Crowd Support for the Wallabies

[mexicanbob]

Disillusioned like most Wallabies fans at our defeat by the AB's, I would like to point out :

Last night during the game the TV commentary team, disclaimed, " the crowd should start urging the Wallabies on"

OK ,fair enough.

Some time ago at the start of a Test/Bledsloe /3N before kickoff a well known and respected gentleman would play his guitar and sing "Waltzing Matilda " Loyal fans with banners flying, with the crowd joining in, and filling us with a sense of pride and mateship.
But NO!.OH NO cannot have that it would interfere with the advertisers or something.......don't know and don't care.

But for whatever reason, we, the paying Aussie public, rolled over like mongrel dogs and let (someone or some person, possibly not an Aussie) say no.....not allowed.
Cannot have cheering and shouting to support for our National Rugby sides.
Keep going and no one will bother to support the game.
I have never played Union, but love the game like mad.

So now gonna take more medication.

Sorry iffn I got things arse up, but that the way it appears atm.:

Proudaussie.

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

I've gotta say that I'm not too disappointed not to have Waltzing Matilda before the game any more. I always found it pretty cringeworthy and a little contrived. If the crowd want to start singing it, a la Swing Low at Twickers or Cwm Rhondda in Cardiff, then fair enough, but I'm not that wrapped up in trying to whip up nationalistic fervour by getting some bloke in a scarf and guitar to do it.

 

[louie]

waltzing matilda always made me feel more proud then the crap we currently stand for

 

[MrMouse]

Yeah, must say I'm in the same boat as TBH on this. It was, in fact, the marketing buffs at the ARU who instituted John Williamson or whatever his name is singing Waltzing Matilda. It was horrific to have the haka, then have this bloke strumming away in a faux singalong. Finally, the ARU listened for once and chopped it.

But I agree they try to sterilise rugby, taking away the musical instruments, the patriotism etc but most of all it's the disapproval of the wealthy ageing boomers that I find tends to stymie those of us who want to scream our guts out. At least in NSW.

Bring in drums, bring in dirges that we can all sing, stuff that gets the blood roaring, lower the price of beer and get rid of half the corporate boxes. Then listen to Australian crowds.

 

[RugbyFuture]

you mean you never played rugby right?

 

[Epi]

+1 for cringeworthy and contrived...

Hardly the sort of thing that would fire you up was it?

 

[TOCC]

i agree with TBH, waltzing matilda was a completely fabricated attempt to get the crowd 'pumped'? although im not exactly sure who got pumped after singing a chorus of a country folk song about a thief who commits suicide. Its almost as pathetic as that guy at Suncorp Stadium screaming 'we are red' over the PA system..

Nobody yells to cheer a losing side, now i hate to again reference the Reds, but in the games this year at suncorp there was absolutely no need to fabricate crowd support, its a by product of watching entertaining rugby. Wallabies start to win and the fans will start to cheer..

 

[rsea]

Actually TOCC I'd have to disagree. The Reds do a great job of pumping the crowd.

 

[Crow]

Nobody yells to cheer a losing side, now i hate to again reference the Reds, but in the games this year at suncorp there was absolutely no need to fabricate crowd support, its a by product of watching entertaining rugby. Wallabies start to win and the fans will start to cheer..

There are plenty of sporting teams in a variety of sports all over the world whose teams will never, ever get to see them win a cup/premiership/whatever and yet they still turn up week after week to support their team and cheer them on, even when they're losing.

I think Aus rugby would do well to build up this form of support rather than going for fans who are happy when WB winning, but abandon them the moment things look bleak.

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

The Force games are like this, Crow. We got belted all over the place this year, but the crowds at ME Stadium were almost uniformly excellent. The last home game against the Cru was a complete sell-out. Rugby people are loyal over here.

 

[Richo]

Not in Sydney, sadly. Tahs crowds were weoful this year, especially in numbers but in atmosphere, too.

 

[Brumby Jack]

Same with the Brumbies. This year there were efforts by the ground announcer to 'fire up' the crowd but all that happened was the local talk back sports show was inundated with requests to shut him up which is disappointing because there is little atmosphere and the players know this and it seems the crowd would prefer to talk in posh English accents and say 'jolly good' when there is a scrum 5m out or not be told when to cheer.

The only time they did anything all year was when they played Queensland and when George Smith played his last home game.

 

[DPK]

Same with the Brumbies. This year there were efforts by the ground announcer to 'fire up' the crowd but all that happened was the local talk back sports show was inundated with requests to shut him up which is disappointing because there is little atmosphere and the players know this and it seems the crowd would prefer to talk in posh English accents and say 'jolly good' when there is a scrum 5m out or not be told when to cheer.

The only time they did anything all year was when they played Queensland and when George Smith played his last home game.

BJ makes a point I was thinking about earlier; we may see more passionate crowds as the Aussie S15 teams all play each other at home. The interstate rivalry needs to be built up and some hype needs to be generated before the game, then let the crowd produce the noise and atmosphere.

 

[Sydney Wallabies]

Disillusioned like most Wallabies fans at our defeat by the AB's, I would like to point out :

Last night during the game the TV commentary team, disclaimed, " the crowd should start urging the Wallabies on"

OK ,fair enough.

Some time ago at the start of a Test/Bledsloe /3N before kickoff a well known and respected gentleman would play his guitar and sing "Waltzing Matilda " Loyal fans with banners flying, with the crowd joining in, and filling us with a sense of pride and mateship.
But NO!.OH NO cannot have that it would interfere with the advertisers or something.......don't know and don't care.

But for whatever reason, we, the paying Aussie public, rolled over like mongrel dogs and let (someone or some person, possibly not an Aussie) say no.....not allowed.
Cannot have cheering and shouting to support for our National Rugby sides.
Keep going and no one will bother to support the game.
I have never played Union, but love the game like mad.

So now gonna take more medication.

Sorry iffn I got things arse up, but that the way it appears atm.:

Proudaussie.

The problem being is we generally aren't a very out and out patriotic country.

Take the English with Swing Low at Twickenham or the Three Lions at any soccer ground, they are really passionate.

The Irish are the same with Ireland's Call at Lansdowne Road, they are generally very passionate.

We also aren't a nation that likes to sing at rugby/football grounds either like the English do at Twickenham/Wembley etc.

We generally are very laidback and in some cases too afraid to be passionate.

Coupled with the fact that sport in this country has been sanitised to the point of being sterile.

Cricket crowds were generally very passionate but doesn't get anywhere near that anymore.

 

[MajorlyRagerly]

The problem being is we generally aren't a very out and out patriotic country.

.

You have to be joking me. Australians are far and away the most patriotic people I have ever met! Daylight is second, third, fourth, fifth with the seppo's coming in 6th (unless its more daylight).

Not singing at sporting events and not being patriotic are very very different things.

 

[Sydney Wallabies]

You have to be joking me. Australians are far and away the most patriotic people I have ever met! Daylight is second, third, fourth, fifth with the seppo's coming in 6th (unless its more daylight).

Not singing at sporting events and not being patriotic are very very different things.

Mate, I go to that many sporting events be it rugby,cricket,league etc. and I come to the conclusion we are too quiet at sporting events.

The last time I saw a really passionate Australian sports crowd was the Socceroos World Cup qualifier at ANZ in 2005 when Aloisi kicked that penalty to send us to the World Cup and the crowd went bananas.

 

[Crow]

While I never think that we're going to give english premiership supporters a run, AFL supporters are probably the best in this regard. Most vocal, anyway.

 

[Ruggo]

This is soft cock stuff. Your team needs your support the most when the chips are down. Maybe the problem is you get to many snobs at rugby games. Understandable given the ridiculous ticketing prices.

 

[Sydney Wallabies]

This is soft cock stuff. Your team needs your support the most when the chips are down. Maybe the problem is you get to many snobs at rugby games. Understandable given the ridiculous ticketing prices.

The prices are absolutely ridiculous.

For a silver section seat at ANZ Stadium for the Bledisloe on 11th September is $117.

The ARU has the hide to whine about the crowd numbers when they make fans pay through the nose to watch the national team play.

Considering the way we've been playing lately, the admission fee should be at least half the price to what they're asking.

$117 for a silver section ticket is just plain rude really.

 

[Richo]

The folks behind me and the boys at the Tahs games go ballistic at us when we stand up and cheer when a try is on. Fortunately they usually leave with about 20 minutes to go so they can beat the traffic. Good times.