Diamond_Jim

Good idea Macca. Ironically not that long ago the five or six powerhouse clubs (including Adelaide and West Coast) used to get together before AFL meetings to discuss their strategy. Not sure if they still do it officially but I am sure they keep the back door communications open. The problems for the lesser clubs is that they have competing agendas in the sense that GCS, GWS, and Brisbane are alter egos of the AFL. That only leaves the four Vic clubs (North, Dogs, Saints and MFC) to argue the alternative strategies.

So very true Redleg. I have been trying to explain that success in itself will not deliver a sound club. As you know the AFL/VFL as we now know it came about when the clubs were on their knees. They have done a very good job but the incessant pursuit of money (called fan satisfaction or the like) means that the lesser 4 Vic clubs will always be there just to make up the numbers.

The grand final guarantee is a bit of a con given the number of times it actually pays out for the MFC. At the reported price of $220 odd that would mean an unadjusted cost of $5k per GF appearance based upon our historical performance. I assume one also has to pay the actual $150 odd for the ticket itself. At an extra $50- $100 one can think of it as a simple donation but it is now becoming serious money. Would be interested to hear what other clubs charge for their GF lottery.

Good analysis. The flip side is that because all sides are even the chances of building sustained success are minimal. Thus financial survival/improvement becomes even more important. To do that we need an uncompromised draw that gives us a reasonable chance of attracting supporters, sponsors etc.

as did round 22 in 2016. I did not expect finals in 2016 but the way we gave up against Carlton left a sour taste in then mouth of many supporters. To see it repeated in even worse form in 2017 was heart breaking.

from an attendance viewpoint I like the early starts (1:20 pm or whatever) . There is usually a little bit of winter sunshine warming up the AFL section as you quietly watch the other few thousand in the stadium.

Speaking from a financial viewpoint the draw is a disaster. Football wise it is okay especially as we are to blame for the NT games and their aftermaths.

as an example here is one weekend last year where the ratings for Friday night outscored the Sunday afternoon 2-1 http://www.footyindustry.com/?p=3947 ironically the Friday night game is us v Swans while the Sunday game is Pies v Hawks

ever looked at the TV ratings for those games as compared to the night games?

Do you recall that we used to sell our home game to Brisbane. One of the reasons that it stopped was because other clubs complained that it gave Brisbane another home game and another easy win. There is a name for what we are doing and it isn't pretty

Made me look up who in fact we took at 12 in 2010 and it wasn't pretty. On a positive that 2010 first round has not exactly excelled itself as a class ... perhaps 4 or 5 good ones out of the 27 first round picks. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_AFL_draft#2010_national_draft

One needs to look at the draw form both a playing aspect and a financial one. I prefer to look it at as a "money matter." It is obvious that we are significantly disadvantaged once again from a financial aspect. No matter how much we succeed or complain we will not win in a compromised draw environment. Collingwood don't travel because they are so good in agreeing to play Vic based clubs etc etc is the constant mantra. This will not change. The only way to change is have the clubs attack the integrity of the draw itself. There is a small groundswell for a simplified draw ie. play all 17 teams once and then start again until you reach 22 or whatever the season number might be. Friday night games are nominated by the TV station say 6-10 weeks in advance depending upon viewer interest. In such a world we might just stand a chance of getting off the bottom rungs of the financial ladder.

The interstate away Saturday night games (Brisbane and Adelaide) do not get FTA into Melbourne usually so yet again we are dudded from a sponsorship aspect. The other is at Geelong which will of course be almost impossible to attend from an MFC supporter viewpoint. I assume this one will get FTA at least.

you do remember how many Friday night games the Blues got in 2016. It was so many it was embarrassing and they had to reduce it in 2017 as the Blues were so bad it killed the ratings. Business as usual for 2018. Not sure how many times I have to say it but the comp is run for the power house clubs and we are not in the same league.

Just remove the compromised draw for a start. Financially the present draw massively favours the existing power houses both from a crowd and sponsorship aspect. This could be achieved with the stroke of a pen and is something that many fans have called on for years.

Good points AF. Not sure who has the ground maintenance obligations at Geelong. Is it the club, the Council or someone else? Seems that it is run by a Trust: http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/news/geelong/new-kardinia-park-advisory-committee-named-to-run-cats-home-ground-simonds-stadium/news-story/069f24f463b90fe7d075aed1f7dc793d Not cheap to keep a stadium of that size in good condition especially if it is based on an 8 game useage model. Corporate would be useful but realistically Geelong corporate dollars would not be the same as Melbourne. That being said it is a great model for maintaining a successful balance sheet.

That's the key ... we will always be on the drip feed unless we change our method of operation. Hawthorn had 30 plus years of success to get up to some level of financial stability and it is not exactly swimming in cash. The MCG is not an MFC discriminator as it is also used by another five Victorian based clubs as their home ground. Anyway let's see what 2018 brings ... if we do not see finals talk of the future (next 5 years) is almost academic.

that is an example of where we are as a footy team. Are we waiting for Aunty Beryl's young nephew to finish his VCE exams so we can get him onto the job after his McDonald's shift !!

Just toying around with the idea of a trip to Darwin and came upon this little gem about the 2017 match: "Round 17 of the AFL Premiership Season sees the Melbourne Demons take on the Adelaide Crows at TIO Stadium in Darwin, and is brought to you by the Northern Territory Government. Join host Tony Modra and 100 fellow Crows supporters, as you travel like royalty on a privately chartered jet to Darwin to cheer on the team to a win. Enjoy return airfares interstate via private charter , return coach transfers from airport to the game. Premium reserved seating hosted by Adelaide Football Club legend Tony Modra, accommodation is also included." http://www.aroundyou.com.au/whats-on/events/melbourne-demons-vs-adelaide-crows-at-tio-stadium

Round 16 Melbourne v Fremantle TIO Stadium, Darwin Saturday, July 7 at 7.10pm ACST/7.40pm AEST Virgin return flights ex Melbourne up Friday night and back Sunday are showing at around: $670

Sounds like the negotiations for the new Perth Stadium were very tense. I see that the new Stadium manager will be selling "Stadium Memberships" like they do at Docklands. At the new stadium which seats 50k they will have only six thousand general admission seats. The returns to West Coast could be huge. Probably not as good for Freo but they must be starting to attract the overflow like Port in Adelaide. http://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/done-deal-afl-agree-to-move-to-new-perth-stadium/news-story/9d1595f25b949b221cd1300fe78cc5ba

to get a substantive return at the MCG home games you need regular (say 4 games) crowds of 55k and on say three (non finals) occasions punch into the 70's. That is home games and does not include the blockbuster when it is an away game. That way fans buy reserved seats... you get corporate suites opening ... sponsorship etc. Realistically those figures probably require a 50% rise in MFC membership at least (and I am talking real members ... not 3 game interstate members). To achieve that following we would need 10 years of sustained success. (Finals appearances in at least 7.) In the last 50 years we have had one such period and even then there was a lot of up and down success. In both our grand final years we "fell" into the final positions so there was minimal momentum built up during the year. Must admit though... 1988 was a fun ride. In the meantime the power house teams will go away from us. If the Dogs and Saints get a good Docklands deal they also will leave us behind. One rung up on North but that is small comfort. Sure the AFL will give us a hand out but do we always want to be holding out the begging bowl. Would love to make it as we are but I just cannot see us breaking the cycle.

The hype begins... http://www.afl.com.au/news/2017-10-29/vfl-star-attracting-interest-from-a-dozen-clubs "The same kid with the raking left boot now has a dozen AFL clubs clamouring for his services. West Coast, which has five picks in the top 40 of the NAB AFL Draft, is arguably the keenest." Mid to late second round is my guess........ mmmm Watts for Fritsch anyone? Can't see it myself given how desperate we are for outside mids.

thanks for that jnrmac.... I had thought the break even was around 30k for the MCG but you are probably right. Those figures for Geelong are scary but I assume they pick up the annual stadium maintenance costs which in our case are borne by the MCC. It is important that fans understand stadium economics. After one hits the break even point every extra attendee is almost pure profit. The reserved seat revenue is also an incredible money spinner for the bigger clubs. Take Adelaide... it has more members than seats available at the Adelaide Oval. People literally assign their seats to friends etc if they are not using them for a year or two because they fear the long waiting list to regain their seat. Personally I love going to MFC games and having several rows of seats to myself and being able to move in and out of the sun as the mood takes me but it is a spiral to financial irrelevancy. Dare I say and please don't shoot the messenger but MFC could be better off at a boutique 30k seat stadium along the lines Eddie McGuire was spruiking a year or so back.

Gotta love the Guardian critics ... a fantastic line: "The updated Snatch is not so much a diamond in the rough as a turd in the punchbowl, contaminating all who touch it." https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/oct/28/snatch-gangster-tale-old-pony-guy-ritchie