39,730 last night for Melbourne Victory vs Sydney FC. Meanwhile the top of the NRL table/minor premiers, Melbourne Storm attracted a paltry 13,991 against the 4th placed Manly. NRL and Melbourne Storm administrators must be more than a little concerned.
Why the fark is it a problem for the NRL and the Storm??
Isn't the NRL spending millions on development and promotion in Victoria? One thing seems abundantly clear, the redevelopment of Olympic Park was more about making a new home for Melbourne Victory and not the Melbourne Storm.
Willis 21 wrote:
Is it a concern for the AFL as well?
I wouldn't think so when crowds that size are the norm for the AFL week in week out.
Willis 21 wrote:
14000 to see the storm play is about double what they were getting last year...
I think the NRL would be pretty happy with that...
You sure about that Willis?
Hmm, let's look at the crowd averages for the Melbourne Storm in 2005 and 2006.
Exactly how is an increase of 2,000 odd, double the crowd average of last season?
Like I said earlier, bearing in mind the Melbourne Storm are top of the table and finished minor premiers, crowd numbers that pathetic would no doubt be a huge concern - particularly when the local soccer team can attract nearly 40,000 for a home and away game. News Ltd look set to lose many more millions of dollars this year with the Melbourne Storm. :_<>
I think you'll find that Willis was referring simply to the fact that 14,000 for the game against Manly, was almost double in terms of last seasons "average" attendance. He wasn't referring to this seasons average vs last seasons. Barring semantics of mathematics (8,000 x 2 = 16,000), 14,000 is a rather exceptional figure for a Storm match in Melbourne. Even above the normal stigma of Melburnians and their "hatred" of anything other than AFL, looking at how damned shabby Olympic Park still is (at least, the last time I went there heh), the Storm are doing very well this year in terms of attendance overall. The admins would be pleased enough with perfomances both on and off the field.
One thing the Storm suffers from is that they have no "arch rival" to speak of. I'd be curious to find out their highest ever home attendance and against which team, then look at all home games against that team and see how the average attendance stacks up. It's pretty hard to formulate a real rivalry when you are the lone team in town. I can't honestly see a second league team in Melbourne in the near future, there are too many obvious gripes that experts and administrators would have, yet I reckon, a second team would actually ensure decent growth for League there and in turn, would build a very fierce rivalry for the Storm along the way. Of course, another thing that would help, would be to have a dedicated made-for-the-sport venue. Perhaps with the advent of next seasons Union venture, we might see both teams look to have a new stadium built that is aimed at union and league dimensions and facilities.
