HoldenV8
Years ago
NBL Attendance - Round 25
Better late than never, the last round of the 2011-12 NBL season has come and gone and attendances were pretty good for the most part. The only pity is that they aren't like that week in week out for some teams.
Tigers vs Wildcats - 3,349 @ SNC (96%)
Taipans vs 36ers - 4,813 @ CCC (91%)
Crocodiles vs Breakers - 4,133 @ TEC (79%)
Kings vs Hawks - 7,282 @ SEC (69%)
Hawks vs 36ers - 5,032 @ WEC (84%)
Blaze vs Breakers - 4,425 @ GCCC (84%)
While I'm not surprised they didn't have to put the 'House Full' signs up at The Cage as Melbourne couldn't make the playoffs, it would have been nice to see a capacity crowd there on Friday night. Ah but it wasn't to be but in a strange quirk the rounds smallest crowd had the largest percentage of venue capacity.
You've got to hand it to Taipans fans. In a nothing game for them with the team not able to make the playoffs the people of Cairns once again showed themselves to be a loyal bunch, perhaps the most loyal in the league this season, with yet another 4K+ crowd. If cairns can take anything from the season its that they have great home support.
While it was good to see a 4K+ crowd up in Townsville I question why they can't produce this for just about every game at the Townsville Ent Cent. The Crocs went 11-3 at home this season and deserved better home support. Hopefully in the semi's against the Breakers will see a crowd of close to, if not above 5K.
Last round and once again Sydney produces a big home crowd. Well done to the Kings fans (and those who made the trip up from the `Gong) who attended. This was Sydney's 4th 6K+ crowd and 2nd 7K+ crowd of the season. For a team that has been stuck in 7th in the ladder since Rd.7 (with the exception of Rd's 8, 10 & 14 when they were 6th) it was a good effort. Why can't crowds be like this all the damn time? In another quirk the largest crowd of the round also saw the lowest percentage of venue capacity. But that can happen when you have the leagues biggest permanent venue.
For Soup's last ever game it was nice to see Wollongong pull in a 5K+ crowd for the battle to avoid the wooden spoon with the 36ers. Soup and the Hawks didn't disappoint them either.... Makes me wonder though, even though the Hawks had a largely forgettable season why they couldn't pull crowds like this for most games is puzzling.
Why has it taken almost the whole season and the Blaze making the playoffs for the people in paradise to get behind their team? The Blaze produced their biggest home crowd for 2011-12 and while great to see, its again puzzling why this team, which is clearly capable of winning the NBL championship, has struggled to draw a crowd this season.
So there it was, the last round for 2011-12 and no real shocks for attendance figures. Just unanswered questions about why some teams can't pull crowds like we saw this past weekend all the time.
We're bound to see great crowds in the playoffs though, especially over the ditch in EnZed. Capacity for the Vector Arena has been upped for the playoffs from 8,500 to 9,500 due to ticket demand.
On top of all that, the NBL has announced another rise in season attendances. I won't waffle on about it anymore but I'll post the link for all to see :)
http://www.nbl.com.au/news/article/2012/march/nbl-crowds-rise-again/
