GWS boss implores AFL to stick with Opening Round, pursue twilight grand final
It’s still a week away, but a northern states club boss says the AFL should stick with the Opening Round concept, in order to grow the game in NSW and Queensland.
AFL
Don't miss out on the headlines from AFL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Greater Western Sydney will lobby the full AFL commission in Sydney next Thursday to turn the new opening round into an annual event in New South Wales and Queensland.
GWS boss David Matthews says the club will sell out Giants Stadium for a clash against the club’s hated foe Collingwood as the season kicks off a week early to cash in on the NRL’s exodus to Las Vegas.
And while the league has responded to calls from northern states clubs with this year’s four stand-alone games, Matthews told this masthead it was a no-brainer to retain the round as an annual fixture.
Not only will it shine a light on northern states football – with the SCG and Gabba set to sell out next weekend – it gives the Giants a legitimate “event” that has helped boost early membership tallies.
The Giants should sell out their 23,500-seat stadium next week in what will be the biggest non-derby home crowd in the club’s history.
Their best Giants Stadium crowd last year was 19,332 against Sydney in round 1, with the Giants not cracking a plus 20,000 crowd since August 2018 against cross-town rival Sydney.
Matthews told this masthead there was no reason why the northern states clubs couldn’t get an annual head start given the league’s mission of growth in those regions.
“We would love to do that. We’re meeting the AFL commission actually, next Thursday at Giants headquarters,” he said.
“Our view would be that the opening round should be set in stone, if that’s possible. And then we’ve got all the metrics and measures that vindicate the decision Andrew Dillon has made. The AFL have aspirations about growing the Sydney market and opening round has to be a key plank going forward.
“We will sell it out, it’s just a matter of when. It could be as early as Monday. We are really excited. It’s a great concept. Credit to Andrew Dillon and Kyle Rogers for pursuing it and executing on it. It’s important to have an earlier start up here.
“To have a major event and get an opponent of the size and status of Collingwood is really important. It’s just the momentum we need. Sydney is an events market. Every time Collingwood plays is an event so we are really excited.”
Matthews baited Pies fans recently when he declared “we hate Collingwood” with Mason Cox adding to the spice between last year’s preliminary finalists when he called Giants Stadium “a showground for livestock.”
“I don’t pick the team for the opposition, but I imagine he will be playing,” Matthews said of Cox’s presence.
“But I would imagine we would be putting in a pretty strong side. I don’t mind some banter back and forth. I do have a lot of respect for Collingwood and the Swans. And it was partly tongue in cheek. The main call I got was from mum who said, “I thought I raised you never to use that word”. But we have an orange army which is small but growing. And they are equally as enthused and passionate about our club as any other club in the competition.”
TWILIGHT GRAND FINAL CALLS WON’T GO AWAY
A northern states club chief has urged the AFL to experiment with a twilight first bounce for the Grand Final as the league moves towards locking in an afternoon start time for the 2024 decider.
The league’s fixture launch last season made no mention of the start time for this year’s Grand Final, with the AFL commission yet to meet to decide.
This masthead understands the Grand Final is almost certain to be played again with an early afternoon kick-off after strong ratings numbers in 2023.
Last year’s Collingwood-Brisbane Grand Final has been assessed by some within AFL House as the best decider ever played.
So it would be a brave AFL executive which recommended a changed start time to the Commission after the 2.30pm contest provided the perfect platform for the epic game.
The Pies’ victory attracted an average audience of nearly 3.4 million viewers as well as 440,000 viewers streaming on the network’s streaming platform.
First-year AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon made clear last year his preferred start time was 2.30pm but the Commission pledged to continue reviewing the game’s timing when it made its 2023 announcement last May.
GWS chief executive Dave Matthews told this masthead on Thursday he still believed a twilight clash would maximise eyeballs and showcase the event in a better way than
The AFL’s own research shows many fans attending big games go for their “event” status as much as they follow the entire code or a single team.
“I think I’ve said before that I would just be happy to play it at any time whatsoever if we could get in there. But later in the twilight or early evening lends itself to meeting the needs of everybody. It’s become a showcase event across Australia.
The timeslot is mattering less and less because people will see it as a national event they have to watch. But later in the afternoon or twilight (is ideal).
“You can see the merits of half time being at night. Is there a timeslot that works where halftime is at night and you can showcase some entertainment really well? I will leave the decision to Andrew Dillon. We just want to play in it.”
Matthews says AFL clubs should be increasingly aware they are part of the entertainment field, believing the Giants have become the second team of many across the league.
“We are crystal clear that we are in the sports and entertainment business. And the beauty of Adam Kingsley is that he wants to play entertaining fast football and the beauty of having Toby Green is he’s the best player in the competition,” he said.
“We just play such watchable football and anecdotally it feels like we are everyone’s second team. People like watching the Giants and we like that.”
Australia’s ‘hottest’ WAG wows at beach
An AFL star has been photographed enjoying the off-season with his influencer girlfriend.
Browne to step down as Pies prez as replacement sounded out
Collingwood president Jeff Browne will depart the club at the end of the year, with the club already sounding out its replacement. GLENN MCFARLANE has the details.