AFLW ticketholders gain access to Western Bulldogs elimination final
Fans who bought $15 tickets for a Whitten Oval game have come into a surprise windfall after a major AFLW schedule change.
AFL
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The AFL will allow fans who bought tickets to a Whitten Oval AFLW game free access to a sold-out men’s elimination final after creating a double-header next Friday night.
The league responded to blowback from the Western Bulldogs for its finals scheduling by shifting their round 2 AFLW clash against Port Adelaide from Whitten Oval to the MCG with a revised start time of 4.30pm.
The men’s elimination final between the Bulldogs and Hawthorn will still begin at its originally slated time of 7.40pm.
The Bulldogs-Power clash will be the first AFLW game played on the MCG since September 2022 and only the third of all time.
An estimated 120 fans who purchased $15 tickets for the Whitten Oval fixture will receive new tickets for no extra cost that will allow them to watch the clash and stay on for the AFL elimination final.
The two clubs will also receive a small number of tickets to allocate to their own AFLW members after the elimination final sold out to the general public in a matter of minutes on Wednesday.
The AFL told NewsWire that the AFLW ticketholders would all receive allocated seats without it affecting prior seating arrangements for the men’s match.
The league thanked its major partner NAB for arranging the extra tickets to avoid AFLW fans being locked out of the clash.
AFL football boss Laura Kane said it was the right response for a “unique set of circumstances”.
“Following discussions with the Bulldogs, Port Adelaide and Hawthorn, the MCG and our broadcast partners, there was universal alignment on trying to maximise the AFLW crowd considering the Western Bulldogs’ involvement in both matches,” Kane said.
“We encourage anyone with a ticket to the MCG on Friday next week to get to the ground early and enjoy what will be a great AFLW match-up between the Bulldogs and the Power.
“On behalf of everyone at the AFL, I want to thank everyone involved in making this happen so quickly.”
Melbourne’s 2022 season 6 preliminary final against Brisbane was the first AFLW game to be played at the MCG.
The Demons played in a subsequent regular season game six months later against North Melbourne, but it came before the AFLW shifted away from big stadiums towards what it branded as “heartland venues”.
A Western Bulldogs spokesperson thanked the AFL for “ensuring the best possible outcome” for the club’s supporters by avoiding the clash.
The fixture was intended to be the launch of the redeveloped Whitten Oval, but the Bulldogs will now wait until September 12 for a Thursday night clash against West Coast.
The Bulldogs, who finished on the bottom of the AFLW ladder last season, will unveil four debutants and new coach Tamara Hyett in their season opener against GWS in Canberra on Saturday.
Originally published as AFLW ticketholders gain access to Western Bulldogs elimination final
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