The MCG, then and now

[achillesjones]

Many years ago I used to go to the MCG to watch the Seconds then Seniors and settle in the best seats in the house and absorb the drama of the day in an egalitarian paradise. (Members pavillion excepted). Today, I am shunted to the top of Telstra Dome or the MCG where I can watch the game from a bloody great distance and keep my acrophobic tendencies in check. As a consequence, I don't see the MCG as a state of the art icon. I see it as a blight on the working class and upon one of the best family traditions in our AFL culture. We have swallowed the media hype and it's only going to get a great deal worse as the population increases and relative scarcity of seats sets in. Grass roots supporters are being weeded out by the new regimes and replaced by any number of priveleged patrons.
I am thankful that I grew up in the sixties and seventies and as part of the working poor, my family were able to see blockbuster games that are nowout of reach for today's working class families.

 

[craz619]

my family is a working class family, but we shell out lots of money on this club just to watch our beloved team.

Who says money dont buy love? i know your point and it absaloutley agree with you. but if you love the club you should be willing to fork out the extra bucks!!!

 

[LeeToRainesToRoach]

Sports fans in the US showed they were prepared to pay top dollar to watch sport in modern, comfortable facilities. The AFL followed suit and rationalised grounds, saying that the suburban venues were fire hazards and would cost too much money to modernise (Arden St. was cited as a prime example).

For me it's all about what's happening on the ground and I wouldn't be too fazed if footy turned full circle and I had to stand in the rain again at Whitten Oval.

On the other hand, people have voted with their feet; average crowds are up 35% in the last 10 years compared to the previous 10, and the AFL/VFL has developed from a non-profit organisation ("the VFL is the twelve clubs") into a corporate powerhouse.

Someone has to pay for the inflated player wages and plush stadia, and it's the people who are willing to pay more than the basic admittance fee for better facilities.

I prefer standing room at the MCG (not suitable for families!), however the overhang of the Southern Stand's second level is greater than the old stand and the view is not as good. I watched one (neutral) game from the nosebleed section and wouldn't go there again, my eyesight's not great and it was like watching ants.

 

[feisty tige]

Talk about being fire hazards, didn't the fire at the MCG rip quickly through an area in the new top level stands (around the time we played West Coast, before the finals, before our game not during it ;D ?)

Plastic and fire don't mix too well...

 

[dcstar]

........
I am thankful that I grew up in the sixties and seventies and as part of the working poor, my family were able to see blockbuster games that are nowout of reach for today's working class families.

The only "Blockbuster" game that is expensive is the artificually created Anzac Day "Blockbuster" where Essendon and Collingwood have conspired to force their suckers.... I mean "fans" to pay for compulsory Reserved Seats (with the unavoidable booking fees).

Amost every other game in the AFL season in Melbourne - apart from some at the Docklands - are accessible by paying the normal admission at the gate.

 

[achillesjones]

if you enjoy the company of sparrows