That figure is roughly 50 percent down on last season's average attendance. The worst of the weekend was the 4738 at EnergyAustralia Stadium on Friday night for the Jets against Glory.

And the state of origin clash at Suncorp on Sunday between Roar and Sydney FC pulled the highest crowd of the round - but still just a meagre 7677.

The irony is that season five of the A-League has clearly been the best so far. Some outstanding goals, new teams including Jason Culina's Gold Coast and Robbie Fowler's Fury, have added excitement and class and some stunning goals.

But the crowds haven't reflected this at the stadiums.

Despite a strong first round that averaged 13,631, this season's attendances have dropped markedly.

The rounds since have racked up the following averages:  12,130, 9099, 8674, 8360, 12,078, 10,836 and 6198. The average for the season so far is 10,125.

Some have suggested the reason for the declining attendances could be the novelty factor of the A-League wearing off after three successful seasons before a sense of ennui set in during season four with the same eight foundation teams still battling it out.

A season proper average of 14,612 in season three was the best so far in the history of the A-League, built on slowly increasing crowds in season one (10,955) and season two (12,940).

Season four saw a drop-off with 12,180 the average. That drop-off has continued this season, despite the introduction of two new teams and high profiles signings.

Other reasons put forward include ticket pricing (as explored recently on au.fourfourtwo.com), a lack of pre-match entertainment, finals in other football codes and the TV broadcasting deal with Fox Sports.

In Newcastle this weekend, the NRL finals on free-to-air TV may have contributed to the abysmal crowd. But go deeper and the decision to part ways with the club's promotions company shortly after winning the grand final in 2008 could be coming back to haunt the club.

The company built a strong relationship between the club and the Hunter fans. Since parting ways, that relationship has been allowed to drift and rifts between trhe board and fans became clear.

And when the results aren't going your way - as they have in Newcastle - that hard work in the community of building and maintaining a relationship is more important than ever.

Brisbane Roar's case could well stem from disenchantment about ticket pricing. One Roar fan also recently told au.fourfourtwo.com that some staff at Suncorp Stadium were allegedly anti-football in their dealings with some Roar fans.

Elsewhere, Gold Coast and Townsville are new franchises in relatively small population areas who are building a fan base. Wellington also continues to build their supporter base but all three clubs have been disappointing this season.

It's not all doom and gloom though. Perth and Adelaide have both bucked the trend, setting surprisingly good crowd figures that looks set to rise after weekend wins.

And on October 9, Etihad Stadium hosts resurgent Melbourne against rivals Sydney in a blockbuster set to attract a 25,000-plus crowd.

With the AFL finals over and NRL finishing this weekend, expect more media coverage and a small increase in fans across the board. And as summer sets in, the traditonal blockbusters over the festive season should set the turnstiles alight.

Interestingly, round eight of the NSL a decade ago - when the NSL kicked off in the first week of October - attracted an average of 5850 fans...just 348 fans short of this weekend's A-League round eight.

A response is awaited from A-League boss Archie Fraser about the recent crowd figures and the FFA's plans to revive interest in the competition.