AFL ponder series future

THE AFL are giving serious consideration to ending their involvement in the International Rules series, the Irish Examiner has learned.

A senior figure in the organisation has admitted deep reservations were expressed about the series continuing before last Friday’s first Test. It is believed the AFL no longer see the game as financially viable, a sentiment underlined by just 22,921 people attending the opening game in Melbourne.

That number is expected to be lower at the Gold Coast’s Metricon Stadium for the second and final Test this Friday. GAA Director General Páraic Duffy has warned a 10,000 attendance would put the series “in serious trouble”.

The financial drawback of the series has already been a sticking point for the AFL. In 2009, they pulled out of the scheduled tour to Ireland because of monetary constraints.

Speaking at a press briefing in Melbourne yesterday, Duffy said he had heard nothing to suggest the AFL are anything but behind the series continuing.

However, he admitted he didn’t know where they now stood on the series.

“I’ll be interested to hear what their angle is on the attendance figures,” Duffy stated.

“The figures suggest an apathy among the supporters — how they see it, I don’t know. They got a crowd of 22,000 — you would expect a minimum of 30,000. I can’t say what the AFL view is: we have no discussions on it, either formal or informal.”

The future of the hybrid game will be raised later this week when, as is the norm between Tests, the AFL and GAA officials meet.

Duffy confirmed the GAA will be asking the AFL why they think last Friday’s attendance was so poor. What’s more, he warned, that while the GAA currently wholly endorse the series, their stance could change as falling attendance figures would be mirrored in the next series set to take place in Ireland in 2013.

“One of the points to make about the series from our point of view is it gives the players an opportunity to play for their country. But it must remain cost neutral.

“We keep our home gate receipts and the profits we make from that goes to fund the tour to Australia. So from that point of view the attendance is not a problem for us this year but if the numbers fall here I think inevitably they will start to fall in Ireland.

“That would cause an issue because if our attendances were to fall to a similar level we simply couldn’t afford it.

“We wouldn’t want to pay for this to any great degree out of normal GAA funding. It is cost neutral at the moment — at one stage it was profitable — but it’s pretty much cost neutral now.”

There is little doubt in Duffy’s mind that the GAA would aggressively market a series held in two years time. But he maintains that would only go so far as to attracting interest in the two Tests.

“We’re in for this because we’re convinced of its value. We will market it and we have done that extremely well for the past couple of series.

“But what worries me is you can market it all you like but if the idea develops that the Australians aren’t all that interested because they were well-beaten that could have a knock-on effect in two years’ time.”

Duffy admitted Friday’s crowd — almost half the figure it was for the second Test in Melbourne three years ago — is troubling and points to apathy about the game in Australia.

“Clearly, there would be concern with the attendance figures. They were disappointing. I accept it was a dreadful evening weather-wise; it wasn’t an evening that would encourage you to leave the house. Having said that, it was still a disappointing attendance.

“It doesn’t seem to generate the same levels of interest that it did here or that it does in Ireland. When you have only two countries involved in a competition and in one, through attendance figures, suggests a certain apathy, it does certainly raise questions long term.”

While Duffy acknowledges there is an element of truth in the theory that “people like bust-ups”, he refuses to countenance that a return to the violent scenes of 2005 and 2006 is the only way of bring back the crowds.

“Ireland were terrific last Friday night. And if the Australians, who were hugely impressive last year, played at the same level, and you have two teams playing really well, then it would put bums on seats.

“It doesn’t necessarily take violence to do it. Just because we have had a very one-sided series over the few years, it doesn’t mean we need a good row. I don’t accept that argument.

“If two teams played really well it could be a very entertaining game and hopefully we will get that on Friday. We need a game with that right balance and we haven’t got that in the last few series.”

Duffy also agreed the concessions the Australians had to make in 2008 to clean up the series has created a divide between them and the game.