From this season’s first kick-off in August 2006 to the climax of the Grand Final on 18 February, the Hyundai A-League will hold a total of 90 football fixtures.

At every one of these, thousands of fans, decked out in their kits, roll through the turnstiles eager to watch their team and maybe enjoy a beer and pie. They’ll discover if their favourite player is starting with the announcement of the teams, and they may even read the match report in the paper the next day.

Ensuring all these fans enjoy their day is a sizeable task. The clubs and grounds around the Hyundai A-League employ a range of full-time and casual staff to make sure everything runs as smoothly as a Kevin Muscat penalty.

This weekend, The Full90 pays tribute to those whose efforts are helping establish the Hyundai A-League as one of Australia’s most compelling sporting attractions. We visited Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium, home of the Mariners, during the round 16 visit of Perth Glory to meet some of these people.



“Would you like to buy a shirt?”
Heather – Merchandise
Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium is dotted with merchandise tents that are a regular stop for the keenest of fans. The Mariners’ yellow crowd suggests business has been strong this year.

“We sell everything: hats, stubby holders, jerseys, jackets, singlets, t-shirts, towels, everything,” says Heather.

Heather is young, bubbly, enthusiastic and not embarrassed to say she’s good at her job!! “I’m excellent!” she laughs. “If someone’s buying a jersey, I might also suggest the shorts or a badge to make sure they’re plastered in yellow from top to bottom!”

Team flags are the most popular items at Heather’s stall, alongside big inflatable balls. Heather estimates she sells about 30 or 40 flags every match.

But it’s not always smooth sailing. “A Sydney FC fan accidently pulled out our power when he was having a cigarette,” she recalls. “That was pretty stressful. All the power went dead and we were trying to do EFTPOS transactions and it all turned off.”

Local football rivalry turned commercial sabotage? “I don’t know, I think he was just stupid!” The rivalry lives on!“Is everything alright?”
Monique – Management

Monique Marks is the stadium’s Managing Director. Her responsibilities extend across every aspect of the matchday experience.

“Setting security rosters, catering orders, bar orders, there’s just a whole lot of things behind the scenes, making sure everything’s co-ordinated,” she says.

“I’m also the licensee and make sure everything’s running okay. I’m very hands-on, I’m always amongst the crowd.”

Throughout the week Monique and her team of staff spend many hours preparing for the weekend. It’s no surprise then what Monique names as her favourite part of the job. “When the gates are shut and everyone’s gone!” she jokes. Working within a football stadium, she admits she actually can’t resist the infectiousness of the fans. “I love the crowd, I love the atmosphere and I love it when we win.”

Having moved north from Sydney, Monique was involved with Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium long before the arrival of the Mariners. The worst part of her job? “People with no common sense. It gets a bit frustrating, but it comes with the job.”

There is one particular crisis that sticks out for Monique though. “The worst thing was getting hit by lightning at a rugby league trial back in 2001 and it took out one of my light towers. We eventually got it back up but it took about half an hour, because once they go out it takes half an hour to get them back up.”



“Can I get you a pizza?”
Ainsley – Catering

An afternoon at the football wouldn’t be an afternoon at the football without a trip to the food stalls. They’re easy to spot, because they usually have the longest queues, filled with teens nibbling their arms in hunger and parents attempting to manage a van-full of kids!

Much like the merchandise stands, most of the Central Coast’s food stalls are manned by young casual staff, such as local Ainsley. “We look after all the chips and hot food for the general public who come to the game,” she says. “We sell people pies, drinks... all that kind of stuff.”

Ainsley has worked at the stadium serving food to famished Mariners fans for about two years. That’s a lot of pies... or is it?



Instead of the traditional meat pie and sauce, the most popular offering is the pizza. “Pizzas go off!” Ainsley reveals. But two years serving them up doesn’t put her off though. “I would buy the pizzas, they’re made fresh here on site.”

Growing up on the Central Coast, Ainsley studies business marketing and attends uni up the road in Newcastle during the week. Her whole family comes to Mariners matches. She would too – with her friends that is – but says that her work duties take priority.

And those duties aren’t without their difficulties. “We ran out of pizzas!” she recalls. “That’s probably the biggest thing – running out of food, and not being able to supply all the fans with what they want, especially before the game and at half-time in the mad rush to get all their food.”




“When do you need to file your story?”
Ben – Media Services

To accommodate the growing interest in the Hyundai A-League around the country the Mariners, like every club, employ a media manager. The Mariners’ media man is Ben Coonan, who on matchdays ensures radio, newspapers, websites and TV crews are all provided with the space to watch the match and carry out their work.

“You’ve just got to be on hand,” Ben says. “Make sure everyone’s looked after and provide the odd stat to make the headline story.”

It’s a dream job for Ben, a long-time sports fan. “Being in the professional sporting atmosphere is fun,” he says. “As a kid growing up I was always awestruck by professional sports. When I came into this job, one of the guys from the FFA told me, ‘don’t worry Ben, you’ll lose that thrill of being around professional sportsmen because they’re not all the cookies and cream you think they are.’”

Though he’s been working for the Mariners for two years, the buzz about working in football hasn’t faded. “To be around the premier sportsmen in Australia is definitely one of my favourite parts.”

There have been times Ben would like to forget. “We played the Jets in round five. The only thing I had to organise pre-match was a photographer to take a photo of the two teams at the start of the game. When it came to the time, it just dawned on all the staff that there was no photographer. It was definitely embarrassing. And then seeing Andrew Clark break away from the pack and take a photo of the guys himself!”“How do you pronounce that?”
Steve – Ground Announcer

His is the voice that is instantly recognisable. That smooth sound that booms across the stands, informing the fans of the team line-ups, sponsors’ messages and matchday entertainment. On the Central Coast, the ground announcer is Steve Allan.

Allan is well-known as the man who has announced every rugby league grand final since 1999. He also hosts his own sports radio show
on the Central Coast.

His favourite part of the job? “You get paid for being at the game! You’re an extension of the crowd!” But the job can be testing at times. “Just when you make a mistake,” he says. “If you get a pronunciation wrong, or call something that’s incorrect, that can stay with you long after
the game finishes.”

With football being one of the most multicultural sports in Australia, some names can be a challenge. But Allan appreciates the importance of getting things right. “The key is to actually introduce yourself to them, and ask, ‘how would you like me to say it?’. You can have a lot of people associated with the team tell you, but unless you introduce and find out the exact pronunciation, then you struggle.”

Steve is hugely experienced, and has experienced some testing times. Footballers like Tommy Pondeljak and Mile Jedinak may be a challenge, but they aren’t a patch on the Tongan rugby team. “That was incredibly difficult,” he says. Allan’s pronunciation of a particular player was drawing several laughs from the crowd in front
of the box.

“I found out afterwards that the way I was saying it meant… err ‘anus’ in Tongan!” he laughs.



“Fancy a drink?”
Ben – Bar

Along with the pizza, beer is spectacularly popular. Sometime snowboard instructor, Ben has bar experience from everywhere between Jindabyne and the famous Brewery in Newcastle. When The Full90 met up with him, Ben had only started pouring beers at Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium three shifts ago.

“We sell alcohol to the spectators: spirits, light beer, full-strength beer, mixed drinks and red and white wine,” he says. Preparation is left to the managers, giving staff like Ben a smooth ride in their three to four-hour shift. “We turn up, put the ice in the drinks and make sure there are cups out to pour the beer in.”

A difficult situation may arise from time to time. “Only if you’ve got to cut the fans off [from more drinks], but it doesn’t happen that often. They get a bit upset!”

Ben recognises that you do need skills for the job: “personality, knowing how to pour a beer, and you’ve got to be able to give the right change.” But he thinks he goes alright. “It’s a piece of cake!”

“Let me pick that up for you.”
Rob – Cleaning

Rob Farmer ensures Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium is clean. He co-ordinates a team of staff that work during matchdays, as well as in the days before and after the game.

“We have a weekly program,” he says. “For events, we clean the whole place before. We have people at the event to look after the concourse, the corporate areas, change rooms, and we get a team in afterwards.”

Rob used to work at the tax office, but is now officially retired. That hasn’t stopped him from taking on the broom though. “I wanted something to do, this was a chance to keep fit,” he states. “I get satisfaction walking around saying, ‘look what I’ve done’ and keeping the place as clean as possible, which is hard now with all the water restrictions.” He even combined work with his last holiday, working at Wimbledon and other events on a trip to England.

In his five years in the job, Rob still can’t understand how filthy the fans can be. “I honestly can’t see how people can put the amount of rubbish they do under the seat and enjoy the game with it all there. I wonder what their places are like at home!”

But what’s his home like? “Probably not as clean as it should be!”

Reproduced from TheFull90 – the official matchday magazine of the Hyundai A-League www.a-league.com.au Get it at the game!