Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.
AFLW 2024 - Round 9 - Indigenous Round - Chat, game threads, injury lists, team lineups and more.
The crowd was absolutely outstanding given the conditions. If my tickets weren't just under cover, I suspect I would've bailed. It was torrential in parts.Love camry folk with the crowd talk about yesterday.. pick ya times it was a fukcin' monsoon last night.
Takes a week of preparation to travel to Geelong.BT sounding a bit disappointed Gather Round will be held in Adelaide for the next 2 years.
Gather Round being played in SA up until the 2026 season was confirmed earlier in the dayJust adding on to my post, if true then Peter M. has done more for SA footy than the SANFL have done in 20-30 years.
The issue for Norwood Oval is as it has been for decades - no space, both on the field and for spectators. It actually is a shitty ground in terms of dimensions and facilities to play an AFL game.Either play the home teams Thursday/Friday or play the home team as the opening match, followed by a big matchup in the night game.
As for Norwood oval, the local grounds in the NRL, which they play at regularly all have awesome atmosphere. (Leichhardt Oval, Mount Smart, Kogarah, even Manly).
I actually think they should play next year at Norwood oval. Just invest in the facilities.
It was a shithole 50 years ago, nothing has changed.I forgot how much of a shithole Nord oval is.
The double headers at AO need a rethink or a bigger gap between games.The crowd was absolutely outstanding given the conditions. If my tickets weren't just under cover, I suspect I would've bailed. It was torrential in parts.
It was a pretty crappy atmosphere though, crap weather, crap game and very random crowd, with plenty of Port supporters who mightve bailed. There were also crows fans all over the place, Bombers and Melbourne fans around, plus many wouldve left after the first game. Would think we would've had 30-35k for our game, but it was scattered and a bit quiet until the last quarter.
Adelaide also has the advantage that the main arena is within walking distance of the CBD and the main train station. The city is not to big and the regional centres such as the Adelaide Hills, Barossa and the Southern Vales are less than an hour from the CBD. Adelaide has a pretty good record at staging festive events. Womadelaide, the Fringe etc. are world class and the city didn't do a bad job when the Formula 1 GP was here.
One question I have is where are they getting these sell out crowds from? Did a ticket to the Port v Bulldogs game yesterday also get you a seat at the Essendon v Melbourne game? We had 44,300 at our game but they would have been lucky to have had 20,000 at the early game.
The crowd at the Cats v West Coast game looks a similar size to yesterday's early game so maybe there are plenty of Collingwood and Saint Kilda fans yet to make an appearance.
The crowd at Norwood for Hawthorn v GWS looks pretty good. i just wish they would stop going on about this famous Norwood Football Club whatever that is.
The official attendance figures for the round will make interesting reading.
Kudos to the Adelaide Gov for showing the initiative.
Let's hope other SA suburban grounds other than Nord Oval get a piece of the pie too.
Much the same as having 65,500 at Adelaide oval for a Grand Final you will never see that again also.Yeah, if they can use Mt Barker they should surely look at some of the better appointed suburban grounds. They would probably need to invest in some temporary stands to increase the ground capacity to 20,000. Unfortunately the development at Alberton might preclude that.
Back in the golden era in the 1970s we had 20,000+ against Norwood at Alberton which was a record crowd for Alberton Oval. I was there that day and watched the game from the Port Adelaide Footballers Club where I had a window seat. It was a day in which Russell Ebert beat four different opponents including Rod Seekamp and Neil Craig and at one stage in the last quarter Russell dropped to his knees with exhaustion. It was the best game I ever saw Russell play and needless to say we won. Looking back at that crowd there is no way we would get that many into Alberton these days.
Mid April school holidays for Vic, WA, NSW and SA is an ideal time to host AFL Gather Round. It’s around the Easter break and most families take leave that time of year.Either play the home teams Thursday/Friday or play the home team as the opening match, followed by a big matchup in the night game.
As for Norwood oval, the local grounds in the NRL, which they play at regularly all have awesome atmosphere. (Leichhardt Oval, Mount Smart, Kogarah, even Manly).
I actually think they should play next year at Norwood oval. Just invest in the facilities.
Cycle the full suite:If you're going to cycle it needs to be three years to get the benefit. Two years isn't enough.
However, there is no real reason that it needs to cycle other than other states wanting the new shiny toy to play with.
Hosting it in SA makes sense on a whole range of levels that puts it far ahead of any other viable option.
- It's easy to get to from VIC & NSW, drive, bus, or fly.
- WA, QLD & TAS are not even that bad for flights.
- Has strong local support for non SA clubs.
- SA has a huge reputation for Food & Wine that supports the festival nature of the event.
- Adelaide is an easy city to get around in. Multiple precincts that are connected via pedestrian pathways. It's compactness is a massive advantage for an event like this.
- Adelaide Oval is a premium city based stadium that can cater for several games over a long weekend program and then funnel the attendees back into the entertainment districts.
- Barossa and McLaren Vale are world class wine districts a short distance from the city that would help entice people to come. Adding a game at either or both regions would be chefs kiss.
If you look at the two other 'accessible' options in QLD and NSW, you'd need to consider how they would manage the festival feeling that's been created this weekend in Adelaide. IMO it just wouldn't translate, it would become something very different.
WA would be a great place to do this and my hunch is they'd do an amazing job of it there, I'd definitely consider heading over to it if it ever eventuates. Their biggest downside is that it's a big trip for the three biggest markets, VIC, NSW, and QLD. This might be made up with the bump in SA fans travelling over to WA.
Leave it in SA until it's become entrenched in the calendar and then do the next run in WA.
It would feel right to me that it's the two major football states outside Victoria sharing this.
The issue for Norwood Oval is as it has been for decades - no space, both on the field and for spectators. It actually is a shitty ground in terms of dimensions and facilities to play an AFL game.
But it's close to the CBD, has plenty of support from prominent SA business types and, more to the point, with Malinauskas keen to see the state seat of Dunstan switch back to Labor when Marshall finally resigns and a by election is held you can be sure that Norwood Oval will remain as a gather round venue as long as the gather round is in SA.
David Pisoni is set to retire from his seat of Unley too so maybe Unley Oval gets a game next year for the same reason.
Sucks in terms of sharing the games around - including to a redeveloped Alberton Oval - but politicians always have their eye on politics when making decisions.
Never underestimate how important politics is for Premiers making decisions.
Three more years. Popular Pete knows how to schmooze.