Administators to blame for lack of sell outs
ByBefore the recent All Blacks v Springboks test in Christchurch, much was made of the fact that over 3,000 tickets remained unsold. However administrators have nobody to blame but themselves for the dwindling interest by fans.
Attendance at test matches has become a hot topic lately, with some suggesting that a local television blackout would increase attendance, while others point out that there is so much rugby being played lately that many fans have become apathetic.
Speaking to fans around Christchurch there are two common reasons for not attending the game. First, the price. The cheapest adult tickets cost $45 for seats at the end of the ground in an uncovered stand. The most expensive tickets were $115 for seats side-on to the ground and under cover.
For a father to take his two sons to the game would cost at least $95 dollars before even having a chance to be gouged when buying food. As the game is broadcast live on pay TV and delayed on free to air TV, many families are finding it far more economic to stay home and watch the game on television.
A more common reason given is simply the weather. To play an outdoor sport in the middle of winter at night does not exactly make for a comfortable experience for the fans. At kick-off time the temperature in Christchurch was a mere 5 degrees, dropping to 3 by full time.
Many have said that test matches played in the South Island should be played in the afternoon, but broadcasters would prefer to continue with the evening games so they can cash in on the international audience. And since the broadcasters control the purse strings, they have far more pull that the local fans.
The claim of fan apathy does hold some weight, as fans this year have seen 16 weeks of Super 14, three warm up tests against France and Canada and then three Tri-Nations tests so far. Of course, if fans are apathetic about Tri-Nations test matches already, this does not bode well for the upcoming Air New Zealand Cup which has each round spread out over four days to ensure maximum television coverage.
The administrators of the game in New Zealand as well as its SANZAR partners need to realize that the fans are feeling more and more detached from the game that they love. Playing games on cold winter’s evenings, pricing the game out of the reach of the average fan, and the continued saturation of the product have made fans cynical, and without the fans feeling involved the sell outs will become a thing of the past.
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The Administators to blame for lack of sell outs by Hamish McBrearty, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
