On 03/12/2018 at 03:10, Lucifer's Hero said:

30,096

a 8% increase on Nov 30, 2017. 

I wouldn't be surprised to see this rise substantially before Christmas - we have already exceeded last year's Christmas Eve total.

We are on the way to reach 50,000!

It wasn't that long ago that we would be limping over the line to crack the 30K mark in July or August or whenever the cut-off date is.

Great work MFC and Demons supporters keep them coming.  Always good to welcome new and returning members on board the D- train.

  On 03/12/2018 at 22:56, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

I've just tried to renew online. I'm an MCC member wanting to take up the MCC/MFC offer but I can't renew online. Anyone else having the same problem? (I will ring the club and renew, but my concern is with the inefficiency of the membership renewal system).

I had the same issue LDC. The problem is the MCC wants your money and will then pass it on to the footy club. I don't know why the MCC is being difficult but it's been this way the last two years.

The simplest thing is to pay your football club membership when you renew the MCC in August but it's a huge whack on the bank balance. The club will send you to the MCC to renew.

  On 04/12/2018 at 11:54, pitmaster said:

I had the same issue LDC. The problem is the MCC wants your money and will then pass it on to the footy club. I don't know why the MCC is being difficult but it's been this way the last two years.

The simplest thing is to pay your football club membership when you renew the MCC in August but it's a huge whack on the bank balance. The club will send you to the MCC to renew.

Last year you could still "renew" a MCC/MFC membership through the MFC however CC details are forwarded to the MCC for them to complete the transaction, After a couple of weeks the MCC send over an updated MCC/MFC List. It is a convoluted process and the pitmeister is correct the MCC changed the process two years ago along with ending a payment plan for those memberships.

  On 04/12/2018 at 11:54, pitmaster said:

I had the same issue LDC. The problem is the MCC wants your money and will then pass it on to the footy club. I don't know why the MCC is being difficult but it's been this way the last two years.

The simplest thing is to pay your football club membership when you renew the MCC in August but it's a huge whack on the bank balance. The club will send you to the MCC to renew.

I tried doing it then and the MCC website wasn't allowing it either! The MCC site theoretically allowed a member to sign up with any AFL club* but the system didn't actually work.

*Personally, I think anyone who joins an AFL club other than Melbourne should have their MCC membership cancelled as it's a clear sign that the person does not have the requisite integrity or intelligence expected of an MCC member. 

To close the loop, I have today renewed my membership by phone.

I also discussed with helpful staff member the difficulty of MCC members renewing online on the MFC website and had  it confirmed that we have to do it through the MCC website. I suggested that the MFC website could include this information. 

In all seriousness, the club should be making it simple for all categories of member to renew. It's basic business knowledge that retaining a customer (or, in this case a member) is easier than finding a new one.  

I always just update both in late August

Credit Card takes the Wack

Go Demons

(last year i didn’t even get to a final, we were just too popular and i didn’t have the opportunity to pre book a seat), easy money ? for the MCC, But it is our home and i want it to stay that way

Richmond on the way to 100,000 members again.

Let's say that is a 50k number over Melbourne at an average of say 7 home games at $20 per game. (Conservative probably)

That's a cool $7M in additional revenue.

  On 07/12/2018 at 04:11, Diamond_Jim said:

Richmond on the way to 100,000 members again.

Let's say that is a 50k number over Melbourne at an average of say 7 home games at $20 per game. (Conservative probably)

That's a cool $7M in additional revenue.

My would be a member of a club with 100 000 members?

Most games you would struggle to get a seat and you cannot buy reserved seats any longer.

Makes no sense to me.

I have friends who are long term members of Richmond they have had reserved seats for years and tell me that if you ever gave up your seat you would never get another. They cannot get seats for their grand Children.

I don't go to melb games at the G that are the home games of the Tigers and Pies now. Just too hard.

Edited December 7, 20186 yr by old dee

  On 07/12/2018 at 04:56, old dee said:

My would be a member of a club with 100 000 members?

Most games you would struggle to get a seat and you cannot buy reserved seats any longer.

Makes no sense to me.

I have friends who are long term members of Richmond they have had reserved seats for years and tell me that if you ever gave up your seat you would never get another. They cannot get seats for their grand Children.

I don't go to melb games at the G that are the home games of the Tigers and Pies now. Just too hard.

Agree OD and it really makes you wonder why Richmond agreed to make the Anzac eve match a "make up game " for MFC members.

Eagles and I think the Crows have capped their membership lists at around 60k. Reserved seats for Crows fans are treated like diamonds by those who have them.

The extra revenue pulled in by the mega clubs year on year has to have an impact on the competition at some time notwithstanding salary caps and equalisation. It has to be spent somewhere.

  On 07/12/2018 at 05:10, Diamond_Jim said:

Agree OD and it really makes you wonder why Richmond agreed to make the Anzac eve match a "make up game " for MFC members.

Eagles and I think the Crows have capped their membership lists at around 60k. Reserved seats for Crows fans are treated like diamonds by those who have them.

The extra revenue pulled in by the mega clubs year on year has to have an impact on the competition at some time notwithstanding salary caps and equalisation. It has to be spent somewhere.

Because there is no loss to them they have the member payments whether they turn up or not. They are just giving away a few seats in the top deck that they have effectively already been paid for by the members.

If we have 50k members the situation will be similar. This year you cannot upgrade your membership. I tried and they were sold out in mid October.

Edited December 7, 20186 yr by old dee

We at least need to get above Carlton.

Must say, I'm a little suprised to see GWS now have more members than Brisbane as for a long time GWS had figures more like the Suns.  Could easily change if the on-feild fortunes of these sides respectively change.

https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/sport/afl/afl-membership-ladder-tigers-set-to-reach-100-000-once-again-as-suns-bottom-out-20181207-p50ktp.html


MEMBERSHIP LADDER

Adelaide (77,504)*
Richmond (74,110)
Hawthorn (60,007)
West Coast (59,800)
Essendon (51,011)
Fremantle (44,293)
Port Adelaide (42,723)
Geelong (41,034)
Carlton (38,965)
Melbourne (30,096)
Sydney (29,046)
North Melbourne (26,921)
Western Bulldogs (26,855)
St Kilda (25,500)
Greater Western Sydney (13,814)
Brisbane (12,974)
Gold Coast (5894)

* Includes non-financial "We Fly as One" members.

** Collingwood refused to divulge their figures

  On 07/12/2018 at 19:21, Rodney (Balls) Grinter said:

Gold Coast (5894)

 

 

How will this club survive?

 

hint -  they won't

  On 07/12/2018 at 19:21, Rodney (Balls) Grinter said:

We at least need to get above Carlton.

Must say, I'm a little suprised to see GWS now have more members than Brisbane as for a long time GWS had figures more like the Suns.  Could easily change if the on-feild fortunes of these sides respectively change.

 

There are people who buy GWS memberships to get GF tickets if they make it. I know a Hawks mate did a few years ago as he thought they would both make it and his chances of getting a GF tix via the Hawks was slim.

  On 07/12/2018 at 04:56, old dee said:

My would be a member of a club with 100 000 members?

Most games you would struggle to get a seat and you cannot buy reserved seats any longer.

Makes no sense to me.

I have friends who are long term members of Richmond they have had reserved seats for years and tell me that if you ever gave up your seat you would never get another. They cannot get seats for their grand Children.

I don't go to melb games at the G that are the home games of the Tigers and Pies now. Just too hard.

Some might be just interstate, 3 game members etc and not every member will want to go to every game (except during finals) but you certainly have a point.  The problem of popularity and sucess I guess.  The club's might need to look at preallocating particular games between its members, although games against interstate clubs wouldn’t be so bad.

Still I'd like us to be in that position, because as some have pointed out, I see it panning out as a bit of an arms race in this respect at the moment, which could result in one of the lesser Vic sides be squeezed out of the,competition and/or being forced to relocate.

At the end of the day, being an interstate member, the purpose of my membership these days is more or less altruistic, I just want to see the club do well ...oh and I want to be there when we win a flag, which is why I purchased one of the grand final garentee memberships at the start of this season.

I do think that the strategy PJ started of trying to attract the new arrivals to Melbourne to the club is a good idea and an area where the MFC should have a small natural advantage through the name Melbourne.  It would be interesting to know how much fruit this campaign might have brought us, but I think it's something that would require quite alot of nurturing of those being brought along to games, because you are not only trying to sell them the club, but also introduce them to the game it's self.

  On 07/12/2018 at 19:41, Gorgoroth said:

There are people who buy GWS memberships to get GF tickets if they make it. I know a Hawks mate did a few years ago as he thought they would both make it and his chances of getting a GF tix via the Hawks was slim.

Interesting strategy, though I'd rather buy a GC membership myself for several reasons.

  On 07/12/2018 at 19:33, Petraccattack said:

 

How will this club survive?

 

hint -  they won't

It would look to be a fairly real possibility at the moment, but I actually hope GC do survive and go on to bigger and better things.  I think there lack of membership numbers at the moment would be related to their poor onfeild performance, but also possibly another hang over from last season, when the didn't play many games at Carrara due to the Comm Games.

I do think it would be good for the growth Aussie Rules footy in general in Qld for the Suns to be successful, because living in Brisbane, I know there is a genuinely strong presence of grass roots footy on the Gold Coast, although I also understand that top level teams from different codes have also successively failed and folded there.  One differentiator though I think is that the other codes (soccer and rugby league) haven't had either the finacial resources or long term commitment to keep unfinancial teams going there more than a few years.  If the AFL can hang in there long enough for the Suns to have some on feild sucess, it could be key to growth and more established presence of Aussie Rules in this part of Queensland, by being the dominant locally present professional team. 

Edited December 7, 20186 yr by Rodney (Balls) Grinter

  On 07/12/2018 at 20:11, Rodney (Balls) Grinter said:

It would look to be a fairly real possibility at the moment, but I actually hope GC do survive and go on to bigger and better things.  I think there lack of membership numbers at the moment would be related to their poor onfeild performance, but also possibly another hang over from last season, when the didn't play many games at Carrara due to the Comm Games.

I do think it would be good for the growth Aussie Rules footy in general in Qld for the Suns to be successful, because living in Brisbane, I know there is a genuinely strong presence of grass roots footy on the Gold Coast, although I also understand that top level teams from different codes have also successively failed and folded there.  One differentiator though I think is that the other codes (soccer and rugby league) haven't had either the finacial resources or long term commitment to keep unfinancial teams going there more than a few years.  If the AFL can hang in there long enough for the Suns to have some on feild sucess, it could be key to growth and more established presence of Aussie Rules in this part of Queensland, by being the dominant locally present professional team. 

I agree, would be good to see it succeed after all the $ thrown at it.

nit sure why the AFL didn’t just make Southport the AFL team (like Port Adelaide). 

  On 07/12/2018 at 20:49, Born to Run said:

I agree, would be good to see it succeed after all the $ thrown at it.

nit sure why the AFL didn’t just make Southport the AFL team (like Port Adelaide). 

AFL tried to get Norf to go to Gold Coast, and my admittedly cloudy memory includes something about Southport being involved.

  On 05/12/2018 at 02:07, Sir Why You Little said:

I always just update both in late August

Credit Card takes the Wack

Go Demons

(last year i didn’t even get to a final, we were just too popular and i didn’t have the opportunity to pre book a seat), easy money ? for the MCC, But it is our home and i want it to stay that way

Saw both our MCG finals and enjoyed queuing with other crazy supporters who just left work or didn't bother going in. Arrived each day at midday for gates to open at 4.30pm (from memory). Try it next time SWYL, great choice of seating for the game.

  On 07/12/2018 at 19:21, Rodney (Balls) Grinter said:

We at least need to get above Carlton.

 

Admirable aim but with eight premierships since we last won one there is a huge potential for Carlton to join the big clubs like Richmond should they climb off the canvas. We just don't have that reservoir of support the Blues have. We would need two or three flags to compete with them once the find the way out of the cellar.

Interesting article from today's Guardian discussing a TV show about how the great Man United were relegated to the second division in 1973.

Perhaps there is a lesson in that for us.

It goes on however to discuss the obvious ... namely that these days the power clubs in all the big leagues are leaving the others far behind.

"This week the research group CIES Football Observatory published a paper called Competitive Balance: A Spatio-Temporal Comparison. Its conclusions reflect what we already know to be true, that the top clubs in every European league are pulling away.

The champions of the big five leagues raked in 83.3% of all possible points last season. More games are being won by a wider margin by a group of elite clubs, all of whom are now too big to fail. United can have a wretched season, can clank about the pitch like a group of sad, misfiring robots, and still the worst thing that might happen is they finish behind Everton."

https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2018/dec/07/jose-mourinho-manchester-united-relegation

Luckily the AFL is a far cry from what have become the almost "life sucking" European leagues but there are salutary lessons for those who think something similar could not happen with the AFL.

By the way.... why don't Collingwood publish membership figures?

 

  On 07/12/2018 at 21:23, pitmaster said:

Admirable aim but with eight premierships since we last won one there is a huge potential for Carlton to join the big clubs like Richmond should they climb off the canvas. We just don't have that reservoir of support the Blues have. We would need two or three flags to compete with them once the find the way out of the cellar.

My point is that they are absolute puss at the moment and we are on the up and up.  They seemed to really struggle to put bums on seats this season and I would have thought that would also have translated to their membership, but clearly it seems they have a fairly substantial base of welded on members/suporters.

 I really think it should be possible for us to climb above them, at least temporarily over the next few years, particularly if they stay mired in mediocrity or worse and from there you never know.  We really need to get in early as a club, build momentum and translate that finals type attendance/support into memberships early.

  On 07/12/2018 at 19:50, Rodney (Balls) Grinter said:

Interesting strategy, though I'd rather buy a GC membership myself for several reasons.

But you would have to get a membership that granted you a GF even if your club wasn’t playing. His idea was a standard gws membership and I think they had 10k members at the time, so chances of getting a ticket if GWS made it was pretty good. 

  On 08/12/2018 at 01:55, Gorgoroth said:

But you would have to get a membership that granted you a GF even if your club wasn’t playing. His idea was a standard gws membership and I think they had 10k members at the time, so chances of getting a ticket if GWS made it was pretty good. 

Yeah, ok, kinda makes sense.

I was thinking that every club got some allocation of GF tickets regardless of their team playing and that he was after one of those.

Personally I'd have little interest in going to a GF and buying another clubs membership just to watch a random GF.

  On 08/12/2018 at 03:09, Rodney (Balls) Grinter said:

Yeah, ok, kinda makes sense.

I was thinking that every club got some allocation of GF tickets regardless of their team playing and that he was after one of those.

Personally I'd have little interest in going to a GF and buying another clubs membership just to watch a random GF.

Have you ever wondered where the scalpers etc get their tickets?

Arbitrage with GWS memberships not to mention interstate members with guaranteed GF tickets not tied to competing clubs are probably a prime source.

In these days of electronic barcoding etc it would be a relatively simple process to check names against ID at the point of entry but it's not in anyone's interest to do it.