Body:
Apart from the strong attendences at Tasmania games, and to a lesser extent, people getting onboard with Bendigo's success. The amount of people attending the VFA / VFL must be a real concern.
Sure, we live in a state where media space on Aussie Rules is almost exclusively spent on covering the AFL, and the remaining space goes to Melbourne Storm, Melbourne Victory and other sporting codes.
But local football now seems to regularly be drawing more crowds than the VFL is.
What steps can the clubs and league take to try and attract supporters back, and get new supporters coming along?
Things that might be worth trying for clubs:
* An existing club member can sign-up a 'new' for free or minimal cost (say $15).
* Some kind of deal with the local council, that part of their rates, has the option of including a club membership.
* Sunday markets/stalls on game days, finishing just before 2pm. Grounds like Coburg would be perfect for this. They have a heap of space on that outer wing.
* Other events at the grounds, when the footy isn't on... get people used to getting along to the ground
What ideas do you have?
