Friday nights has become the night to play football, it brings in money and exposure for clubs and from next year onwards we will also get to watch the game live all around the country. This weekend we see North Melbourne play their first Friday night for the year and a lot of fans and Kangaroo officials have made noise about missing out and how they made Friday nights. So the question is should all clubs get Friday nights evenly shared around the 18 clubs or should a club only get a Friday night game if they bring in the money and give the AFL great exposure?
Should every club get an opportunity to play Friday night or should it be selective based on what the interest they can gather for TV?
From a pure spectacle point of view I did not watch round 18′s Friday night game because one it featured Adelaide and St Kilda, two of the most boring current day clubs to sit through but also because of the margin and how much Adelaide sucked during the game. So yes from a pure spectacle point of view I like the idea of NRL idea where they choose the fixtures in 5 week blocks, this would have allowed teams that are playing good football play more Friday nights.
However will this set up a two tier competition where the big clubs get Friday night games and become richer while lower drawing clubs are stuck playing Sunday afternoon and continue to struggle financially?
So what do you think? Let us know your opinion about clubs playing on Friday and whether they should allow all clubs play on Friday night. Also while you are at it, add the team you support, as this will allow us to see if your bias or not.
July 28th, 2011 at 7:41 pm
You have got to be joking? It’ll do nothing of the sort.
BTW, it should read “… this will allow us to see if you‘re biased or not.” And it would still be utter nonsense.
July 29th, 2011 at 8:55 am
@aussierulesblog, you got a bee in your bonnet mate? I ask for the club you support as I do think depending on the club you support could well affect your opinion on this argument. Like to hear why you think different.
July 29th, 2011 at 12:22 am
I think Friday night games should be between two evenly matched teams. I’d hate to see a Friday night game between Collingwood and Port (on current form). It’d be a squash and completely pointless. I think 1 v 2 or even 10 v 11 might be good games for a Friday night, since there’s a chance that they’d be more competitive. This way the fixture can be shared around amongst all the clubs, not just the top ones.
July 29th, 2011 at 8:59 am
@Navaneethan, I agree Friday night games should be the highlight of the weekend (along with Saturday afternoon imo) so how do you manage the fixtures so you get even games or the game of the week (for eg round 19 would be Hawthorn and Fremantle)??
Do we go down the path of the NRL or do we base it on the previous year which still means we run the risk of a club not getting the right game. IE: the Dogs have dropped in 2011 and WCE have risen the ladder.
July 29th, 2011 at 9:18 am
Definitely DO NOT want to copy the NRL model on this and determine the schedule in 5 week blocks.
As an AFL fan living in Sydney I travel to Melbourne 3 – 4 times a year to watch AFL. Not knowing when Carlton where playing makes it impossible to book flights etc and plan in advance.
August 1st, 2011 at 10:06 am
@Justin, true I did not think of that
July 29th, 2011 at 11:04 am
I would’ve liked the idea of Sunday afternoons as the top billing games, but the Sunday twilight would ruin that promotion as 9 games next year can’t let the Sunday twilight game get dumped.
Let’s face it, “blockbuster” is these days a media term for promo purposes. As the gap continues to widen, country footy could be a closer spectacle.
August 1st, 2011 at 10:07 am
@Craig Eyles, Sunday twilight works ok in WA, from what I have heard it does not work in Victoria…
July 31st, 2011 at 5:49 pm
With nine games per round next season, I can’t see why you could not have 2 Friday night games- like they do on Saturdays. 1 game would be in Melb the other Adelaide, Perth, Syd or Qld. That should every team a fair go. Personally I would ditch the Sunday twilight games at Docklands. Getting home in the dark on Melbourne public transport must be pretty unappealing when you have kids. Of course the AFL don’t seem to care about the spectator as long as Foxtel and Ch. 7 are happy.
August 1st, 2011 at 10:11 am
@Bob, Two Friday night games!! Now that will work. However I doubt it will work as Channel 7 wont let it.
Like I said to Craig, Sunday twilight in WA works ok. However will it work for Victorian clubs coming over? I cannot see many of them happy having to fly back to Melbourne with the ‘red eye’.
re game time frames, I think three Saturday arvo games works best. So it will be:
Sunday arvo
1) Friday night
2) Saturday arvo
3) Saturday arvo
4) Saturday arvo
5) Saturday night
6) Saturday night
7) Early Sunday
9) Sunday Twilight
However the concern I have with this is that it may mean a drop in crowd numbers…
August 1st, 2011 at 10:23 am
Not sure if the AFL would go for 2 Friday night games (I don’t like the NRL Ch 9 format).
Similarly, I don’t think the AFL would drop 3 games into Saturday afternoon.
I think they would probably overlap on the Sunday arvo timeslot. This would result in total of 4 games on Saturday and 4 games on Sunday.
With 2 broadcasters between Fox & Ch 7 I dont think they would have more than 2 games on at once.
August 1st, 2011 at 10:26 am
@Justin, What about a Thursday or Monday night???
August 1st, 2011 at 10:45 am
@Justin,
Isn’t that what already happens on Sat nights?
August 1st, 2011 at 10:47 am
Personally I am a big fan of the Monday night game (Looking forward to watching Melb Storm belt Parramatta Eels tonight!)
AFL will probably play with both of those time slots as novelty spots ocassionally.
Thurs night plays havoc with AFL shows such as AFL Teams etc and the announcement of the actual teams for the weekend.
Although the Monday night game would give someone like me an alternative to watching NRL tonight.
With the AFL pursuing Rugby League markets such as Gold Coast & Greater Western Sydney, surely the next tool to enable that domination is a Monday night slot.
August 1st, 2011 at 10:50 am
Bob, Saturday nights only has the 2 games so Ch 7 and Fox get one each.
If there were 3 games on at once, the 3rd game goes missing and there is no revenue return for the broadcasters on that game live.
August 1st, 2011 at 10:55 am
@Justin, Still think the Saturday late afternoon/ twilight is the best solution…
August 1st, 2011 at 10:58 am
@Justin,
So why not replicate the Sat night set up for Fri nights?
August 1st, 2011 at 11:54 am
2 Games simultaneously on Friday night probably not a bad option compared to an extra Sunday game.
The more I think about it, with the AFL paying big $$$ to ensure the success of GC & GWS I think they will pursue Monday night games more and more to take away exclusivity of the night for NRL.
August 3rd, 2011 at 12:08 pm
@Jermayn It’s almost set in concrete for 3 Sat arvo games & 2 Sat night games. But, the traditional 2.10 start looks gone as Foxtel has 2 show all 9 games live.
August 3rd, 2011 at 3:39 pm
@Craig Eyles,
I don’t get it. 5 games equals 15 hours of viewing- how can they show that much live?
August 3rd, 2011 at 6:22 pm
@Bob 1.10 & 4.10 for Foxtel
3.10 for free to air
plus 2 night games.
Foxtel did “advertise” they were going to show all 9 games live. Good luck with that. Can we sue for false advertising??
August 4th, 2011 at 9:31 am
@Craig Eyles & Bob: I think they intend to have multiple channels. I also heard the price is $50 a month for the standard package with sport included…