Last weekend, Perth's focus was turned as it has been twice every year since 1995 to one of the biggest AFL matches on the calendar. For those not familiar with Western Australian sport, the 'Western Derby' pits WA's two AFL clubs against each other, and has done since the Fremantle Dockers were formed in 1995.
Since AFL is unquestionably the most popular sport in this state, it's no surprise that the derbies have quickly entrenched itself as perhaps the biggest sporting events of the year. The rivalry struggled to grow as the West Coast Eagles were able to dominate the first 4 years of the rivalry before Fremantle finally broke their duck in 1999. After this win, though, the teams were largely even through the early part of the new millennium and this level playing field saw the peak of the rivalry.
Fans would display their club colours for the week leading up to the match. Daily press conferences from players and coaches would headline the nightly news. Tactics would be scrutinised. Selections would be questioned. Twice a year, a full week would seem to almost disappear behind derby fever. West Coast grew in this period from its worst team in a decade in 2001 to grand finalists in 2005 and premiers in 2006 while the Dockers were able to go from a meagre two wins for the season to preliminary finalists over the same period. This increased standing of the two sides nationally further strengthened the intensely competitive nature of the matches.
Lately, however, the Western derby is appearing to become a little stale Fremantle has turned the tables on early derby form and beaten the Eagles 7 times in a row, and indeed has triumphed on 9 of the last 10 match-ups. A 75-point demolition in the most recent derby has highlighted the weakness of the more popular Eagles who are battling to avoid a wooden spoon finish this campaign. The Dockers, who have traditionally had a smaller fan-base, are likely to make the finals this season but are also not genuine threats to the best teams in the competition. With neither team challenging for major honours and one team not even really able to compete for the minor honour of winning the derby, interest in the match has clearly waned.
This was my first week in Perth for the derby since 2007 when the rivalry was perhaps near its fiercest. I was amazed at how significantly less interested the people of Perth were in the match. There was little more build-up on the TV and radio than for any other weekend of AFL. There were few people wearing their colours during the week. In fact, there was a feeling among some Eagles fans that they wouldn't even watch the match because it was so unlikely that West Coast would be competitive. Those people turned out to be the smart ones as the Eagles were indeed obliterated by a significantly better Fremantle side.
"What does all this mean for Perth Glory?" you ask. Simply put, it means a real chance to capture more fans and possibly the best opportunity the club has had in a decade to rediscover the popularity it enjoyed in the days of the NSL.
It should not be seen as coincidental that Glory had their biggest average crowds in the years between 1997 and 2002. Compare this to average crowds rising significantly in 2003 (from 26,359 to 30,681) coinciding with their first year making the finals, and the Eagles average crowd jumping above 35,000 as they made the finals in 2002 having missed out the previous two seasons (the first two seasons the Eagles hadn't made the finals since 1989). Their crowds bottomed out at 30,777.
Conversely, Glory's crowds dwindled from the high average of 13,094 to six straight seasons of crowd averages below 10,000. Four of those seasons, Glory have failed to make the finals. Three of the four seasons Glory did not make the finals saw average crowds below 8,000.
What all these numbers indicate is that two things have a major influence on Glory's ability to draw crowds. The team must be winning, and the AFL teams must be struggling. Glory fans might not like it, but attendances at Perth Oval/ME Bank Stadium/NIB Stadium are linked to attendances up the road at Subiaco Oval. Perth loves a winner, but it will pick a winning AFL team over a winner in a different sport every time.
One day this will change, and indeed Glory now have a real chance to help that change. When the opportunity presents itself for Perth Glory to take centre-stage, the club has to take it. WA isn't getting any joy out of its AFL teams, and will happily turn to Fowler and co. *if* they can win games and make themselves a genuine championship threat. Crowds and atmosphere should be up anyway with the presence of three recent Socceroos and Robbie Fowler in the side. All the signs point to this being a landmark season for Tony Sage and his club.
Glory fans have been largely living off memories of those old NSL days for the best part of a decade. In truth, it has probably taken a decade though for the opportunity to arise for those days to return. For the sake not just of the loyal fans who have stuck through thick-and-thin but also to convert some "part time supporters" into fans who truly believe in the A-League, Glory need this season to be successful on the park. Hopefully, we can start with a Fowler-inspired win over Fury this coming Friday night in front of a sell-out crowd!
