Low Attendance

[rpfc 28,777]

37 minutes ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Even our own players are giving us a clip..

 

He did give an excuse re: the weather.

Caroline rightly smacked that excuse down.

[La Dee-vina Comedia 16,909]

On 6/3/2022 at 5:13 PM, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

Coincidentally, I have literally just completed an online survey for the MCC which, amongst other things, asked for the one improvement of the match day experience I would like to see. I pleaded for a stop to the music being played after goals have been scored.  

Did my plea work already? Unless I'm mistaken, I don't think there was music played after goals were scored on Saturday night.  

[Bring-Back-Powell 14,939]

1 hour ago, JTR said:

Personally, for a non "Big 4"  (🙄) club , I don't think our crowds vs Sydney & Freo were too bad.

I thought the Freo crowd was a good effort considering the timeslot and lack of Freo numbers in general (although they'll start to get a big fan base if they win a flag).

Caroline Wilson was off the mark to express concern with the number of 29K.

The Sydney crowd was a real let down. Marquee timeslot, no community sport to contend with, two top 8 sides etc...

Edited June 6, 2022 by Bring-Back-Powell

[La Dee-vina Comedia 16,909]

56 minutes ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Even our own players are giving us a clip..

 

I hate to say this, but football is entertainment. It's Petracca's and his teammates' job to entertain us. It's not our job to gee them up. If the team can't play the way they should because of quiet crowds or small numbers of spectators, the coach needs to work out a way to re-focus the players. They should play to the same standard whether there's 60,000 or 60 spectators watching on. That's what being professional means.  

[Demongirl35 1,060]

1 hour ago, rpfc said:

Because we are on top, have a generational team that just won the flag and our crowds are so poor that our best player has noticed.

Did they really think winning a grand final would change so much? 
we missed out on so many generations of kids picking the dees… we need a lot more success over the next few years and decades to get us more fans.
we have an older age supporter base and if They’re  like My nan who’s in her early 80s it’s just to cold.
 

[Dr. Gonzo 24,297]

1 hour ago, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

I hate to say this, but football is entertainment. It's Petracca's and his teammates' job to entertain us. It's not our job to gee them up. If the team can't play the way they should because of quiet crowds or small numbers of spectators, the coach needs to work out a way to re-focus the players. They should play to the same standard whether there's 60,000 or 60 spectators watching on. That's what being professional means.  

That's great in theory but it's not the reality in any sport around the world. Players feed off the energy of supporters, it is undeniable.

[Neil Crompton 5,619]

16 minutes ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

That's great in theory but it's not the reality in any sport around the world. Players feed off the energy of supporters, it is undeniable.

But we won a premiership with no spectators for the majority of the year. 

Maybe it’s the spectators that need the noise, not so much the players. 

[waynewussell 6,237]

There are much broader forces influencing current attendance than a bunch of MFC members choosing to stay at home.

Covid had, and continues to have, an impact on our behaviours, our mental and physical well-being, our cost of living etc.

The times they are a changing'!

We have shifted how we consume just about everything, including entertainment! Football has moved rapidly towards a 'streamed' product (as have cinema, theatre and a great deal of goods and services). Is the AFL deeply concerned about crowd numbers? (Less bums on plastic seats and more on the couch in front of TV) I think not... as long as revenue is up, they don't mind!

Be thankful that our crowds are top 5 for home games and on a par with a quarter of a century of data!

[Mach5 4,768]

I’ll start by admitting that I understand the reluctance to attend in the frigid weather. I’m more inclined to prefer watching from home nowadays.

And yes, I think in some part the age of our supporter base plays a part. But why don’t we have a larger young demographic within our supporter base? We’ve got the flag and wins on the board; isn’t it natural for the supporters to jump on board in droves? Sadly it’s not so simple. You have to put in the work, like Richmond did before their flags, and we simply have not.

All of our attempts to increase supporter attendances and build our supporter bases are put into one basket - social media. It’s a powerful platform, but alone it will not convert casual observers into members, or non-interested parties into even casual observers. 

Pert admitted preseason that we didn’t currently have a strategy for the Casey region and it was something we needed to work on, which I think is unforgivable. We have a captive audience there being actively poached by Melbourne City.

The attitude is that “we’ve tried (nothing), and it hasn’t worked, so why bother?”

We have and continue to sh*t the bed, off-field. We’re following in the footsteps of the dogs.

We’ll convert the kids of rusted on members who previously refused to admit to supporting the dees, but we’re not bringing in any new interest. I don’t know if our time at the top is already over, or will be in 4 years time, but we’ve got a lot of work to do to capitalise on it and it should have started long ago.

[Young Blood 2,634]

I'm glad a player has finally commented on the low crowd numbers. It still baffles me rocking up each week to see the stands looking so empty throughout the ground especially the last two weeks against high-quality opposition.

I'm almost certain when we play finals the crowds will return as they did for the 2018 finals against Geelong and Hawthorn. It would just be nice to see consistent crowds throughout the season to show the players we're there for them rooting them on, that every game matters to us as much as it does to them. Kudos to those who do!

Not sure how deliberate Christian was with his approach here, perhaps it was all just sincere but I thought the way he was critical and promptly gave a half jokey, measly excuse. If he didn't give the excuse it would be straight up negative comments made public towards the MFC supporter base which would be more controversial. Perhaps it was just his way of nudging those who are fit and healthy enough to leave their warm cosy homes for the MCG this long weekend.

Collingwood will of course have more supporters there this week. But it will be nice the next time an interstate team plays the G against us that they not to be louder and more present then MFC supporters.

 

Edited June 7, 2022 by Young Blood

[Dr. Gonzo 24,297]

15 minutes ago, Neil Crompton said:

But we won a premiership with no spectators for the majority of the year. 

Maybe it’s the spectators that need the noise, not so much the players. 

Firstly, we won a few games with no spectators. There were also no spectators for the opposition. The Grand Final and Prelim were played in front of packed houses.

We also performed poorly in a few games without spectators (Hawks and Bulldogs last year).

Secondly, if you are denying the players don't feed off the energy of the crowd - especially when one of our own players has just emphatically stated that they do - you are living in denial.

Can players play well without crowds? Of course. Do crowds provide greater energy to players/teams when they are up and about? Of course. Anyone who says otherwise plainly doesn't know what they are talking about. It is evident in team sports the world over.

[waynewussell 6,237]

4 minutes ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

Do crowds provide greater energy to players/teams when they are up and about? Of course.

Did we make it to the G on Saturday, Dr? I did, and I, along with the majority of those in MCC area, gave it my all when it came to being noisy. Stop generalising about the crowd.

[Dr. Gonzo 24,297]

17 minutes ago, waynewussell said:

There are much broader forces influencing current attendance than a bunch of MFC members choosing to stay at home.

Covid had, and continues to have, an impact on our behaviours, our mental and physical well-being, our cost of living etc.

The times they are a changing'!

We have shifted how we consume just about everything, including entertainment! Football has moved rapidly towards a 'streamed' product (as have cinema, theatre and a great deal of goods and services). Is the AFL deeply concerned about crowd numbers? (Less bums on plastic seats and more on the couch in front of TV) I think not... as long as revenue is up, they don't mind!

Be thankful that our crowds are top 5 for home games and on a par with a quarter of a century of data!

I'm fairly certain TV numbers are down as well - it's not just game day attendances.

[Dr. Gonzo 24,297]

Just now, waynewussell said:

Did we make it to the G on Saturday, Dr? I did, and I, along with the majority of those in MCC area, gave it my all when it came to being noisy. Stop generalising about the crowd.

What are you on about? Our crowds have been pathetic this year, it is not really up for debate. The fact one of our own players has now come out and commented on it is an embarrassment. Reigning premier, top of the ladder and sub-20k MFC supporters attending prime time games. It is a disgrace.

[DubDee 26,117]

2 hours ago, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

I hate to say this, but football is entertainment. It's Petracca's and his teammates' job to entertain us. It's not our job to gee them up. If the team can't play the way they should because of quiet crowds or small numbers of spectators, the coach needs to work out a way to re-focus the players. They should play to the same standard whether there's 60,000 or 60 spectators watching on. That's what being professional means.  

you don't think it's our job to support the team?

It's human nature that players will fire up with a big loud crowd. They have shown they can perform with low crowds or even no crowd over the last 2 years so I don't think you can question their professionalism

[waynewussell 6,237]

In our most recent post-Premiership year, 1965, our average MCG attendance was 38,928.

This year, 2022, our average MCG attendance is 42,662.

We continue to hold up well when the data is considered!

[Dr. Gonzo 24,297]

2 hours ago, Demongirl35 said:

Did they really think winning a grand final would change so much? 
we missed out on so many generations of kids picking the dees… we need a lot more success over the next few years and decades to get us more fans.
we have an older age supporter base and if They’re  like My nan who’s in her early 80s it’s just to cold.
 

There are going to be mitigating factors for some but I don't think our supporter base solely resembles the cast of Last of the Summer Wine as some on here would have you believe (cheeky Ricky Gervais reference 😆)

[Dr. Gonzo 24,297]

Just now, waynewussell said:

In our most recent post-Premiership year, 1965, our average MCG attendance was 38,928.

This year, 2022, our average MCG attendance is 42,662.

We continue to hold up well when the data is considered!

Yeah and in 1901 we only averaged 8k to our games so things are looking rosy all over really 🙄

[waynewussell 6,237]

These are the 2022 attendance figures for Victorian clubs at home v Freo

MFC 29812

Essendon 23935

Geelong 20136

 

[waynewussell 6,237]

7 minutes ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

Yeah and in 1901 we only averaged 8k to our games so things are looking rosy all over really 🙄

So, your saying we're up over 500% since 1901?

[Dr. Gonzo 24,297]

6 minutes ago, waynewussell said:

These are the 2022 attendance figures for Victorian clubs at home v Freo

MFC 29812

Essendon 23935

Geelong 20136

 

Melbourne - reigning premier, 10-2, 1st on the ladder

Essendon - a rabble for 20 years, 16th on the ladder, one win for the season

Geelong - playing at Kardinia Park during redevelopments - 23k capacity

The whataboutism is ridiculous. Just admit the Melbourne crowds this year are anywhere on a scale from disappointing to embarrassing instead of pointing fingers. It is so poor our star player has publicly commented on it.

[waynewussell 6,237]

1 minute ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

Melbourne - reigning premier, 10-2, 1st on the ladder

Essendon - a rabble for 20 years, 16th on the ladder, one win for the season

Geelong - playing at Kardinia Park during redevelopments - 23k capacity

The whataboutism is ridiculous. Just admit the Melbourne crowds this year are anywhere on a scale from disappointing to embarrassing instead of pointing fingers. It is so poor our star player has publicly commented on it.

I'm simply pointing out that, by comparison in this downturn of attendances (the reasons for which I have previously hypothesised), MFC is holding up well... Your serve Dr.

[Guest]

I’m curious to know if covid, inclement weather, shi*tty ticketing system, night games, day games, etc. etc. etc. will magically disappear come September. Methinks they’ll all be magicked away just in time for finals. 
 

Edit: See excuse #3 in the OP. 

Edited June 7, 2022 by WalkingCivilWar

[waynewussell 6,237]

Interesting article on this topic, pre-Covid - 2017

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-25/richard-hinds-agony-low-crowd-attendances-footy-codes/8839466

"Indeed, given global trends, perhaps the pertinent question is not why fewer people are attending games. It is why so many still do."

[Dr. Gonzo 24,297]

16 minutes ago, waynewussell said:

I'm simply pointing out that, by comparison in this downturn of attendances (the reasons for which I have previously hypothesised), MFC is holding up well... Your serve Dr.

It's BS. If the positions were reversed and we were languishing in 16th while Essendon were on top after winning last years flag do you think the numbers would be comparable? The amount of justification and finger pointing/deflection by Melbourne supporters is laughable.

Christian Petracca has commented on it in a public forum. But sure, just tell him how great our crowds are compared to 1965 and how Essendon crowds aren't as good or how it was Easter Saturday or its a night game or its a day game or it finishes too late or starts too early or its too cold or its too hot or the moon is half full or Jupiter is in Capricorn or or or