Heaps of questions reg. AFL from a 100% newbie

[Danepak]

Hello!

New here.
New to AFL.
New to Australia.
New to Melbourne.
Actually, not going to Melbourne for another few months.
Originally from Denmark, I moved to London i 1999 and then off to NZ last year with the Kiwi wife and shortly moving to Melbourne.
I'm an avid follower of football (or sissy soccer as my Kiwi wife calls it).
Also, I watch rugby union and league. Generally I'm a sports lover and I've heard that Melbourne is a pretty good city to live in, especially if you're into sports.
And yes, I've been told that I have to get into AFL, especially if I live in Melbourne, which explains this post and why I even signed up to this messageboard.

Which team should I support? I'll support the team nearest to where I'll be living in Melbourne (haven't got a clue yet where we'll be living).
But it would be nice with a bit of info from the AFL fans:

I can see that Essendon, North Melbourne, Carlton, Fitzroy, Collingwood, Melbourne, Richmond, Hawthorn and St. Kilda all are Melbourne teams.
- Which team is the most successful?
- Which team is the most popular (biggest support base)?
- Which team is the least popular (half empty stadiums - no one really cares about them - a bit like Fulham FC in the Premier League)?
- Which team is the most hated (yes, the Chelsea or Man Utd of AFL)?
- Which team is the richest/poorest?
- Which team is the biggest underachiever?
- Which team is the worst team?
- Which team is the least hated by other teams?
- Which team has the noisiest supporters?
- Which team has got the most boring supporters?
- Which team has got the most notorious supporters (a bit like Millwall in England)?
- Which team is a family team?
- Is there a team with a unique past/story which they're very proud of?
- Are all games televised?

I'm not the glory hunting type of supporter (I supported Charlton Athletic back in the UK, as they were the local team).
Have you got the same "rules" in the AFL? Do real fans tend to support the local team?
Are there lots of glory hunting fans in the AFL (like Man Utd and more recently Chelsea fans)?
Is it generally cheap to go to games? Easy to get tickets or often sold out?
Do the season tickets cost the same or are there cheaper/more expensive clubs to follow?
Do people go to away games too?
Do people tend to warm up in the pub before the game and return after the game?
Is it safe to go and watch an AFL game? I'm not worried myself, but would probably not bring any visiting family members, if it's a high-risk game (a bit like taking your youngest nephew to a West Ham v Millwall game).

Anything else I should know?

Well excited about moving to Melbourne after nearly a year in Blenheim, Marlborough (NZ).

Cheers
Danepak

[Brades]

- Which team is the most successful?
Hard to say as the AFL was created from the VFL, so all the VFL statistics exist, therefore one of the original teams is the "best" even though around australia Port Adelaide is statistically the most successful

- Which team is the most popular (biggest support base)?
Collingwood, not by much, but big enough.

- Which team is the least popular (half empty stadiums - no one really cares about them - a bit like Fulham FC in the Premier League)?
Melbourne and North Melbourne struggle to attract crowds, most of the Melbourne teams that arent Essendon, Collingwood and StKilda seem tos truggle to get crowds, because 4 million people in Melb and 10 teams doesn't go well.

- Which team is the most hated (yes, the Chelsea or Man Utd of AFL)?
Collingwood. Due to a lot of their fans being "feral" and that they are popular and rich

- Which team is the richest/poorest?
Collingwood is the richest, ahead of WCE and Adelaide. Poorest is North Melbourne Kangaroos and Western Bulldogs

- Which team is the biggest underachiever?
Probably StKIlda. They have had some decent teams but havent won a premiership in ages. Similar with Geelong except they won last year. They made like 4 Grand Finals in the 80s/90s and lost them all.

- Which team is the worst team?
At the moment, Melbourne and Richmond are battling for the tag of worst.

- Which team is the least hated by other teams?
Hard to say cause if you like one team you hate the rest. I suppose Melbourne doesn't seem to cop a lot of ****.
- Which team has the noisiest supporters?
Tough one. Probably Collingwood by shear volume of people at the games, that and Adelaide.
- Which team has got the most boring supporters?
Melbourne. Typically Melbourne supporters are from the Richy areas so they sit back in their members seats and observe
- Which team has got the most notorious supporters (a bit like Millwall in England)?
Definitely Collingwood and their ferals. Port Adelaide are close
- Which team is a family team?
Adelaide, very family like
- Is there a team with a unique past/story which they're very proud of?
Not sure, hard to say really all teams have some sort of back story.

- Are all games televised?
Yes they are, 4 games are televised per week on Channel Seven and Channel Ten (split two a piece) and Cable company Foxtel show the rest live. Seven shows Friday night delayed, Ten shows Saturday Arvo and Night (live into Other cities other than Melb) and Seven then shows one game on Saturday, usually delayed. Pretty poor coverage for the best competition in Australia.

Have you got the same "rules" in the AFL? Do real fans tend to support the local team?
Mostly. Myself I was born inA delaide, lived in Adelaide but I support Freo. Dont know why, but I've always been like that

Are there lots of glory hunting fans in the AFL (like Man Utd and more recently Chelsea fans)?
Yeah, there tends to be more people popping up as Collingwood supporters more often than not and more Brisbane supporters came around after their 3 titles in a row

Is it generally cheap to go to games? Easy to get tickets or often sold out?
Do the season tickets cost the same or are there cheaper/more expensive clubs to follow?
Tickets are relatively cheap, between 20 and 30 Aus Dollars, Not often do they get sold out in Melb simply because over half the teams can't fill the Telstra Dome let alone the MCG. Some games like ANZAC day get sold out. Season tickets depend on the club I think.

Do people go to away games too?
Some people who lead a successful life and have the money do go to away games, but unlike England its not easy to go to these games. Apart from Melbourne v Melbourne, it costs a fair bit to travel between cities just for a game. (Around 80+ dollars per flight for Adelaide to Melb, 160 for Adelaide to Perth).

Do people tend to warm up in the pub before the game and return after the game?
Alot of people spend time in the various alcohol places inside the ground before game time, or they have a few in the car parks outside the stadium. Some people do the old pub-game-pub.

Is it safe to go and watch an AFL game? I'm not worried myself, but would probably not bring any visiting family members, if it's a high-risk game (a bit like taking your youngest nephew to a West Ham v Millwall game).
Its very safe. Occasionally some supporters may get intoxicated, but fights rarely happen.

Anything else I should know?

Not particularly. Welcome to the country and enjoy supporting a team!

[ravadongon]

Pretty comprehensive wrap from Brades.

Only things I'd add/differ slightly on:

Least hated team? Western Bulldogs - play an attractive free flowing style of footy, only won 1 premiership

Do people go to away games? Since you'll probably be supporting a Melbourne club, they don't go interstate much (especially Collingwood), generally between 2-5 times for most (not including finals), more for Hawthorn (play some home games in Tasmania), St Kilda (play some home games at Tassie games) and Kangaroos (play some home games in Canberra and Gold Coast). A passionate fan of average wealth, would probably travel to away games 1-2x per season, but diehard fans (cheering sections/groups), who probably aren't as well off as most, will make it out to every game.

Family team? Hawthorn have the traditional rep for being the "family team", though some may disagree after certain events in recent times (court injunction: not allowed to elaborate). Fremantle are also very family oriented, they do lots of clinics/activities for the kids and players are very interactive and easily approachable for their fans during training and other club events.

Being a non glory hunter, you sound like a good fit for teams like St Kilda, Western Bulldogs, Melbourne, Kangaroos and Fremantle, but that said I've supported Spurs in the EPL (as you would know big underachievers in recent times), but support West Coast in the AFL (arguably the most successful team since the conception of the AFL) and there are plenty of people that support Man U/Chelsea/****nal and North Melbourne/Melbourne/Western Bulldogs (rich and poor).

[Danepak]

Thanks to both of you.
It looks like it might be St. Kilda then.

[DonzFC]

youll be sorryyyyyyyyyy!

go essendon.

[Tippaz]

Originally Posted by Danepak

Thanks to both of you.
It looks like it might be St. Kilda then.

they've won 1 premiership in club history (by 1pt).
i actually feel sorry for them. they're everyone's 2nd team because they've been so unsuccessful.
are you sure you're making the right decision ???

[Brades]

Eh, you don't have to just go and choose the most successful club. As I said, technically the most successful club is Port Adelaide, but they have only been in the AFL since 1997... At least he's not a bandwagoner on the Collingwood train.

[Danepak]

It definitely doesn't have to be the most successful team.
I'm interested in following a team who's not being supported by glory-hunters.
But I wouldn't mind it if they've got a decent turn up at games too.
And if I'm not wrong, St. Kilda meets both criteria.
But what do I know? I haven't even seen an AFL game yet LOL.

[DonzFC]

of the melbourne teams..

a team with passionate support, and not much success is richmond
a team with exciting play, not alot of support or success is bulldogs
a team with alot of success but no support is kangaroos
a team which has had success, and support but is now in the duldrums is carlton
a team that always has support, but is most hated, is collingwood
a team that has huge support, and has been successful although not in the past 5 years is essendon
a team that has support and success and ticks your boxes is hawthorn
a team that has been lacking success, and has a snobby supporter base is melbourne
a team that has medicore supporters, and little to no success is st kilda


most likley to win a flag in the next 5 years-hawthorn,collingwood,essendon
most likley to become extinct----kangaroos,bulldogs
most likley to implode at board level----st kilda,richmond,carlton,melbourne
most likley to make you rip your hairs out as a supporter--richmond,stkilda

but you seem like you know football so heres the best analogy-

Carlton- liverpool, lots of culture and history but flagging right now
Collingwood- man u, hated by all, but has been succesfull and always is there abouts
Essendon- West ham, powerhouse with huge support who hasnt won silverware of late
Bulldogs- Birmingham, plays some nice footy but always seem to be floundering just above relegation
Hawthorn- Tottenham, former powerhouse who is just getting back to best and hankering for its glory years
Melbourne- Blackburn, has been a success in the past but is just filling the numbers now
Kangaroos-West borm, always does just enough to stave off relegation
Richmond-Newcastle, huge support, never deliver, sack coaches regulary
St kilda- Everton ,not the biggest club in the city, but performs well, if not underachieves now and then.

[DonzFC]

p.s when west brom are in the championship kangaroos revert to being wigan