Fans of the Northern Blues and Essendon will see their VFL teams take to Etihad Stadium this year as curtain raiser matches to their AFL aligned sides.
In a major move to engage fans and increase exposure for the VFL competition, the Blues will play two games – against North Ballarat in Round 5 and Frankston in Round 11 – prior to AFL aligned side Carlton’s matches against GWS and Gold Coast.
Collingwood has also just announced its Round 17 clash against Northern Blues will be an MCG curtain raiser.
Northern Blues General Manager Garry O’Sullivan said the games would provide benefits for both the VFL and AFL side.
“In collaboration with the Carlton Football Club, the Northern Blues were thrilled to be offered the opportunity to play two curtain raiser games,” O’Sullivan said.
“To further engage fans, Carlton thought it would add value to their membership packages by showcasing the young talent that Carlton have at their disposal.”
“It gives the younger Northern Blues and Carlton players the opportunity to play at one of the elite AFL venues which will be a valuable experience to all participating.
“It is also a clear demonstration on how close the alignment has become by the fact that the Carlton Football Club laid the foundation for such an opportunity to become a reality for the Northern Blues Football Club.”
Essendon has grabbed the opportunity for a double header with Geelong when both the VFL and AFL sides meet at Etihad Stadium in Round 8 of the VFL season.
While the Northern Blues and Essendon will stage traditional curtain raiser games, a number of clubs like Collingwood, Richmond and Footscray have fixtured VFL home games earlier so fans can get to see their AFL side later in the day.
As Richmond VFL General Manager Daniel Hull explained, Richmond utilises the ME Bank Centre and its close proximity to the MCG as the perfect pregame to the AFL Tigers.
“After the AFL fixture is released, our first point of action is to look at what opportunities there are to have home VFL matches as curtain-raisers before our AFL side plays at theMCG," Hull said.
“Being a newly formed standalone VFL side, it is a big focus for us as a club to engage Richmond’s supporter base and give them opportunities to watch the next batch of future Richmond AFL players.”
“To be able to give our fans the opportunity to watch our VFL game before watching our AFL side play is something we don’t take for granted, and we’d like to thank AFL Victoria for maximising our curtain-raiser matches when it comes to the logistical intricacies of putting together the VFL fixture.”
Hull believes hosting these matches benefit the competition as a whole, providing an increased audience to the VFL.
“Having the curtain-raiser games works really well for all VFL stakeholders and helps expose the VFL competition.
“This season we have five VFL curtain-raiser games, of which three are a VFL/AFL double-headers. Meaning that when we play Geelong, Collingwood and Essendon in the VFL Dreamtime match, supporters of all clubs can watch their teams play at both VFL and AFL level on the same day.”
The Northern Blues game this weekend versus north Ballarat will start at 1:15pm, with AFL entry prices applying to the game. Quarters will run for a maximum 27 minutes per term, which has been agreed upon by the clubs involved.
(Photo: Dave Savell)
Last Modified on 14/05/2015 13:34
