The 2015 fixture thread

[Macca 16,174]

Agreed Macca.

I'll just say this and then I'll leave it alone. The AFL is ever evolving. Your stats show that we have been overlooked in the past for the big 4 regardless of results. If we start winning and generate excitement people will come and so to, will the big games. We'll never get Carlton's 7 Friday night games but 3 in 2016 after a much improved 2015 would help the bottom line no end.

In a nutshell I don't believe a fixture should be based on popularity or winning - ever.

Prime time TV games is a totally different matter

Collingwood will be getting at least a 5-6 million dollar head start on us next season before a ball is even bounced - that's the stark reality.

They will play only 3 home games against interstate sides next year.

Plus, they will have home games against the Cats, Hawks, Blues, Tigers, Bombers, Saints & us.

Also, they get 9 prime time games and 15 free-to-air games.

They finished 11th last season.

I outlined a possible solution in this post ... the club needs to be proactive re the fixture and it wouldn't surprise me if Jackson ends up selling another game or 2 off. A crowd of around about 25,000 - 27,000 is break even at the MCG whilst selling another game off could net the club 350-400k.

The club wouldn't be expecting a cheque from our round 23 game against the Giants at Docklands but I've heard that we do receive a minimum 100k for any given home game at the MCG ... so, with home games against the Doggies, Suns, Freo, Lions & North we might only expect to make a total of 500k from 6 of our home games.

Many clubs are now turning over 50 million dollars plus these days (the Pies turned over 75 million dollars last year) so a total of 500k from 6 home games is a frighteningly small number when comparing that figure to the turnover that clubs have these days.

Jackson would be tearing his hair out if he had any

Edited November 1, 2014 by Macca

[Bring-Back-Powell 13,696]

7999 actually. I'm not going

Bummer. A crowd of 8000 would have ensured we kept playing home games at Etihad.

[Bring-Back-Powell 13,696]

42816

We will be playing for a spot in the finals!

Very optimistic Mr Old Dee.

Even if finals on the line, 75% of our supporters wouldn't turn up to Etihad because it's too far away from East Melbourne.

[Tough Kent 2,077]

In a nutshell I don't believe a fixture should be based on popularity or winning - ever.

Prime time TV games is a totally different matter

Collingwood will be getting at least a 5-6 million dollar head start on us next season before a ball is even bounced - that's the stark reality.

They will play only 3 home games against interstate sides next year.

Plus, they will have home games against the Cats, Hawks, Blues, Tigers, Bombers, Saints & us.

Also, they get 9 prime time games and 15 free-to-air games.

They finished 11th last season.

I outlined a possible solution in this post ... the club needs to be proactive re the fixture and it wouldn't surprise me if Jackson ends up selling another game or 2 off. A crowd of around about 25,000 - 27,000 is break even at the MCG whilst selling another game off could net the club 350-400k.

The club wouldn't be expecting a cheque from our round 23 game against the Giants at Docklands but I've heard that we do receive a minimum 100k for any given home game at the MCG ... so, with home games against the Doggies, Suns, Freo, Lions & North we might only expect to make 500k from 6 of our home games.

Many clubs are now turning over 50 million dollars plus these days (the Pies turned over 75 million dollars last year) so 500k from 6 home games is a frighteningly small number when comparing that figure to the turnover that clubs have these days.

Jackson would be tearing his hair out if he had any

Jacko certainly has his hands full. 18 clubs all wanting their pound of flesh. The club getting on the front foot is certainly preferred.

[Bring-Back-Powell 13,696]

Those of us old enough to live through the late 80's, 90's and early 2000's know that a winning MFC brings people through the gates. We start winning again and we'll get some bigger games. I know money can bring success but we have no one to blame for our fixture but ourselves.

Agree.

Prime example was in 2005 - Melbourne v West Coast we got 36,000 at the MCG when we we're flying.

Even in 2006 we got 27,000 to a Fremantle game at the G.

In 1998 we even got 60,000 to a Sydney game on a Monday night

Don't worry, Melbourne supporters are out there.

[Bring-Back-Powell 13,696]

The Afl has gifted us a joke of an easy draw, for the prime reason of enabling us to rise up the ladder.

We play St.kilda, GWS, and Bulldogs twice.

We don't have to play Carlton, Essendon or North at Etihad.

We play 1 less game at Etihad than last year.

We travel only 5 times - as much as Essendon and Collingwood.

We play 13 games at our home ground- 1 more than last year.

We have been given a commercially horrible draw. And we bloody well deserve it as we have been a disgrace of an organisation since 2007.

What's there to complain about?

Edited November 1, 2014 by Bring-Back-Powell

[Macca 16,174]

Agree.

Prime example was in 2005 - Melbourne v West Coast we got 36,000 at the MCG when we we're flying.

Even in 2006 we got 27,000 to a Fremantle game at the G.

In 1998 we even got 60,000 to a Sydney game on a Monday night

Don't worry, Melbourne supporters are out there.

We can no doubt make money from games against the interstate teams if we were "flying."... but, just think about how much more money we can make if we were drawn to play against all the bigger drawing clubs (if we were "flying")

I fully expect the club to come good at some stage and I'd like us to be in the position to take advantage of that when that happens. Not the year after or 2 years later - immediately.

[rjay 24,205]

Agreed Macca.

I'll just say this and then I'll leave it alone. The AFL is ever evolving. Your stats show that we have been overlooked in the past for the big 4 regardless of results. If we start winning and generate excitement people will come and so to, will the big games. We'll never get Carlton's 7 Friday night games but 3 in 2016 after a much improved 2015 would help the bottom line no end.

Have you ever bothered to ask yourself why Carlton get 6 Friday night games? They don't have the membership base of the big clubs and they have been unsuccessful on the ground, finishing well back this year and heading for bottom 4 next.

...and didn't the Collingwood fans desert the game in droves toward the end of the season.

[Macca 16,174]

Have you ever bothered to ask yourself why Carlton get 6 Friday night games? They don't have the membership base of the big clubs and they have been unsuccessful on the ground, finishing well back this year and heading for bottom 4 next.

...and didn't the Collingwood fans desert the game in droves toward the end of the season.

Good points rjay

Of course, as well as Carlton getting a free ride they also blatantly tanked on numerous occasions and will never be investigated - Mike will make sure of that. What a joke of a league this is - it could be run so much better if we had better custodians.

Their main "modus operandi" is to make money - so much so that they feed the greedy clubs to those clubs heart's content - all the while pointed the finger at the teams with smaller supporter numbers saying ... "it's all your fault" The sad part is that many supporters fall for their propaganda.

The media fall into line because they don't want to bite the hand that feeds them. Our sporting media is at an all time low with regards to standards - I rarely, if ever, bother to read anything they've got to say anymore.

Edited November 1, 2014 by Macca

[Dr. Gonzo 22,866]

I'm not sure what the answer is. But while the AFL keep lining our pockets the Carltons, Collingwoods, Richmonds and Essendons will feel entitled to the home gates in crowd drawing games. The only way that we can possibly overcome this is to win games of footy. We need to find a way.

I dont understand why we don't form a "bloc" of sorts with the other clubs including North, Dogs, Saints, Cats (who are not disadvantaged but are behind our cause), Port, Freo even Brisbane. None of us will win these battles if we fight them individually but if we put a proper proposal and argument forward to counter the big clubs and start to put some public pressure on the AFL we my start to get somewhere.

[Dr. Gonzo 22,866]

Nowhere else in the world are struggling, unfinancial clubs propped up by the governing body. They either have their license taken from them or are relegated.

Nowhere else in the world have the league had policies in place for decades which favoured some clubs over others and restricted the trade of the smaller clubs to ensure they were reliant on "prop ups". If we want to be serious this isn't just about fixturing, this has been an issue going back decades with one of the main factors being the "zones" clubs were allocated which were meant to be rotated but never were upon the insistence of Collingwood, Essendon and Carlton.

Those thinking we will somehow miraculously turn this around in a few years of wins are dreaming. As the AFL's equalisation statement says the ONLY club which has managed to really turn things around off-field is the Hawks and that has come on the back if unprecedented success over 3 or 4 decades. Even then it remains to be seen how they will go once their form drops off - will they start drawing poorly again as they did in the early 2000's?

Geelong are in the same boat of an era of success however their membership is not much more than ours. There are mitigating factors for this (limited capacity at KP) however again it will be interesting to see how they go when their form drops on field.

The only way we can turn this around on our own is through unprecedented success for a couple of decades which may bear fruit a couple of decades after that. So in 40 or so years if we can score 3-4 flags in the next decade we may have a hope of competing with the bigger clubs in terms of preferential treatment when it comes to things like the fixture.

[Jarka 767]

Nowhere else in the world are struggling, unfinancial clubs propped up by the governing body. They either have their license taken from them or are relegated.

That AFL's administration's sole aim is to maximise attendances and ratings, at the expense of running a fair and even competition. If they achieve this then they get their massive bonuses and commissions.

It's corrupt and it doesn't happen anywhere else in the world. How a competition can exist where some clubs have a higher salary cap and access to a junior academy club is also unbelievable. The Australian public have been brainwashed over a long period of time to just roll over and accept this Shiite, if the Italian administration tried this crap there would be riots in the streets. We've really turned into a pathetic society.

[rjay 24,205]

That AFL's administration's sole aim is to maximise attendances and ratings, at the expense of running a fair and even competition. If they achieve this then they get their massive bonuses and commissions.

It's corrupt and it doesn't happen anywhere else in the world. How a competition can exist where some clubs have a higher salary cap and access to a junior academy club is also unbelievable. The Australian public have been brainwashed over a long period of time to just roll over and accept this Shiite, if the Italian administration tried this crap there would be riots in the streets. We've really turned into a pathetic society.

Agree, and on so many issues. We really are an apathetic society and get what we deserve I guess.

[rpfc 27,714]

Nowhere else in the world are struggling, unfinancial clubs propped up by the governing body. They either have their license taken from them or are relegated.

Not to pile on here but the NFL has a random fixture where you play those in your division every year but go through every other club other the next 3 to 4 years. There is no fixturing of the glamour teams against each other every year, there is no rewarding for good performance or punishment for bad, it is simply a fixture to give every team as much of an even chance at winning and making money.

Monday night games (their Friday nights) are far more shared than our glamour nights.

They manage this noble attempt at parity with a 16 game season with 32 teams, and here we are whinging about the fact that we can't make a fair draw with 22 games for 18 teams...

[rjay 24,205]

Not to pile on here but the NFL has a random fixture where you play those in your division every year but go through every other club other the next 3 to 4 years. There is no fixturing of the glamour teams against each other every year, there is no rewarding for good performance or punishment for bad, it is simply a fixture to give every team as much of an even chance at winning and making money.

Monday night games (their Friday nights) are far more shared than our glamour nights.

They manage this noble attempt at parity with a 16 game season with 32 teams, and here we are whinging about the fact that we can't make a fair draw with 22 games for 18 teams...

I think one big difference is that the AFL don't have faith that they can present a competition, they take the easy way and present a few major teams with the rest as training or sparing partners.

This will come unstuck unless they go for true equalisation. Only a fool for a CEO will pay the AFL increased TV rights next time through.

[titan_uranus 23,314]

Not to pile on here but the NFL has a random fixture where you play those in your division every year but go through every other club other the next 3 to 4 years. There is no fixturing of the glamour teams against each other every year, there is no rewarding for good performance or punishment for bad, it is simply a fixture to give every team as much of an even chance at winning and making money.

Monday night games (their Friday nights) are far more shared than our glamour nights.

They manage this noble attempt at parity with a 16 game season with 32 teams, and here we are whinging about the fact that we can't make a fair draw with 22 games for 18 teams...

Their Friday nights are Sunday nights, not Monday nights, and they have similar issues with that to the AFL - certain clubs get the majority of the games whilst big market clubs also get them when they have bad seasons (e.g. Giants, Cowboys).

But they also have the advantage of being able to move games in and out of the Sunday night game to ensure the best games are in prime time. They get that by playing all but 2 games per week on a Sunday, not fussed with having multiple games start at the same time.

[Dr. Gonzo 22,866]

Their Friday nights are Sunday nights, not Monday nights, and they have similar issues with that to the AFL - certain clubs get the majority of the games whilst big market clubs also get them when they have bad seasons (e.g. Giants, Cowboys).

But they also have the advantage of being able to move games in and out of the Sunday night game to ensure the best games are in prime time. They get that by playing all but 2 games per week on a Sunday, not fussed with having multiple games start at the same time.

Their Sunday nights are like our Saturday nights and a fair amount of them are on a flex schedule so they can be moved to day games if the match up looks poor. Monday Night is their big night, ESPN pays a billion dollars a year just for the Monday night games from what I remember (16 games).

[old dee 23,298]

Their Sunday nights are like our Saturday nights and a fair amount of them are on a flex schedule so they can be moved to day games if the match up looks poor. Monday Night is their big night, ESPN pays a billion dollars a year just for the Monday night games from what I remember (16 games).

The audience is potentially 300 Million not 30 as in AFL.

[Macca 16,174]

Let's be clear here ...

I haven't seen one person here argue for more prime time free-to-air games. If there are 1 or 2 people arguing that way they should be seen as the small minority view or aberrations.

This argument is about our fixture in general ... strangely enough, if we had home fixtures next season against Essendon, Carlton & Richmond (specifically) then that could/would increase our chances of winning more games.

We just happened to defeat Essendon, Richmond & Carlton this past season so if we were given home fixtures against those sides next season we could (in theory) be in a win/win situation ... smash those teams and pick up a total of 6 wins against those teams alone and ... make a killing at the gate to boot

Edited November 2, 2014 by Macca

[jazza 1,323]

I dont understand why we don't form a "bloc" of sorts with the other clubs including North, Dogs, Saints, Cats (who are not disadvantaged but are behind our cause), Port, Freo even Brisbane. None of us will win these battles if we fight them individually but if we put a proper proposal and argument forward to counter the big clubs and start to put some public pressure on the AFL we my start to get somewhere.

After some of Gils interviews.I get the idea that 17 game seasons and every other one away are not that too far in the distant.

[Grapeviney 9,103]

Lets be clear here ...

I haven't seen one person here argue for more prime time free-to-air games. If there are 1 or 2 people arguing that way they should be seen as the small minority view or aberrations.

This argument is about our fixture in general ... strangely enough, if we had home fixtures next season against Essendon, Carlton & Richmond (specifically) then that could/would increase our chances of winning more games.

We just happened to defeat Essendon, Richmond & Carlton this past season so if we were given home fixtures against those sides next season we could (in theory) be in a win/win situation ... smash those teams and pick up a total of 6 wins and make a killing at the gate to boot

But we won't make a 'killing at the gate' until we're a good side, regardless of who we're drawn to play.

From memory, the crowd v Richmond was good this year, but that had the Hafey factor, while the game v Carlton was in the 30's and Essendon I think low 40's or high 30's.

If we were around the eight, and these sides were too, then you could expect those attendances to double, but as it stands, they don't attract crowds that are much greater than we currently get to GWS and Brisbane et al.

[Sir Why You Little 35,394]

The next Broadcast deal is starting to unfold.

The starting figures are between $1.4 & $1.6 Billion.

Foxtel may negotiate a totally seperate deal is what i have heard.

Early days yet.

But Free to Air will demand more than 17 rounds a season. That i am sure. They need all those weeks to saturate us with advertising to pay the bills

[Macca 16,174]

But we won't make a 'killing at the gate' until we're a good side, regardless of who we're drawn to play.

From memory, the crowd v Richmond was good this year, but that had the Hafey factor, while the game v Carlton was in the 30's and Essendon I think low 40's or high 30's.

If we were around the eight, and these sides were too, then you could expect those attendances to double, but as it stands, they don't attract crowds that are much greater than we currently get to GWS and Brisbane et al.

But we are going to be a good side next year and we are going to be "around the eight"

Haven't you heard?

Quite seriously, I wouldn't be posting the way I have on this thread if I didn't believe we were going to win 8+ games next season ... and 8 wins is not much of an ambition.

I believe we would have achieved 8+ wins this season if Hogan & Clark had have played the whole season (uninterrupted)

If I thought we were going to only win 3 or 4 wins again I probably wouldn't be saying very much at all ... I'm not going to let the MFCSS attach itself until half time of round 1

Edited November 2, 2014 by Macca

[Dr. Gonzo 22,866]

After some of Gils interviews.I get the idea that 17 game seasons and every other one away are not that too far in the distant.

That's the way it should be but I doubt it will happen.

[bjDee 1,249]

42816

We will be playing for a spot in the finals!

OD, I want some of that stuff you picked up in Mexico. You're a new and optimistic man since your trip!