Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
AFLW stars hope the momentum created by the exhibition match between Australia and Ireland can deliver the uptick in crowds the competition desperately needs.
Then, players want the AFLW to show the same faith they have in the competition and extend it to a full regular season.
Saturday’s exhibition game drew a sell-out crowd of 9,017 fans to North Sydney Oval and gave players hope the AFLW itself, which starts on Sunday, can return to some of the larger attendances of its early days.
North Melbourne’s superstar captain Jasmine Garner said the atmosphere on Saturday reminded her of the inaugural AFLW game between Collingwood and Carlton, which drew 24,568 fans to Ikon Park.
Adelaide captain Ebony Marinoff felt having the league’s best players on that stage underlined the quality of the AFLW.
Now, as the AFLW’s 11th season begins, it’s about ensuring a league which has recently struggled in terms of attendance and TV ratings regains momentum.
“It’s really exciting for the season ahead, and something that will really boost AFLW as well,” Geelong captain Becky Webster told AAP of the “magical” international fixture.
“We just want fans to continue to keep rocking up, and (it’s about) how we can continue to bring people to the game.
“Because once they’re there, they want to be there and they want to come back. So it’s like, how do we get them there?
“Even the likes of having the double headers this year will hopefully bring more traffic and peoples’ eyes on the game as well.
“There’s such an exciting flair around AFLW at the moment
“I think this season there will be a real big shift in more attendance and better timings, better slots, and people engaged in the game.”
Carlton and St Kilda will have a ‘Spud’s Game’ double header for mental health along with their men’s teams on Sunday at Marvel Stadium.
Both sides believe those fixtures can improve crowds and allow players to showcase their skills.
“Any opportunity for the AFLW to grow, we’ll take it and see what we can do and see what works and what doesn’t work,” Blues skipper Abbie McKay said.
St Kilda counterpart Serene Watson added: “The more we can get AFLW on bigger stages and better grounds, that’s what we’re aiming for.”
Players want the 12-game competition to expand to a 17-game regular season where every team plays each other once.
“I’d like to see that. I think eventually, if we can get to play everyone once, that’s probably the most even,” Garner said.
Webster, Essendon captain Bonnie Toogood, Melbourne’s Kate Hore and Hawthorn’s Emily Bates also want expansion.
“It’s a resounding, unanimous thing throughout the players – we want to be playing everyone once,” Toogood told AAP.
“It’s been spoken about a lot around the integrity of the competition and how they cut up the fixtures. You remove that argument straight away when you move to a 17-game season.”
Webster loves playing at an AFL-quality ground in GMHBA Stadium while Toogood feels there is still a place for community grounds like Windy Hill, provided they are up to scratch.
“There is a sweet spot where we can continue to play at these venues, and they be top-tier venues, and connect with community,” Toogood said.
“But also, there is a place where we play at stadiums, and I think there’s got to be a sweet spot.”
