Roast Has Opening Round been totally botched?

[Dirty Bird]

I've actually enjoyed it.
Good for the game.

How to make it better.

Take Carlton out of it for Essendon in years that ANZAC Day falls midweek. That way Essendon/Collingwood/Richmond/Melbourne can have their byes before/after that so it's not really like a bye. Even it out for them so they don't get screwed over with a shot break. (So exactly what they've done with Richmond/Melbourne this year)

Ensure that Brisbane/Gold Coast/Greater Western Sydney/Sydney have their bye immediately preceding a rd they play each other.

Ensure that in the week after this opening round, all 8 teams play each other as to ensure that they dont have that much of a match fit advantage the following week. (Though, I think that might mean the following week will have to turn into a Richmond vs Collingwood/Essendon kickoff instead of Carlton to ensure Carlton isn't screwed over.)

Games I feel have received an unfair advantage this year.

Rd 1 - Melbourne over Western Bulldogs
Rd 1 - Greater Western Sydney over North Melbourne
Rd 1 - Brisbane over Fremantle
Rd 1 - Gold Coast over Adelaide
Rd 3 - Brisbane over Collingwood
Rd 3 - Carlton over North Melbourne
Rd 6 - Collingwood over Port Adelaide
Rd 6 - Sydney over Gold Coast

Alternatively. Turn these first 2 weeks into a split rd and keep this concept. Im sure you could've replaced Richmond with Essendon and Brisbane with Geelong to keep the crowds up and still have your Vic kickoff next week?

 

[sthmelb_dimmies]

Overwhelming success. If it wasn’t for the Bears shitting the bed, we would have had an opening round Victorian club whitewash

 

[stfan]

That way Essendon/Collingwood/Richmond/Melbourne can have their byes before/after that so it's not really like a bye. Even it out for them so they don't get screwed over with a shot break.

How are the Pies screwed over?

Their next game is against St Kilda who will be playing the Pies after only 5 days. That sounds like an advantage to me.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

I feel like this thread did not age well. 4 games and all four were interesting in their own way, all four having plenty to talk about.

Sydney vs Melbourne = Are Sydney the real deal? Is Melbourne in trouble?

Brisbane vs Carlton = Can Carlton be a contender this year?

Gold Coast vs Richmond = Hardwicks win against Richmond, can Gold Coat make the leap to make the 8, what does this loss mean for Richmond?

GWS vs Collingwood = Is there a Collingwood premiership hangover? Can GWS win the flag?

The thread was actually just asking a very simple question:

Did the AFL make the most basic of all stuffups and simply book Opening Round on the wrong date?

I believe they may well have.

 

[STPer18]

Preseason comes to a close.

 

[Brezsa]

Next year add a showdown to Sunday. You tease me footy is back, it’s Sunday tomorrow and there is nothing. How awesome a stand-alone showdown would be to finish it of tomorrow

 

[Yellow Feathers]

The games have been good but I would have preferred all 9 being played. Give us moar footy

 

[Orange Agent]

I think it's been a tactical win by AFL HQ. NRL tried to go all out with Vegas and the AFL have slid in and taken over Harbour town for the week whilst they were eyeing off some new fluff. I doubt they could of hoped for it to go any better.

 

[Giant YoYo]

I think it's been a tactical win by AFL HQ. NRL tried to go all out with Vegas and the AFL have slid in and taken over Harbour town for the week whilst they were eyeing off some new fluff. I doubt they could of hoped for it to go any better.

Lots of AFL opening round naysayers haven't considered the nuace and it shows.

The most amount of clear air and minimal NRL games you could get in the northern states but somehow it's a failure by there being some NRL games on

 

[Daka]

Boring only 4 not enough games, got to wait another week for everyone to have played at leat once.
the ladder will botched for a while.

 

[Free Agent]

Massive fail and that's putting it lightly.

Boringest start to a season I've ever experienced. Normally round 1 is one of the most anticipated and exciting rounds every year.

This season nope. 4 games and most were played on god awful grounds with horrible atmosphere. I feel asleep through 3 of them out of boredom. Doesn't even feel like footys even started.

What a way for AFL to stuff up one of the biggest rounds and bore people from the onset. Now we have Sunday with no footy.
Thanks AFL for putting everyone off the game in round 1. Idiots running it.

 

[TheEscapeClub]

The AFL for me these days is only a marginally better product than the NRL but the AFL have been bereft of ideas for a few years now and just seem to follow the NRL's lead or react to NRL initiatives.

We have the 4th most attended domestic sporting competition on the planet, let's focus on making it the best possible experience for the attendees and for those that watch at home or in a bar/pub/club, lets make it worth watching from a technical point of view.

 

[maskmcgee]

Every game sold out,

Yet they were all played with thousands of empty seats visible

 

[Colonial]

Yet they were all played with thousands of empty seats visible

You are confused about what a sellout is.

 

[Colonial]

To answer OP nope it wasn’t. A great night.

 

[HairyO]

The Gold Coast crowd of 22,086 was their highest ever at home against Richmond.

And interestingly, the Suns had not broken a crowd record against an opponent since 2014 (not counting the 2018 Freo ‘home’ game at Optus). The Hardwick effect helps, but having the clear air and focus as a marquee game has been the main reason for this success.

View attachment 1923916

There are 3-5 opportunities for the Suns to break more crowd records this year using the momentum that Opening Round has given us. It’s been massive.

Celebrating a crowd of 20,000 is Rugby League thinking.

 

[maskmcgee]

You are confused about what a sellout is.

No, I'm aware it's a fake term the AFL uses whenever one of their big events is a complete failure, they but up all the tickets so it appears successful, but they couldn't even give them away for free.

 

[Colonial]

No, I'm aware it's a fake term the AFL uses whenever one of their big events is a complete failure, they but up all the tickets so it appears successful, but they couldn't even give them away for free.

Fmd VFLers

It isn’t a fake term. If all seats are sold then it’s a sellout.
But you can’t help members that don’t show.

 

[The 747]

Excellent crowds and exposure for the growth areas and I suspect it achieved the AFL's objectives.

 

[The Educator]

Yet they were all played with thousands of empty seats visible

You are clearly a glass is 5% empty kinda guy yeah?

 

[Colonial]

Celebrating a crowd of 20,000 is Rugby League thinking.

Celebrating sellouts in the northern states is a good thing.

 

[Kreuuuzeurns]

To answer OP nope it wasn’t. A great night.

GABBA was also rocking on Friday night.

It could’ve still been a great weekend with 10 other teams playing.

 

[Colonial]

GABBA was also rocking on Friday night.

It could’ve still been a great weekend with 10 other teams playing.

Come on, media would of been all about the traditional clubs like it always is.

 

[Kreuuuzeurns]

Come on, media would of been all about the traditional clubs like it always is.

Big traditional clubs would still be in QLD and NSW playing in prime time slots.

Unless you think Port vs WCE on a Sunday afternoon would overshadow these games?

 

[The Passenger]

I feel like this thread did not age well. 4 games and all four were interesting in their own way, all four having plenty to talk about.

Sydney vs Melbourne = Are Sydney the real deal? Is Melbourne in trouble?

Brisbane vs Carlton = Can Carlton be a contender this year?

Gold Coast vs Richmond = Hardwicks win against Richmond, can Gold Coat make the leap to make the 8, what does this loss mean for Richmond?

GWS vs Collingwood = Is there a Collingwood premiership hangover? Can GWS win the flag?

All of those things could have happened with a normal opening round.

"Round Zero" is a shit concept.

The NRL announced Vegas and the AFL decided they had to something and this was the best idea they had.