful team will help but that in itself will not be enough (as Hawthorn showed in the 90's when they almost went bust, despite being the most successful team of the previous 20 years).

 

[Judge]

But is it "the greatest place in the world"?

Cavill Avenue v Park Avenue (NY) - it's a very close contest in my book.

 

[Mooch]

I'll thrown one in from left field...

2 more teams in the competition

=

less chance of one's team winning a premiership

=

less interest in one's team.

Sad but true.

I'm firmly of the belief that once you get on a team, there's no getting off and I have no hesitation in renewing for 2012 to show my support through rain and shine. As a Pom, this is how it works for me, coming from a country where the team you follow defines who you are and when you chat to a bloke in the pub, the first question is "where are you from?" followed by "so you must be a xxxxx supporter then?". Here the attitude is a bit different where winning is everything and nobody likes a loser.

 

[John]

Cavill Avenue v Park Avenue (NY) - it's a very close contest in my book.

Just been chatting to my lad who is making his way to his hostel in the Latin Quarters as I type and to say that I would rather be with him exploring Boulevard Saint-Germain than even being anywhere near to Cavill Avenue is non contest in my book.

Forgetting who won it but it was a riveting game tonight I might also add. With a few like that we may fill the Gabba. Hang about we have had a few like that this year!

 

[Matt_BL]

I wouldn't be too worried about crowd numbers, being a Queensland audience they will come to whichever team is winning. The Reds were in a very similar situation not along ago, not winning many games, low crowd numbers and they were losing alot of money. However that started to come good in 2010 when they started to win more games and this year in 2011 the broke the Super Rugby crowd record and won the premiership. The last couple of games they played pulled about 45-50k compared to years before where they only got around 18-20k at their games.

Fairly certain also the Reds only had around 15000 members so alot of people who weren't members were coming to see a winning team. If the Lions can have a similar amount of success on the field in years to come the amount of debt will lessen and the Gabba will become a formidable place to play.

 

[LMac2012]

I think the crowd problem is directly related to performance and performance only.
Look what happened to The Bombers crowds at the end of last season, they were halved.
Forget Rugby, forget floods, forget expansion teams, forget footy on it's death bed in QLD
....Win three or four on the trot and they will come.

 

[____]

Sad but true.

I'm firmly of the belief that once you get on a team, there's no getting off and I have no hesitation in renewing for 2012 to show my support through rain and shine. As a Pom, this is how it works for me, coming from a country where the team you follow defines who you are and when you chat to a bloke in the pub, the first question is "where are you from?" followed by "so you must be a xxxxx supporter then?". Here the attitude is a bit different where winning is everything and nobody likes a loser.

I'm Australian and I'm a firm believer of that as well and I will renew next season.

 

[AndrewD]

. Here the attitude is a bit different where winning is everything and nobody likes a loser.

Try telling all of us Fitzroy supporters that we only like winners or the people who grew up following South, Footscray or St.Kilda. Nope, it's absolute garbage to say that people here only like winners and bloody insulting to all of us who were born into one club and have devoted our entire lives to teams that didn't win but we loved anyway.

 

[Mooch]

Try telling all of us Fitzroy supporters that we only like winners or the people who grew up following South, Footscray or St.Kilda. Nope, it's absolute garbage to say that people here only like winners and bloody insulting to all of us who were born into one club and have devoted our entire lives to teams that didn't win but we loved anyway.

Obviously it is a generalisation that doesn't apply to everybody but I stand by the observation.

 

[AndrewD]

Obviously it is a generalisation that doesn't apply to everybody but I stand by the observation.

Mate, it's not a generalisation, it's a load of rubbish. Go down to Melbourne or inner-Sydney, or country Victoria and see the way people follow their football teams; it is a religion that has nothing to do with winning or losing. Great that you're a Lions supporter but there's no need to try and big-note yourself by taking a dig at the rest of us; especially when it's blatantly obvious you don't know what you're talking about. Focus on the footy and leave the generalisations at home.

 

[Mount Nebo]

Sad but true.

I'm firmly of the belief that once you get on a team, there's no getting off and I have no hesitation in renewing for 2012 to show my support through rain and shine. As a Pom, this is how it works for me, coming from a country where the team you follow defines who you are and when you chat to a bloke in the pub, the first question is "where are you from?" followed by "so you must be a xxxxx supporter then?". Here the attitude is a bit different where winning is everything and nobody likes a loser.

I'm English too and have been brought up with the mentality that once you pick a team, they're yours for life. Regardless of whether they loose or drop a couple of divisions (I've NEVER walked out of a Lions game) you don't walk away. I just don't get people who drop the Lions like a hot brick when they start loosing.

All that said, (to quote Lynch on today's TV show) there's something toxic at the club at the moment IMO. There doesn't seem to be much love emanating from the Gabba and we (Brisbane) are all picking up on it.

Couple this with the fact that since Ten and 9 lost interest/interests in the AFL, there's zero to no chance of getting any exposure in the news and that the only people who report on the game in our local News Limited, Rugby League-mad rag are muppets... we're going to cop-it for some time.

Being English I also find it crazy that there is so much apathy to the Australian game here in Queensland. However, we're not doing too much to help ourselves.

 

[dlanod]

Mate, it's not a generalisation, it's a load of rubbish. Go down to Melbourne or inner-Sydney, or country Victoria and see the way people follow their football teams; it is a religion that has nothing to do with winning or losing. Great that you're a Lions supporter but there's no need to try and big-note yourself by taking a dig at the rest of us; especially when it's blatantly obvious you don't know what you're talking about. Focus on the footy and leave the generalisations at home.

Let's have a look at some starts before you go off the handle again. I just picked the 2000 to 2010 period as an example... St Kilda went from 16th to 3rd on the ladder and crowd attendance went from 24,422 to 38,009. Essendon went from 1st to 14th, and crowds went from 48,353 to 44,184 in a period when average crowds went up close to 15%. Collingwood went form 15th to 1st, and from 45,012 to 63,256. Carlton went from 2nd to 8th, and 34,414 to 48,009. All Melbourne clubs. Couldn't possibly be ANY fair weather supporters in those figures. So leave off the shit I've bolded because there's fair weather supporters in every clubs numbers, and being an AFL supporter in Melbourne doesn't make you any more special than anyone else.

 

[Mooch]

Mate, it's not a generalisation, it's a load of rubbish. Go down to Melbourne or inner-Sydney, or country Victoria and see the way people follow their football teams; it is a religion that has nothing to do with winning or losing. Great that you're a Lions supporter but there's no need to try and big-note yourself by taking a dig at the rest of us; especially when it's blatantly obvious you don't know what you're talking about. Focus on the footy and leave the generalisations at home.

I wasn't "big-noting" or taking a dig. It's an observation. And while there are plenty of die-hards, there are plenty of fair-weathers too - so much so that somebody saw fit to create a discussion on here about it.

 

[Ceebee]

I'm English too and have been brought up with the mentality that once you pick a team, they're yours for life. Regardless of whether they loose or drop a couple of divisions (I've NEVER walked out of a Lions game) you don't walk away. I just don't get people who drop the Lions like a hot brick when they start loosing.

All that said, (to quote Lynch on today's TV show) there's something toxic at the club at the moment IMO. There doesn't seem to be much love emanating from the Gabba and we (Brisbane) are all picking up on it.

Couple this with the fact that since Ten and 9 lost interest/interests in the AFL, there's zero to no chance of getting any exposure in the news and that the only people who report on the game in our local News Limited, Rugby League-mad rag are muppets... we're going to cop-it for some time.

Being English I also find it crazy that there is so much apathy to the Australian game here in Queensland. However, we're not doing too much to help ourselves.

So what did Lynchy say was wrong at the Lions, would be interested to know ,that is a fairly bold statement about something being toxic at the club.

 

[Mount Nebo]

So what did Lynchy say was wrong at the Lions, would be interested to know ,that is a fairly bold statement about something being toxic at the club.

Sorry, don't get me wrong. It was a reflective piece talking about the state of the club at the end of the nineties. There was no application from him regarding the club today.

 

[Ceebee]

Sorry, don't get me wrong. It was a reflective piece talking about the state of the club at the end of the nineties. There was no application from him regarding the club today.

.
Ok,I havent seen the video, just couldnt imagine Lynchy saying anything against the club now.he is always pretty supportive.
In my opinion they have taken giant steps in trying to turn things around.
Real fans will stay ,but we are in the unfortunate situation where most Victorian AFL fans who moved up here already had a team. A lot buy memberships and support the Lions as their second team. A lot hate the Lions, I know a few of them. Then you have the hard core ones who will support through thick and thin.
When we start performing well again, the crowds will come. Will be interested to see what the new membership packages are next year after their survey results.
Going to be a tough few years, but it will be worth it.

 

[Soul1986]

Let's have a look at some starts before you go off the handle again. I just picked the 2000 to 2010 period as an example... St Kilda went from 16th to 3rd on the ladder and crowd attendance went from 24,422 to 38,009. Essendon went from 1st to 14th, and crowds went from 48,353 to 44,184 in a period when average crowds went up close to 15%. Collingwood went form 15th to 1st, and from 45,012 to 63,256. Carlton went from 2nd to 8th, and 34,414 to 48,009. All Melbourne clubs. Couldn't possibly be ANY fair weather supporters in those figures. So leave off the shit I've bolded because there's fair weather supporters in every clubs numbers, and being an AFL supporter in Melbourne doesn't make you any more special than anyone else.

For me, there are two types of supporters applicable to every club in the AFL:

Firstly, the supporters that will stick with there club, regardless of its win/loss ratio.

Secondly, supporters that only turn up when there team is winning and the talk of the town - increased crowd numbers are part of this point.

However, the number of supporters in each category will vary.

Here in Melbourne, Collingwood have a strong core of both, but still draw good crowds even where they are performing poorly. On the other hand, Richmond is well known to have a strong supporter base, but a higher number in the second category- big crowds when they win.

But, these are examples of AFL clubs with over 100 years of history and many generations of fans.

For me, the Brisbane Lions are unique here - us Fitzroy fans are used to adversity and following a team that was down the bottom for large periods. Again, over 100 years of history and generations of supporters.

Having said this, Fitzroy had a large number of bandwagon fans, that turned up during the 80s when the team was in the finals, then went missing until our last season. These supporters disgust me, had they been there when we needed them, we probably wouldnt have merged -as outlined in the book 'Fitzroy'.

But Fitzroy also had a strong group of supporters, there during the good times and bad times. Very passionate fans that proudly stuck together especially during the miserable years of 1995-1996. Unfortunately not enough in this category, but other factors like losing our players, resulting in the team being thrashed regularly and being forced to move to an absolute dump- Western Oval- due to the AFL ensured this group remained at low levels.

On the other hand, lions fans in Brisbane (talking post Cararra days/move to Gabba) are mostly still knew to AFL footy- in the big picture. Probably used to more success as the lions - premiership years and thus a large number of bandwagon supporters. I think this will change over time.....

 

[Go GWS!]

One thing I've always wondered, if Brisbane is a Rugby League town and has a population of 1.7 million, how come they only have 1 team?

Because Brisbane's rugby league competition, which had many teams (many of which are still in existence in the Queensland Cup) , dropped in prominence when the Broncos were admitted into the NSWRL. It is similar to SA and WA, although those two cities have two teams.