2014 Fixture - Screwed again by AFL

[always right]

Time for an avatar change

[bulldogtragic]

Time for an avatar change

Trust you to bring humour into things!

[LostDoggy]

Western Bulldogs AGM 5pm 19th Dec at Whitten Oval. Come one come all and voice your opinion to the board. I will be!

[soupman]

Time for an avatar change

Such a slender hand

[LostDoggy]

Time for an avatar change

Love it!

[jeemak]

I've been cynical about the repercussions of the huge TV deal signed by the broadcasters and the AFL from the outset, and have always believed Vlad's benevolence towards our situation has been completely self serving.

Each year when the fixture has been released since the deal was struck, we have been marginalised further from the previous year from an exposure perspective. This to me says the deal Vlad sold to the networks is not returning to them what he said it would, and that the AFL has the next round of negotiations in mind in terms of how they can demonstrate value for money to the broadcasters (i.e. clubs like ours don't occupy prime slots).

Unfortunately we will find ourselves at the mercy of the cycle yet again, in that we will be sold to the broadcasters as "filler" to satisfy a certain amount of games played. What's even more unfortunate, is this will be the best case scenario for our club and all it can expect to achieve.

The AFL cannot and will not accept a broadcasting deal that is inferior to the current one enjoyed by the lucky few, which means our situation from an exposure perspective will be not get better for the short term.

We cannot afford a poor on field performance in 2014. We need to make finals, or come very close to making finals to generate interest in our club from within our own supporter base as a starting point. If we only generate 5K in members from a strong performance in 2014 we need to see it as a starting point to build on. If we don't, we're in a lot of trouble.

[LostDoggy]

Soft draw or not. We want a fair spread of games across the week. Not just Sundays. GWS and GC get looked after having so many Saturday games!

I see people writing on FB and on other forums about how they will not renew their memberships cos of so many Sunday games. Either cos they can't attend Sunday games or don't want to attend Sunday games. It is honestly a joke and the club should rip into the AFL!

[bornadog]

I see people writing on FB and on other forums about how they will not renew their memberships cos of so many Sunday games. !

They are not real members. A real member buys a membership to be part of the club, not just to get a discount to games.

[LostDoggy]

They are not real members. A real member buys a membership to be part of the club, not just to get a discount to games.

This

[Happy Days]

They are not real members. A real member buys a membership to be part of the club, not just to get a discount to games.

Yep.

I view my membership as a donation; the games are for free.

With regard to the fixturing, yeah it's not great for our brand exposure, but really, we need to remember that we have been just horrible to watch for the better part of 2 years. North, who are at a comparative situation with regard to popularity, have been rewarded with exposure due to playing a more watchable brand of football.

As Jeemak said earlier, we need to produce some positive, watchable and successful football in 2014 if we want to be exposed further. The league isn't equal as much as we all want it to be, it's like any sport.

[LostDoggy]

Agreed.

Since we've started having children in 2009 we've been to about 15 games between us live. That's about $2000 for a standard membership (x2) at an average cost of about $130 per game

It's being part of something bigger.

[bornadog]

Agreed.

It's being part of something bigger.

This is how we should be selling the club.

[bulldogtragic]

This is how we should be selling the club.

I agree with the sentiment, and I too give no matter what. But do you honestly believe we can get 35,000 people who think like this?

[bornadog]

I agree with the sentiment, and I too give no matter what. But do you honestly believe we can get 35,000 people who think like this?

Maybe not 35,000, but trying to stop people giving up their membership because of stupid excuses may be a start.

[bornadog]

CEO Simon Garlick

"In summary, while the football component of the fixture has been progressed in terms of starting to maximise competition, we believe more needs to be done in regards to providing improved fixture outcomes for smaller clubs in relation to revenue opportunities and exposure.
"To this effect, most key drivers of growth are in the hands of the AFL and we look forward to continuing to work with them and other stakeholders in the spirit of equalisation to maximise exposure and revenue opportunities going forward.
"Opportunities including returning all our home games to Victoria, a potential home game at Simonds Stadium and securing a marquee match – notably Good Friday from 2015 – remain priorities for the Western Bulldogs."

What else can you say? Or should he come out punching?