Hawthorn v West Coast at Etihad - Strange venue choice

[Matt Stevic]

Why should that entitle you to special treatment over other MCG tenants? Collingwood, Richmond, and Melbourne all have to play home games at Etihad. Even we had 3 home games there this season.

Hawthorn decide to play 4 home games a year in Launceston. If you want more MCG home games, then move 1-2 away from Tassie. Simple as that. Can't have your cake and eat it too.

The ideal for the Hawks is 11 Waverley games. The AFL never sold Kardinia Park (FWIW I love KP and I reckon the cats should play 11 games there). We were promised no Jihad if we played 4 games in Tassie. That's the issue.

This is such an emotive issue for me, my blood is boiling right now.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

Is it just me, or has there been a glut of dodgy scheduling this year? Sheesh.

No more than any other year, but yes, there is a glut of bad scheduling.

 

[FootyJunkie]

Is it just me, or has there been a glut of dodgy scheduling this year? Sheesh.

what do you expect from the Anomaly Football League ?

 

[FootyJunkie]

The ideal for the Hawks is 11 Waverley games. The AFL never sold Kardinia Park (FWIW I love KP and I reckon the cats should play 11 games there). We were promised no Jihad if we played 4 games in Tassie. That's the issue.

This is such an emotive issue for me, my blood is boiling right now.

Would it have made sense for Hawthorn to have a 80k stadium all to themselves though?

 

[Pessimistic]

Why should that entitle you to special treatment over other MCG tenants? Collingwood, Richmond, and Melbourne all have to play home games at Etihad. Even we had 3 home games there this season.

Hawthorn decide to play 4 home games a year in Launceston. If you want more MCG home games, then move 1-2 away from Tassie. Simple as that. Can't have your cake and eat it too.

Mate, younreally have no idea

 

[MagpieJoel]

Sill don't understand the angst for the dome.

Barring an 80k plus crowd, it is a better venue to watch footy.

The whole mythology of the MCG is a bit overdone IMO, why someone wouldn't rock up to the dome, but they would to the MCG is beyond me(mcc members aside).

As has pointed out, this could be played in a cow paddock and we will still get pantsed

For some of us, it's a harder venue to travel to.

 

[Matt Stevic]

Would it have made sense for Hawthorn to have a 80k stadium all to themselves though?

Hawthorn and St. Kilda would be the home tenants, you know like it was in the 90s. As well as this, other clubs (such as Collingwood in Victoria Park) would use it for high drawing games, just like how the MCG was being used at the time. It was lunacy how the AFL sold off its greatest asset for a pittance.

 

[The Falcon Strike]

For some of us, it's a harder venue to travel to.

You'd think there would be an equal number that make it easier to get to given the dome's strategic location.

Either way, both are fairly central with great PT options

 

[SJ]

For some of us, it's a harder venue to travel to.

"A harder venue", ha, you can get from one to the other in less than 15 minutes on public transport.

 

[MagpieJoel]

You'd think there would be an equal number that make it easier to get to given the dome's strategic location.

Either way, both are fairly central with great PT options

If I took public transport to the footy, it would take me over an hour each way on the train to get to Etihad. This doesn't take into account the time that you need to wait for trains. Not much different to the G, but I don't usually take PT to the footy anyway (takes too long - would take over to 2 hours each way, by the time you take into account driving to train station, waiting for trains etc).

If I drive to the G, I park near the Shrine. It takes me about an hour to drive there and a short walk. I then save 45 minutes waiting in the G carpark.

If I lived closer to the city, I wouldn't have a problem going to Etihad more often - I lived in the city for a short while and went to a lot of games there.

 

[HappyChappy35]

Mate, younreally have no idea

Well, what do you expect when every other MCG tenant plays a home game at Etihad? There shouldn't be any exemptions made for Hawthorn because of where they decide to play their home games. Only fair you play an Etihad home game when everyone else has to.

We have 7 home games at Kardinia Park every year (8 from next season), and yet 2-3 of our bigger drawing games are at Etihad when we have no arrangement with them. Do you see our supporters complaining or the AFL making exemptions for us? No.

The AFL have contractual obligations they have to comply with, and in this case it's Etihad receiving a certain amount of games. It just so happened that Hawthorn copped one of those in order to make things fair.

Where Hawthorn want to play their home games doesn't bother me. Just saying that you're not really in a position to complain when you decide to sell 4 of them interstate.

 

[MagpieJoel]

"A harder venue", ha, you can get from one to the other in less than 15 minutes on public transport.

Not everyone takes public transport to the footy. See my last post. When you live a fair distance away, it all adds up.

 

[HappyChappy35]

The ideal for the Hawks is 11 Waverley games. The AFL never sold Kardinia Park (FWIW I love KP and I reckon the cats should play 11 games there). We were promised no Jihad if we played 4 games in Tassie. That's the issue.

This is such an emotive issue for me, my blood is boiling right now.

That's a little understandable, but one home game at Etihad against an interstate side isn't something to get worked up over. The AFL can't always guarantee promises such as this when contractual obligations prevent them from doing so and when other MCG tenants receive an Etihad home game.

 

[Pessimistic]

Well, what do you expect when every other MCG tenant plays a home game at Etihad? There shouldn't be any exemptions made for Hawthorn because of where they decide to play their home games. Only fair you play an Etihad home game when everyone else has to.

We have 7 home games at Kardinia Park every year (8 from next season), and yet 2-3 of our bigger drawing games are at Etihad when we have no arrangement with them. Do you see our supporters complaining or the AFL making exemptions for us? No.

The AFL have contractual obligations they have to comply with, and in this case it's Etihad receiving a certain amount of games. It just so happened that Hawthorn copped one of those in order to make things fair.

Where Hawthorn want to play their home games doesn't bother me. Just saying that you're not really in a position to complain when you decide to sell 4 of them interstate.

You think games against freo and port will be moved to the MCG ?

 

[Pessimistic]

"A harder venue", ha, you can get from one to the other in less than 15 minutes on public transport.

But it really should be just five minutes

 

[The 747]

Would assume this is because despite having 80000 members, the Hawks dont pull a crowd.

 

[Jaeger]

What's stopping you from getting 50,000+ at Etihad? The ground has a capacity of 56,347, is no more difficult to get to for those in Melbourne than the MCG is, and doesn't have the drawback of a large number of seats already having been "taken" by MCC members (who may or may not turn up), allowing for a larger percentage of general admission entries.

Isn't one side of the ground for AFL & Medallion club members?

 

[Truckosaurus]

We play Etihad better than we play the MCG. Clearly this decision is just another part of the AFL conspiracy to get us into finals.

 

[HBF]

Obviously another West Coast conspiracy.

I'm making my way down to Melb for this game, and to be honest, I'd rather watch the footy at Etihad instead of the G.

Particularly this time of year.
Still think the 'G is the better football stadium though.

 

[LT Smash]

This year Geelong hosted North at Etihad for goodness' sake.

Of course that had NOTHING to do with the fact that Kardinia Park wasn't ready for the fixture?

 

[blue harvest]

It was scheduled at Etihad to distract everyone from the real issue which is why do the Eagles for a second time this season get a 2 week break before playing the Hawks.

 

[Kavliaris69]

Last years game against WCE in Round 23 on a Friday Night we got 50,000. Now it's Etihad for some unknown reason. Nice one Demetriou you fat Tub of Goo.

Demetriou must be having too much of Butters' Creamy Goo.

 

[Oneiros]

It was scheduled at Etihad to distract everyone from the real issue which is why do the Eagles for a second time this season get a 2 week break before playing the Hawks.

Very nice, straightforward reason: every other team in the league uses their fixturing special requests to create "blockbuster" situations - double games against high-drawing opponents for revenue purposes.

West Coast doesn't really have to worry about that though, so they can use their fixturing requests to try and eke out an on-field advantage, rather than an off-field one.

Hasn't helped us, of course, because our midfield has been simply deplorable this year, but that's what's going on with the fixturing.

 

[Hawkk]

Would assume this is because despite having 80000 members, the Hawks dont pull a crowd.

Pretty much...

Geelong V Carlton - 43,241
Carlton V Hawthorn - 45,670

Collingwood V Geelong - 66,758
Collingwood V Hawthorn - 72,254

Geelong V North Melbourne - 34,142
Hawthorn V North Melbourne - 42,103

In fact the only game Geelong outdrew Hawthorn in a like for like was the opening of the new Kardina Park grandstand...

Geelong V Gold Coast - 30,087
Hawthorn V Gold Coast - 28,011

For a club that can't pull a crowd the Hawks must have done something right to attract 50,023 to the round 23 game last year against the Eagles...

Fair call though...

 

[blue harvest]

If I took public transport to the footy, it would take me over an hour each way on the train to get to Etihad. This doesn't take into account the time that you need to wait for trains. Not much different to the G, but I don't usually take PT to the footy anyway (takes too long - would take over to 2 hours each way, by the time you take into account driving to train station, waiting for trains etc).

If I drive to the G, I park near the Shrine. It takes me about an hour to drive there and a short walk. I then save 45 minutes waiting in the G carpark.

In the time it takes to walk from near the Shrine to the G you could have walked or caught tram to Flinders Street, 5 minute max wait for a train to Etihad.
It is ridiculously easy for anyone to get to, maybe 10min extra if you come from the East, 10 min quicker if you come from the West.