Gather Round Is Great In Adelaide, But It Should Rotate | THE VOLCANZO

Don't get me wrong, Gather Round really does work in Adelaide. Geographically it works well, the weather is always nice, and there are great venues where games a played all weekend. It is something on the footy fan's bucket list, with the uniqueness of games at Norwood Oval and now in the Barossa, it is great. What I can't do is join everyone else in hailing this as the greatest thing since slice bread.

Adelaide Oval hosts the biggest blockbuster matches every Gather Round

The concept of playing a week of sport in one place isn't something unique to Australia, heck the idea didn't originate in Australia. The NRL's Magic Round, was a copy from English Rugby's Magic Weekend. I can't call the people involved as geniuses, when they are copping an idea that has been working successful for 20 years in another nation.

Eddie McGuire went as far as compare Gather Round to the Super Bowl. As a lover of the NFL I can say, No Eddie, no it bloody isn't. Footy fans like to think of media as massive overreactors, and yeah I can see why some say that now.

The one person I won't credit is Peter Malinauskas. Footy media portrays him as a genius man of the people. Those free plane trips, and half an hour time difference jet lag, sure does a lot to media folks. But he isn't original. He is one of many people who has realized you can convince the AFL of anything by presenting them a sack with a dollar sign on it. Money is the only reason Gather Round is in Adelaide, and it will be the only reason it leaves, knowing the AFL.

SA Premier Peter Malinauskas with AFL CEO Andrew Dillion

But back to the footy, whenever someone dares to suggest Gather Round should occur in Sydney or Perth, all you hear is negatives. It's too far away, it's too small, the city doesn't care about footy, all more the reason to do it. You see difficulties and you can either strive to overcome them or attack it and all we seem to do in this sport is cynical attacking. Sydney and Perth will work for Gather Round, I believe this because as already stated, playing sport in one city has been tried in several environments in differing sports to great success.

I look at all the people that making their way into Adelaide and think, imagine if we had this, but in a city where less people care about the AFL. Maybe thereafter, more people would care about the AFL, a novel thought. This isn't likely given the news the MCG wants a game on Labor Day Eve. How is the clutching of pearls from the MCC by the way? They are so threatened by two games each in New South Wales & Queensland over one weekend with nothing in Melbourne, they want another marquee game. Anyone wonder why this game is not as nationally beloved as it should be?

Richmond in 2024 walk off Norwood Oval, one of the most unique aspects of Gather Round

Here is what I would like to see going forward. If I was God-Emperor of the AFL who could do whatever I want, Gather Round would rotate every four years amongst Adelaide, Perth, Sydney and Hobart. Mind you rotating venues, is what I would do as God-Emperor to the AFL Grand Final, so I won't be heading the AFL anytime soon, At the very least, following on something Craig Hutchinson said on The Agenda Setters, a year or two needs to be set aside for a Tasmania Gather Round after the stadium is built to help out the 19th team. If AFL sign a deal with Adelaide until 2029, and Hobart is guaranteed the festival of footy for 2030 and 2031, I would be happy with that.

If Adelaide does get a long-term deal expect applause for fans and media, though don't expect the same thing if and when a twilight Grand Final or 10-team finals series get announced. I guess the Gather Round cash grab, is a crap grab that is acceptable.

'The Volcanzo' is a regular segment from the podcast arm of Extra Time, where Lorenzo Di-Mauro Hayes goes on a weekly sporting rant. This is the written version of The Volcanzo from Episode 9 of Footy Chat. Make sure to check out all our podcasts at the Extra Time YouTube channel.