The biggest day in the sporting calender here in Melbourne is coming up, on the last Saturday in September (most years, and definitely this one), and the whole city is abuzz! Sure, some will argue that the Melbourne Cup is the biggest, but it is only on Grand Final Day where you will find a deserted city for a solid three hours.
Myself and the girls and Noodles have been lucky enough to score tickets for the big day in the Hawthorn Members ballot. Just as we were in 2008 for that most amazing day. A very nervous and stressful wait for us all day yesterday, until Jessie called me and let me know the great news. WE'RE GOING TO THE GRAND FINAL!!!
So many people have missed out, as is always the story each year.
(Photo credit - Instagram by krist1ne_, used with permission)
Hawthorn Football Club have said in this article that they were allocated 15,000 tickets for Members, with 41,000 eligible Members out of our 60,000+ Membership base. Of course, of those that were eligible, each person needed to register in the ballot two weeks ago - so silly not to have done that! I have read that Sydney Swans Football Club have had Members tickets still on sale today, after providing registered Members a ticket each. Lucky them!
I am violently opposed to people who don't care about footy getting tickets. Or people who don't support either team getting to go to the big day, ahead of fans of the competing clubs. But more saddened by the idea that passionate fans of either competing club would miss out on a ticket to the biggest match of the year, provided they did all they could to get them. There is just not enough allocated by the AFL to the competing clubs, in proportion to the Membership bases of clubs.
The best way to get a ticket to the AFL Grand Final is to sign up and be a Member of your club, right from the start of the season. There are many posts on different sites stating that people would "pay good money" for tickets for Saturday - well, you totally should have supported your club all year!
After the near merger of our great club with Melbourne back in 1996, and being proud supporters of the movement to keep our club on it's own two feet, we are staunch supporters of being signed up Members. Never would we want to see our club be any different. I have been a Member since I had a Junior Squadron back in Primary School - only missing being paid up during the two years I was living in London, and then that was only because I often barely had enough to get by week to week! I wouldn't do that gap again, given the option now to pay by the month.
Hawthorn has three levels of priority within the Membership base and ballot registration, and we had upgraded our Memberships to Silver after feeling very, very lucky at the base level in 2008. From reading posts by other Hawk supporters on different sites today, it seems we were still very lucky to have our names pulled out on the randomised ballot in this second group - Gold and above Memberships getting guaranteed seats.
For those that missed out, it would be so devastating, but if it was us we would have done whatever it took to go. Including buying the exorbitant AFL endorsed packages - those are just criminal scalping! Supporters do sell them all week, if things have come up since going in the ballot.
I tell most people who ask about getting tickets the tale of the seven lads who stood behind us in 2008, who all just showed up on the morning of the Grand Final, and managed to each buy a ticket from someone trying to sell one at the last minute. That's possible.
Good luck to those passionate Hawks who have missed out, and are seeking to go.
Go Hawks!
So many people have missed out, as is always the story each year.
(Photo credit - Instagram by krist1ne_, used with permission)
Hawthorn Football Club have said in this article that they were allocated 15,000 tickets for Members, with 41,000 eligible Members out of our 60,000+ Membership base. Of course, of those that were eligible, each person needed to register in the ballot two weeks ago - so silly not to have done that! I have read that Sydney Swans Football Club have had Members tickets still on sale today, after providing registered Members a ticket each. Lucky them!
I am violently opposed to people who don't care about footy getting tickets. Or people who don't support either team getting to go to the big day, ahead of fans of the competing clubs. But more saddened by the idea that passionate fans of either competing club would miss out on a ticket to the biggest match of the year, provided they did all they could to get them. There is just not enough allocated by the AFL to the competing clubs, in proportion to the Membership bases of clubs.
The best way to get a ticket to the AFL Grand Final is to sign up and be a Member of your club, right from the start of the season. There are many posts on different sites stating that people would "pay good money" for tickets for Saturday - well, you totally should have supported your club all year!
Hawthorn has three levels of priority within the Membership base and ballot registration, and we had upgraded our Memberships to Silver after feeling very, very lucky at the base level in 2008. From reading posts by other Hawk supporters on different sites today, it seems we were still very lucky to have our names pulled out on the randomised ballot in this second group - Gold and above Memberships getting guaranteed seats.
For those that missed out, it would be so devastating, but if it was us we would have done whatever it took to go. Including buying the exorbitant AFL endorsed packages - those are just criminal scalping! Supporters do sell them all week, if things have come up since going in the ballot.
I tell most people who ask about getting tickets the tale of the seven lads who stood behind us in 2008, who all just showed up on the morning of the Grand Final, and managed to each buy a ticket from someone trying to sell one at the last minute. That's possible.
Good luck to those passionate Hawks who have missed out, and are seeking to go.
Go Hawks!
TECHNICALLY, the best way to get a ticket to the Grand Final would be to have your parents put your name on the MCC waiting list at birth. Or so it would seem - my brother's gone to the Grand Final every year since he went from Restricted to Full Membership, mostly because he can! He doesn't care who's playing (unless the Cats are playing, of course), he just wants to see a good game of footy and make the most of the $700 a year he forks out!!
ReplyDelete(I, on the other hand, turned down MCC membership at the age of 16 on the basis that I'm not forking out $700 a year to attend like two footy matches and one cricket match. Everyone thinks I'm crazy. I think I'm much richer than I would be otherwise!)
Enjoy the game on Saturday - I'll be cheering for the Hawks, even though it hurts my Cats supporting self a little bit to do so :)
Ha ha, I can imagine! Almost as much as it hurt me to cheer your lads on last year!
DeleteAlthough with the MCC don't you need to line up from the early hours to get it, with no certainty you'll get a spot? I think I would find that WAY too stressful!
And yeah, the MCC Membership is well out of reach!
They've changed it now - I think it was two years ago, they introduced a deal where if you pay $20 to be on the list, you get put into a ballot that gives away tickets for about half the Members' seats. The rest are done on the Saturday morning. So there's still no guarantee, but considering a lot of Members are too cheap to pay the $20, the odds of getting a ticket are pretty well certain if you go in the ballot.
DeleteOh right. So a little easier....but still for twice the price.
DeletePlus you money doesn't go to the footy club, which is my main issue with the MCC. I care about the viability of my team!
I too have been offered to be placed on the list, but couldn't justify the cost to hold the spot on the waitlist - plus a club Member is more significant for me.
Hi Tash,
ReplyDeleteSince I know you have a lot of overseas followers who might want to watch the Grand Final, here are some links to parties that are being held in North America and around the world:
http://www.afana.com/drupal5/parties/2012/frontpage
http://www.afl.com.au/overseas%20gf%20party%20finder/tabid/14881/default.aspx
Thanks for the info, Brian!
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