No Friday night Showdown, but plenty of Friday night exposure for Crows and Power is a win for the SA clubs
THERE is no Friday Night Showdown for the first time in derby history but there is still a strong result for the Crows and Power with six Friday night games in next year’s AFL fixture.
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AFL House still believes in Port Adelaide and the Crows for the national stage … just not at the same time with Showdowns.
And this might not be a bad thing.
Of the 22 Friday Night Football timeslots currently assigned with the league’s premier calendar date, a significant six are with the SA-based AFL clubs.
Port Adelaide has three in a row — the new Good Friday double-header, the Anzac Round and the big one with AFL grand finalist Collingwood. Just one of these games is at home (against North Melbourne on April 26).
But all three Friday night matches give Port Adelaide an edge in its push to be more appealing to would-be sponsors demanding national exposure, particularly on free-to-air television.
Adelaide has three Friday night games spread across the fixture and the nation as the Crows visit nine venues for their 10 away matches next season. The Friday night appointments are huge: Sydney at the SCG in Round 2 on March 29; Geelong at Kardinia Park in Round 15 on June 28 and Essendon at Adelaide Oval in Round 18 on July 19.
But neither the 46th nor 47th Showdowns fall to Friday night after there was great anticipation, particularly after the two derbies this year delivered classic contests, epic finishes and last-gasp drama either with Steven Motlop’s matchwinner in the last minute of Showdown 44 or Josh Jenkin’s score review controversy in Showdown 45.
Whatever outrage there is from SA-based fans towards the commercial factors — in particular Channel 7’s wishes for the critical Melbourne ratings to be underwritten with a Victorian flavour to Friday night games — there is the key note that the Showdown is well placed in this fixture.
This is because the Showdowns on Saturdays favour the local fans — the ones paying for their tickets — ahead of the couch potatoes in Melbourne and Perth.
Port Adelaide fans have access to the first Showdown — and in their much-preferred Saturday night timeslot (on May 11). The SANFL — and the Adelaide Footy League — wins as well with no distraction to its Saturday afternoon agenda.
Adelaide members, particularly those in the country districts, take to their seats for a Saturday twilight derby on July 6 in Round 16.
At a time when the AFL is heavily aligned to commercial deals, particularly with television, the fact the Showdown can still fall in timeslots that work for the fans is reassuring.
Handing six Friday Night Football (FNF) fixtures to Port Adelaide (after its 10th ranking this season) and the Crows (12th) is a commercial win to the SA-based AFL clubs, particularly the Power with its need to broaden its sponsorship base.
No “FNF” badge on the Showdown might read as a slap in the face to one of the great rivalries in Australian football. But giving the local fans the best chance to savour the Crows-Power derby is far more important than making Collingwood, Sydney, Essendon, West Coast and Brisbane supporters appreciate the rivalry built in Adelaide since 1990.
The fixture is always fascinating for the five “double-up” games handed to the 18 teams. Adelaide has a nice mix — just two of this year’s finalists (West Coast and Geelong) and three also-rans (Power, Gold Coast and St Kilda). The Crows should be finalists again.
Port Adelaide has just one 2018 finalist — Richmond. And it has two big tests — Adelaide and North Melbourne. But no “Chad Wingard game” with Hawthorn at Adelaide Oval.
It is a fixture of more wins than knocks for the Crows and Power.