AFL: Crowds hold the key to MCG grand final return

It will take crowds back at the AFL in Melbourne for the grand final to be played at the MCG, and there’s been some positive news.

Richmond won the 2020 AFL grand final at the Gabba in Brisbane. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

There won’t be a “no jab, no entry” policy for this year’s AFL grand final that chief executive Gillon McLachlan has pledged will be at the MCG.

With Victoria emerging from lockdown last week and hopes there could be zero daily Covid cases by the end of this week, hopes are growing crowds could be back at the AFL in Melbourne sooner rather than later.

That crowd capacity remains the key element for the grand final, which was played in Brisbane last year, to return to the MCG.

Victorian Sports Minister Martin Pakula said, under certain conditions, crowds could return as soon as next weekend.

“We will be looking at all manner of things, including how much of the stadiums are used, masks and the rules around masks,” Pakula said on Monday morning.

“Epidemiological conditions are always going to be relevant, and of course the fact that we had transmission at the MCG means that there’s a lot of thinking going on about how we can avoid that.”

Sports Minister Martin Pakula says he’ll be having discussions later this week regarding the possible return of AFL crowds pic.twitter.com/XYAW3oEMQB

— Kristie Sullivan (@kristiesulliv) August 2, 2021

Returning crowds would be a major tick in the grand final box, and McLachlan said it was still the AFL’s aim to play the decider at the MCG.

“Our starting position is our contract and our expectation it’ll be here at the MCG, and then we work backwards from there,” he said.

“At the moment we’re three or four weeks away from finals and I’m very optimistic about where we’re at in delivering on that contract with the MCG and Victoria.”

Pakula said Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews was determined for the grand final to be played at the MCG.

“His expectation that the grand final would be at the MCG with crowds and that’s my expectation as well,” Pakula said.

“There’s a lot of work to do. We’ve got effectively about eight weeks until the grand final now … so we’ve got a little bit of time, but it’s creeping up on us.”

The minister also said it would be unfair to rule out anyone who was not vaccinated from attending the grand final given “millions of people” were not yet eligible for a jab.

Originally published as AFL: Crowds hold the key to MCG grand final return