By Marnie Vinall
Fans and commentators have lashed out at the AFL for an “own goal” in scheduling this weekend’s AFLW Richmond-North Melbourne semi-final up against the Matildas and at a low-capacity venue.
The fixture, released on Sunday evening, has both AFLW semi-finals to be played back-to-back on Saturday, November 12.
The first semi-final between Richmond and North Melbourne is scheduled for Saturday at 1.40pm, and it sold out within two hours, with the AFL saying no further tickets will be released.
On the same day, the Australian national women’s soccer team will play world No.2 Sweden at 2.45pm in their first game in Melbourne since 2019, when they beat Argentina 3-0.
Richmond play will North Melbourne in semi-final.Credit:Getty Images
The Matildas game is part of an international series ahead of the 2023 World Cup, which will be jointly hosted by Australia. Adelaide and Collingwood will meet in the second semi-final at Unley Oval at 3.40pm (AEDT).
AFLW commentator Chyloe Kurdas described the AFL’s fixturing call as an own goal.
“So a limited number of people could physically go and have the W experience with a smaller venue, then a clash with a marquee international sporting event. So, it doesn’t make sense … it’s a bit of an own goal,” Kurdas said.
Kurdas said the scheduling didn’t make sense from a business perspective, or in trying to build followership of AFLW games, as there was a significant amount of crossover of fans.
“I think from a business case perspective, you know, there’s been conversations about crowds being down this year – I mean crowds over the weekend for finals were really good, but overall crowds have been down – so, to me, it doesn’t make sense to split your women’s sports fan base.”
Kurdas added the scheduling was a “real missed opportunity” for collaboration between the codes.
“Especially if you’re going to host a game at Punt Road, either host it early or host it late and then allow fans to go to both. What they’re essentially asking fans to do is choose … and that doesn’t make good business sense to force your core fans to choose.”
Kurdas pointed out the semi-final clash between the Tigers and Roos would be the only game in Melbourne over the weekend and Friday night, all of Sunday and either side of the Matildas game were available.
“This was a great opportunity to partner with Football Australia, and I think the W fans would love to see more collaborative scheduling of these marquee events. Both are equally important to sports fans and particularly women’s sports fans.
“I know both of those men’s codes have always been quite competitive with each other. But I don’t think you can do that with the women’s codes, you don’t apply the same lens. Having the ability to showcase both marquee events would have made more sense.”
Jenna Bruton Kangaroos is tackled by Richmond opponent Gabrielle Seymour during their clash at Arden Street.Credit:AFL Photos
Richmond earned hosting rights by finishing ahead of North Melbourne on the ladder, yet their home ground only holds a capacity of around 2000 spectators. Crowds topped 4000 for two of the four finals in the first week, including a sellout at Victoria Park for Collingwood’s win over the Western Bulldogs, and the other two games drew more than 2000 fans to each contest.
More than 3000 people attended North Melbourne and Richmond’s last game in the home-and-away season at Arden Street.
In a statement to The Age, an AFL spokesperson said: “Richmond earned the right to host the semi-final and indicated a very strong preference to play on their home deck at Punt Road – which we know will have a great atmosphere come 1.40pm Saturday.
“When scheduling finals matches, the AFL takes into consideration [a] number of factors including the home team venue preference, days breaks for clubs (both the week before and the following week), timings for fans, clubs and broadcast, and forecasted crowd / venue capacity.
“Our role is to give our AFLW matches the best possible chance to be a successful event and, after an amazing week one, we have two great semi-finals lined up on Saturday afternoon across Victoria and SA, live on Channel 7, and based on day one ticket sales, really strong attendance interest in both games.”
In round five, for the festival of football that coincided with the men’s grand final weekend, there were two sellout crowds at Punt Road Oval, leaving fans lining the fences to watch from the outside.
Many fans took to social media bemoaning the fixturing decision for the semi-finals, with one writing: “I won’t get to watch this weekend’s AFLW finals because I have tickets to the Matildas’ game that I bought WEEKS ago.
“I don’t understand how the AFL just continues to shoot itself in the foot. They don’t seem to even have a basic level of understanding of the AFLW fan base.”
Another added it was an “absolutely baffling decision to fixture this the same time as the Matildas game”.
A Football Australia spokesperson told The Age: “It’s an exciting time for women’s sport and women in sport. For young girls and boys to have the opportunity to see strong female role models is not only fantastic for the future of women’s sport but also society in general.
“On Saturday afternoon, we look forward to seeing over 20,000 fans at AAMI Park enjoying a match between our beloved … Matildas and the world No.2 team and Tokyo 2020 Olympics silver medallists, Sweden.”
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