Fans are just as crucial as results
Fans are just as crucial as results
Ewen McKenzie
Saturday, April 28, 2007
CROWD dynamics are an interesting thing. Being an old Melbourne boy, I grew up in a city culture where the first question you asked when you met someone was "Who do you barrack for?" not "How's the weather?"
I watched Llanelli play Leicester last week in the Heineken Cup semi-final and it was an amazing spectacle. Regardless of the result, the interesting part was the behaviour of the crowd. They were into the game up to their boots.
The crowd were running on their own energy - it didn't seem to matter what was happening on the field. I thought I was watching a game of soccer.
Different sets of fans express their passion in different ways.
The English have always been very proper and measured in their rugby support. The fact that the Leicester crowd was extremely passionate tells me that the game over there has evolved a long way in the past 20 years. For the record, the game was a gritty arm-wrestle - but this was not an impediment for the crowd.
Last year's Heineken Cup final between Munster and Biarritz was a sea of red Munster scarfs and jerseys. Played on a neutral ground at Millennium Stadium, the Munster fans gave it their all to get their team through.
For all the screaming and singing, the Munster crew pays the ultimate respect to opposition goal-kickers by becoming deathly quiet during shots at goal.
Amid 80 minutes of screaming and yelling, these pregnant moments of silence can play significant tricks on a kicker's mind. The Munster crowd does its best to help its team win.
Over the past two years, the Western Force have established a very parochial bunch. The Force players now make a point of discussing their enjoyment of playing in front of their home crowd at Subiaco. That they haven't witnessed a high percentage of victories has never dulled the crowd's enthusiasm or attendance. It is an interesting dynamic.
Just the other day Essendon played Collingwood in front of 90,000 people. The Anzac Day fixture is a magnificent tradition in which the game itself is not the only thing that provides the entertainment.
For the players, it's a high-octane atmosphere that tingles the spine and automatically lifts on-field performances.
It has quickly become clear that the Waratahs faithful are a large group. When you consider the spectrum of teams that Sydney sports fans can support, it is evident our crowds are similar to an accordion as they swell and compact with dramatic speed.
It is simple to link crowd size with performance, and this is certainly a Sydney-centric phenomenon.
The real trick of sporting management is to reduce the relevance of the contest to the success of the event.
This transition has occurred in the UK, perhaps the most conservative of rugby communities.
The challenge for us is to make this connection and the transition. The winning of the game should never be diminished as the ultimate objective but it's great to see the crowds having fun along the way.
