The Grand Final should be hosted at a neutral venue

[theRainbowGame]

Perhaps to stop the Victorian bias against taking away the Grand Final from Victoria we need to promote the VFL more. Make the VFL a viable alternative to the VFL such that the crowds increase substantially and the standard is more and less the same. Surely by making the VFL full professional this could happen. Then we can simply host the Grand Final in Victoria every year for the VFL, and then whoever is deemed best for the AFL.

I do like John Grants idea with the NRL Grand Final of putting it at ANZ for two years, and then up for bid for the third year. We could probably approach the MCG with this idea and extend the contract by 1.5 times to account for the lost games.

 

[threesixpio]

Not a neutral venue. It should be at the venue of the team that actually deserves it. West Coast earn't the right for it to be their home game but instead it is being played at Hawthorn's home venue.

Would have won it there anyway. Sure as hell would have given a shellacking to the Swines too in 14.

 

[Banker]

Premiers and the home-and-away G-factor
2015 Hawthorn - nine games
2014 Hawthorn - 11 Games
2013 Hawthorn - nine games
2012 Sydney - one game
2011 Geelong - six games
2010 Collingwood- 14 games
2009 Geelong - five games
2008 Hawthorn - 10 games
2007 Geelong - two games
2006 West Coast - two games
2005 Sydney - two games
2004 Port Adelaide - three games
2003 Brisbane - one game
2002 Brisbane - one game
2001 Brisbane - two games

WOW the Hawks aren't as great as people are banging on about.

It was a matter of time before a MCG home team capitalised on the home ground.

 

[rjslcM]

Build a 150,000 capacity stadium in Canberra. Call it Capital City Stadium and host every GF there. The annual pilgrimage to CCS will be a thing to behold.

What an excellent idea. Fair chance GWS would end up playing all of their home games there and wouldn't be neutral though would it.

Much more affordable and realistic than building 100,000 capacity stadiums or expanding current stadiums in each of Perth, Adelaide, Sydney and Brisbane though.

 

[Wild Bill]

Maybe we could get Arden Street, Windy Hill, Princess Park, Moorabin, Vic Park up and running so its fair for the Vic sides to host a true home Grand Final.

Cats are Ok - if they earn it they should have it at the Cattery. Maybe the Roos can host in Tassie while Aden street are up graded??

 

[estibador]

I would NOT be happy with that. Stuff that for a joke. The grand final is about getting one chance to show your stuff and win. No bloody best of the three bullshit. It is called the one big day for a reason. Lets not kill any more gooses that lay golden eggs. There is nothing like getting to that big day and knowing it is now or never.

Unless of course it's a draw... then it's suddenly fine to render that 'big day' meaningless and play another game.

 

[Apsaalooke]

This is bigger than city rivalries. Yes, it's a "national" competition, but the MCG is the best stadium in the country (by far, and always will be), and is the spiritual home and cultural home of sport in this country.

This goes well beyond "tradition". There's a romantic affiliation that Melburnians have with the stadium, the sport was born here, and so it should be respected as such as hosting the final game between the two best clubs of the season.

It shouldn't be about "home" vs "away".

Winning on the MCG on Grand Final day is the absolute best thing you can do. Hawthorn has mastered the stadium because it plays there so often, but interstate teams have played and won there many times.

Sydney in 2012? Brisbane x3. Adelaide x2. West Coast x2.

If you want to beat the best, you have to beat them at the cauldron. That's how it is, and how it always should be.

Hosting the Grand Final in Perth or Adelaide would be an indictment on what it actually means to win a Grand Final.

To win a flag, you need to win in Melbourne. Winning an AFL premiership goes hand-in-hand with winning in Melbourne. It's the ultimate honour.

I get that people who didn't grow up in Melbourne don't understand that, but it's astonishing how much some of you are undervaluing how important the sport is to this city. I'm sure it's important to other cities, but AFL is *ours*.

Interstate fans should embrace this and take it head-on, not have a winge that their towns don't host the final match of the year.

If you want to be the best, you need to come to the emerald city and snatch it away from us. We'll happily give it to you.

Made me laugh seeing people from Perth make up fake stories about how Victoria couldn't handle an all-interstate GF. That's just bullshit. We *want* to see the two best teams play, irrespective of where they're from.

Come here and we'll embrace it. Just don't have a cry that it should have been played in your small little city because you finished higher on the ladder.

Want the premiership cup? COME AND TAKE IT!

That's what it's about.

WOWEEEEEE

I get what you're saying….but it's still a load of crap

 

[doona]

As a sydney fan, I say the Grand final should be at the MCG. However it is complete BS when we play only 1 or 2 games there a season. All interstate clubs should play there at least 3 times (4 would be ideal) on the road.

 

[Furn2]

Wait!

A Tasmanian team against a Western Australian team playing in Victoria.

Doesn't get much more neutral than that.

 

[footyfan1978]

Unless of course it's a draw... then it's suddenly fine to render that 'big day' meaningless and play another game.

Anything but meaningless.
A drawn grand final is sensational rare event.
It is why the 1977 and 2010 drawn grand finals appear on the Grand Final Marathon show.
The two sides then have to play again as someone has to win a grand final to take the premiership.

 

[estibador]

Anything but meaningless.
A drawn grand final is sensational rare event.
It is why the 1977 and 2010 drawn grand finals appear on the Grand Final Marathon show.
The two sides then have to play again as someone has to win a grand final to take the premiership.

Given your previous post I was expecting you to tell me you didn't agree with the replay rule. Son I am disappoint!

It's either 'The Big Day' or it's not. The drawn GF's would be even more memorable if they went into balls-out, ultra-frenetic extra time instead of a limp replay. They'd be no less rare or sensational.

The only argument for diluting the 'big day' into 'two big days' is the AFL makes more money. I really don't think the average AFL fan should care about that aspect - indeed, I suspect most don't, but it's a convenient excuse for them to argue to keep the status quo that benefits their clubs.

 

[footyfan1978]

Given your previous post I was expecting you to tell me you didn't agree with the replay rule. Son I am disappoint!

It's either 'The Big Day' or it's not. The drawn GF's would be even more memorable if they went into balls-out, ultra-frenetic extra time instead of a limp replay. They'd be no less rare or sensational.

If there was extra time it actually cannot be drawn. You do realize that
I'm not really against extra-time but as we already had the tradition of the very rare times a grand final is drawn to replay it the next week that is a tradition to stay with for mine.
Assuming a replay will be limp is funny.

 

[estibador]

If there was extra time it actually cannot be drawn. You do realize that
I'm not really against extra-time but as we already had the tradition of the very rare times a grand final is drawn to replay it the next week that is a tradition to stay with for mine.

But they'd still be known as the extremely rare drawn gf's that went into extra time.

Traditions are only worth persisting with if they're beneficial to a culture. Otherwise they just impede progress and we would never evolve.

I can understand the historical, cultural, and even the logistical arguments against moving the grand final (not to say I necessarily agree with them). But the replay rule is an outdated notion that can be fixed instantly with no harm to anyone.

And more relevant to this thread - as per my original point - it weakens any argument against a best of 3 series if you're perfectly happy to have a best of two series in the event of a draw. It's either a sacred 'big day' where the premiership is decided or it's not.

 

[footyfan1978]

And more relevant to this thread - as per my original point - it weakens any argument against a best of 3 series if you're perfectly happy to have a best of two series in the event of a draw. It's either a sacred 'big day' where the premiership is decided or it's not.

You do not get it. It is not a best of two. It is win the grand final. If there is no result you play it again. Best of 3 matches is nonsense and has nothing to do with an actual grand final.

 

[estibador]

You do not get it. It is not a best of two. It is win the grand final. If there is no result you play it again. Best of 3 matches is nonsense and has nothing to do with an actual grand final.

Oh I get it... the grand final is the big day. The one day when you have to perform when it counts. The one day when reputations are made or broken. The whole season is all about peaking for that one day. That's what makes it so special right?

Unless it's a draw. Then no one cares about what happened. Instead you play another game that has nothing to do with the actual grand final.

 

[Somebody]

I'd suggest, where one of the grand finalists have higher "ranking" ( eg WC this year won right through whereas Dawks lost one final and had to win 2 more to get to the grannie, so WC had higher ranking) and is based in Perth and maybe Brisbane too, then there could be 2 grand finals, one at their home (Subiaco for this year) and then the finale at the G. I think the finale has to be at the G surely.
Then it's decided on who got most points total.
And everyone makes more money.

 

[Sttew]

Melbourne is the sports capital of the world. How could you possibly play the GF anywhere else?

 

[dean33]

As a sydney fan, I say the Grand final should be at the MCG. However it is complete BS when we play only 1 or 2 games there a season. All interstate clubs should play there at least 3 times (4 would be ideal) on the road.

And that should be the argument, more games for interstate teams at the g, not taking the grand final away from the g which is a stupid idea which will never happen in my lifetime.

 

[kaiserchief13]

If higher ranked team has a stadium in their state with capacity 60k+ it should be hosted there. So new Perth stadium and Sydney stadium are big enough. Not sure about Adelaide oval??? Maybe needs to be renovated to get big enough capacity. If this is all done only teams at disadvantage are Queensland teams. Not sure what can be done for them???

 

[Gavin Excell]

And that should be the argument, more games for interstate teams at the g, not taking the grand final away from the g which is a stupid idea which will never happen in my lifetime.

In principle the more games for interstate clubs at the G sounds reasonable but it will mean less games Etihad which contractually be nigh impossible to address. The games at Geelong and Tassie would also need reduction as a lot of the scheduled games those venues feature non vic sides

 

[LoungeLizard]

In principle the more games for interstate clubs at the G sounds reasonable but it will mean less games Etihad which contractually be nigh impossible to address. The games at Geelong and Tassie would also need reduction as a lot of the scheduled games those venues feature non vic sides

Yep, but it pains me to say this,(we seem to play crap there) but Collingwood, Hawthorn etc. could play a few more there to even it up

 

[Gavin Excell]

Yep, but it pains me to say this,(we seem to play crap there) but Collingwood, Hawthorn etc. could play a few more there to even it up

That is true. The reality is that the AFL have consistently valued $$$ over principles of competition fairness so i doubt this will take place on any meaningful form

 

[Nostradumbass]

Has a non Victorian mentioned how they saved us from the abyss in this thread yet?

 

[Filthy Sanchez]

Play it in Qatar

 

[LoungeLizard]

Play it in Qatar

Air conditioning dries the ground out too much