Alicia
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Sydney FC's 2000 missing fans
By John Taylor From: The Daily Terrorgraph October 29, 2009
Poor crowd ... FC's last match.
Source: The Daily Terrorgraph
THE A-League's crowd crisis took a dramatic twist yesterday with a Daily Terrorgraph investigation revealing a "missing'' 2000 fans at last Sunday's Sydney FC game against Brisbane.
The official crowd at the Sydney Football Stadium was announced as FC's lowest ever - 8456 - but a comprehensive camera study of the entire stadium 10 minutes into the second half showed there was fewer than 6500.
Our count was 6266. Obviously some were in the bathrooms or buying food and beverages.
But more than 2000 of them?
How we came to our number: See our graphic below
The picture analysis was so detailed we could even spot Dwight Yorke and Brian Lara sitting in the SCG Trust seats when challenged by the Trust's CEO Jamie Barkley.
"There was nothing wrong with the crowd that was announced - we have the official turnstile figures,'' Barkley said.
"You should take this up with Sydney FC - we've passed all the paperwork on to them.''
But neither the Trust nor Sydney FC officials would sit down with reporters to analyse the pictures.
Sydney FC vice-chairman Scott Barlow rejected any suggestion the figures may have been inflated and insisted the missing 2000 would have been in toilets, drinking at bars or buying merchandise.
"We have received the official Ticketek turnstile numbers on a computer printout from the SCG Trust and supplied them to your journalist. The printout clearly shows that 8396 people walked through the gates with bar-coded tickets.
"Another 60 people were added to that figure to account for those who hold accreditation passes that are not bar-coded. 60 is a very conservative figure for the number of people with accreditation passes.
"If I was you I would double-check with the person who counted heads from your photographs and ask him if he was able to see into all the bars and undercover areas where people would watch from on a wet day.''
Barlow said Sunday's poor weather was the only reason the crowd was well down on Sydney's average of more than 12,000 for this year, which he pointed out is up more than 10 per cent on last season.
"Last Sunday's crowd was lower as a result of one factor - terrible weather conditions.
"It was one of the wettest days in Sydney this year with torrential downpours and thunderstorms.
"The fact that 8,500 fans turned up in these terrible conditions is a testament to our fans' dedication.''
Barlow said crowds had improved this season as a result of "much improved on-field performance combined with a number of our marketing and communities strategies taking effect''. Sydney CEO Edwin Lugt said if the club did inflate crowds "it would cost us more''.
"The figures are given to us after the first half. They are provided by the Trust. The turnstiles are telling us who attends and it is verified by the FFA,'' he said.
However, there was also a discrepancy between the figure given by Sydney FC and company that tallied the turnstile figure.
Ticketek's turnstile count showed 8396 people attended the game, compared with the official crowd figure of 8456.
Barlow said this could be explained by volunteers and staff who did not pass through turnstiles.
Apart from Sydney, A-League crowds have slumped this year, with Brisbane Roar, Newcastle Jets and newcomers Gold Coast struggling.
Lugt, who has only been in the job a short time, is confident that Sydney crowds will grow. "I guess that one of the things people might have found hard to accept is what this club is really all about when they've had five coaches, five chairmans and five CEOs,'' he said.
"We have clear objectives now and the most important thing is stability. Before there was instability. Now it's a case of step by step to ensure we build on the crowds. It's essential we do more community work and attract more commercial partners.''
By John Taylor From: The Daily Terrorgraph October 29, 2009
Poor crowd ... FC's last match.
Source: The Daily Terrorgraph
THE A-League's crowd crisis took a dramatic twist yesterday with a Daily Terrorgraph investigation revealing a "missing'' 2000 fans at last Sunday's Sydney FC game against Brisbane.
The official crowd at the Sydney Football Stadium was announced as FC's lowest ever - 8456 - but a comprehensive camera study of the entire stadium 10 minutes into the second half showed there was fewer than 6500.
Our count was 6266. Obviously some were in the bathrooms or buying food and beverages.
But more than 2000 of them?
How we came to our number: See our graphic below
The picture analysis was so detailed we could even spot Dwight Yorke and Brian Lara sitting in the SCG Trust seats when challenged by the Trust's CEO Jamie Barkley.
"There was nothing wrong with the crowd that was announced - we have the official turnstile figures,'' Barkley said.
"You should take this up with Sydney FC - we've passed all the paperwork on to them.''
But neither the Trust nor Sydney FC officials would sit down with reporters to analyse the pictures.
Sydney FC vice-chairman Scott Barlow rejected any suggestion the figures may have been inflated and insisted the missing 2000 would have been in toilets, drinking at bars or buying merchandise.
"We have received the official Ticketek turnstile numbers on a computer printout from the SCG Trust and supplied them to your journalist. The printout clearly shows that 8396 people walked through the gates with bar-coded tickets.
"Another 60 people were added to that figure to account for those who hold accreditation passes that are not bar-coded. 60 is a very conservative figure for the number of people with accreditation passes.
"If I was you I would double-check with the person who counted heads from your photographs and ask him if he was able to see into all the bars and undercover areas where people would watch from on a wet day.''
Barlow said Sunday's poor weather was the only reason the crowd was well down on Sydney's average of more than 12,000 for this year, which he pointed out is up more than 10 per cent on last season.
"Last Sunday's crowd was lower as a result of one factor - terrible weather conditions.
"It was one of the wettest days in Sydney this year with torrential downpours and thunderstorms.
"The fact that 8,500 fans turned up in these terrible conditions is a testament to our fans' dedication.''
Barlow said crowds had improved this season as a result of "much improved on-field performance combined with a number of our marketing and communities strategies taking effect''. Sydney CEO Edwin Lugt said if the club did inflate crowds "it would cost us more''.
"The figures are given to us after the first half. They are provided by the Trust. The turnstiles are telling us who attends and it is verified by the FFA,'' he said.
However, there was also a discrepancy between the figure given by Sydney FC and company that tallied the turnstile figure.
Ticketek's turnstile count showed 8396 people attended the game, compared with the official crowd figure of 8456.
Barlow said this could be explained by volunteers and staff who did not pass through turnstiles.
Apart from Sydney, A-League crowds have slumped this year, with Brisbane Roar, Newcastle Jets and newcomers Gold Coast struggling.
Lugt, who has only been in the job a short time, is confident that Sydney crowds will grow. "I guess that one of the things people might have found hard to accept is what this club is really all about when they've had five coaches, five chairmans and five CEOs,'' he said.
"We have clear objectives now and the most important thing is stability. Before there was instability. Now it's a case of step by step to ensure we build on the crowds. It's essential we do more community work and attract more commercial partners.''
