‘AFL gets that at training’: Images prove NRL graveyard is a ‘disaster’

An image from Thursday night’s clash between Penrith and the Rabbitohs at a rugby league graveyard has sparked a heated debate among fans.

There were plenty of empty seats at Accor Stadium. Photo: Fox League.

If you tuned in to Thursday’s night NRL game between Penrith and South Sydney, you would be forgiven for wondering where all the fans were.

In their first game since Jason Demetriou’s midweek sacking, the Rabbitohs shot out to a 12-0 lead with two tries in the first 10 minutes of the game.

But it was all Penrith from then, as the three-time reigning premiers reeled in the Bunnies and demolished them with seven straight tries to win 42-12.

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It was an impressive performance by the Panthers, who showed they are still the team to beat in 2024 and they can hold it together while Nathan Cleary’s hamstring injury is managed.

On top of Souths injuries to Jye Gray and Dean Hawkins, a negative note was the official crowd figure at Accor Stadium of 8,155 — the second lowest of any game so far this season.

While Sydney’s Olympic Stadium is generally only full for State of Origin games, NRL Grand Finals and FIFA World Cup — Thursday night’s crowd number was meagre and disappointing.

Of course, there are a few caveats.

The weather in Sydney has been miserable and fans understandably might have better things to do on a Thursday night than sit in constant drizzle watching Souths get torn apart in Homebush.

Cleary’s late withdrawal due to injury, Latrell Mitchell missing with suspension and Demetriou’s sacking meant the vibe wasn’t exactly high for the game.

But the sight of swathes of empty blue seats at Accor Stadium wasn’t great and did little to debunk the argument the venue is a soulless graveyard for regular season football games.

There were a lot of empty seats at Accor Stadium. Photo: NRL.

Only a smattering of supporters turned up. Photo: NRL.

Fans were restricted to the bottom level at the stadium and the Rabbitohs banner on the upper deck covered more seats than the spectators below.

While TV broadcasters did their best to focus on the action, shots of Dylan Edwards and Hawkins kicking conversions into empty grandstands at both ends of the field did little to get the juices flowing.

It was a home game for the Rabbitohs, despite the club’s iconic roots in Redfern and South Sydney being who obviously some distance away. The Canterbury Bulldogs also play most of their home games at Accor Stadium.

It was just the fourth NRL game this season with an attendance of less than 10,000. The others are:

— Dragons vs Cowboys at Kogarah Oval, 9,252

— Bulldogs vs Roosters at Accor Stadium, 7,169

— Knights vs Dragons at McDonald Jones Stadium, 9,448

The biggest crowd so far for an NRL game at Accor Stadium was 35,275 for the Good Friday game between the Rabbitohs and Bulldogs.

Look at those empty seats in the background. Photo: NRL.

The small crowd is bound to prompt all sorts of hot takes and theories, including:
— Panthers and Souths fans ‘don’t travel’

— The Rabbitohs should play their home games at Allianz Stadium in Moore Park

— Smaller stadiums are the heartland of rugby league

— The NRL has a lot of work to do to reach AFL’s crowd numbers

News.com.au’s readers had some strong feedback on social media after images of the crowd were posted to the news.com.au sports Facebook page.

One person wrote: “One advantage NRL has is access to several smaller venues. Use those for lower drawing teams. The atmosphere is always better.

“Also the game is on Thursday. Hello? Don’t tradies and school kids work on Fridays? Night games + cold is also a disaster.

“PS Why night games are scheduled is Canberra (minus something) makes no sense. But of course the NRL executives and TV moguls are in their comfortable lounges.”

A second said: “Wow, Australia’s number 1 sport? AFL gets that a training. Central Coast (Mariners) had 6,200 in torrential rain on the Wednesday.”

A sensible punter said: “The way Souths have been on and off the footy field no surprise.”

One person commented: “If you’re not going to get a decent crowd on a Thursday night at a large stadium, why not move these to the home ground smaller venues and get some atmosphere in there.”

“Should move the whole comp to QLD,” quipped one commenter.

“I bet the crowd at Suncorp tonight will be as many as NSW games get in their entirety this weekend.”

The Olympic Stadium doesn’t exude vibes in the regular season. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

The lack of a direct train service outside major games and events certainly doesn’t help fans get fans to Olympic Park. — no one wants to hear the words “Change at Lidcombe”.

It’s worth noting the precinct can still attract decent crowds.

The Swifts and Giants train at Olympic Park and play their Super Netball home games at Ken Rosewall Arena, while the Sydney Kings had record crowds nudging 15,000 at Qudos Bank Arena for their NBL games.

The key is filling smaller venues.

Strong turnouts in Campbelltown are promising for the Wests Tigers as it appears increasingly likely the club’s days of playing at the run down Leichhardt Oval might be numbered.

Any NRL fan will tell you watching a game on the hill at Leichhardt or Brookvale Oval is a quintessential rugby league experience.

Penrith is renovating its stadium to create more room for their local fans who can’t get enough of their home games.

Newcastle’s McDonald Jones Stadium is another good sized stadium that was pumping when Kalyn Ponga and the Knights were on a roll last year.

Allianz Stadium in Sydney’s Moore Park is the home ground of the Sydney Roosters and is the only NSW venue that can attract crowds of more than 40,000 like Broncos games at Suncorp Stadium can do.

Friday night’s clash between the Broncos and Roosters could draw more than 50,000 fans.

Depending on the weather, the AFL derby between the Swans and GWS Giants should draw a crowd of more than 35,000 at the SCG on Satuday afternoon.

Allianz Stadium hosts the Roosters, Sydney FC and NSW Waratahs. Photo: Jeremy Piper

The Rabbitohs bid farewell to Redfern Oval last year and now train at a new facility called the Heffron Centre in Maroubra.

South Sydney have an agreement to play home games at Accor Stadium until the end of 2030 — something they aren’t exactly happy about.

“Our position hasn’t changed: if there is no investment in Accor Stadium, we would like to return to Allianz Stadium,” South Sydney chief executive Blake Solly said.

“I do think Souths should be playing at the new taxpayer-funded stadium (Allianz Stadium at Moore Park),” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said last year.

The Rabbitohs haven’t called Allianz Stadium (also known as the Sydney Football Stadium) home since 2005, when the club decided to uproot and move to Olympic Park and grow its membership.

That move was spearheaded by Shane Richardson, Souths’ longtime CEO general manage of football who departed in 2020.

Richardson is the new CEO of the Wests Tigers and is reportedly looking to strike a deal with Venues NSW to find a new home for the Tigers from next year.

The Tigers said reports of a move to Accor Stadium were inaccurate but a decision would be made by June 30.

Originally published as ‘AFL gets that at training’: Images prove NRL graveyard is a ‘disaster’