who has the most supporters ?

[Ian]

Sorry!

It was a beanie in a tea cosy like shape.

Something like this one ????

[best on hill]

traditionally it was said to be port then norwood but who has it now central, sturt, north or glenelg ? (i know it does depend on where your team sits to a degree)

2008 glenelg with all the band wagon supporters
any other year port, centrals and norwood

[Tassie Blues]

When looking at supporter numbers surly club membership would be the best indicator of true supports. There would be more Port and Norwood supporters but they are what I call arsehole supporters. Those that claim to support a team but never attend games or sign up as members and wouldn't be able to name more than a few in the current team or even who they play next weekend. I am not saying Port and Norwood are the only clubs having these kind of supporters all clubs have them (my Dad is the number 1 ticket holder of Sturt arsehole supporters) but just think they would have the most due to the success over the years. I know when I was going through school in the 80's there were kids that went for all team but Port and Norwood had the most even thought very few would go to games or have interest past giving you stick if there side beat yours on the weekend.

[Apachebulldog]

Spot on Tassie i know what ya mean, over the years i have met this type of supporter at various work places during the year you would not hear boo from them however as soon as their team made the GF they were all supporters especially the Maggie clan.

I challenged them by asking have you been to a game their response not really.

Say no more.

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[cd]

Serious question - how do you define supporter?

a member
attends games
attends functions
buys raffle tickets
sponsors the club
watches on TV
listens on radio
uses club facilities - puts money through venues
signs up for emails
buys merchandise
wears the colours
etc etc

We have a large number of folk due to our history who take an interest in our club but cant get passionate - we have many though who are extremely passionate and good on them (as often seen on this site) - we have been improving membership numbers to record levels - slipped a little so far this year but still way above our lowest point 8 years ago of 865.
Also if looking at history West Torrens were the third highest crowd drawer pre 1964

Most supporters probably not - best supporters most certainly yes.

[Big Phil]

Serious question - how do you define supporter?

a member
attends games
attends functions
buys raffle tickets
sponsors the club
watches on TV
listens on radio
uses club facilities - puts money through venues
signs up for emails
buys merchandise
wears the colours
etc etc
We have a large number of folk due to our history who take an interest in our club but cant get passionate - we have many though who are extremely passionate and good on them (as often seen on this site) - we have been improving membership numbers to record levels - slipped a little so far this year but still way above our lowest point 8 years ago of 865.
Also if looking at history West Torrens were the third highest crowd drawer pre 1964

Most supporters probably not - best supporters most certainly yes.

All of the above CD... If you are a true supporter, you do all of the above.

The ones colured red, I feel, are probably the most important aspects out of the lot...

BTW... I do all of the above on the list and have pretty much done so for the last 15 - 20 years on differing levels...

[smithy]

The difference between a supporter and a barracker I guess.

[Sojourner]

Mate!

I'm proud to support the PAFC.

That is interesting to hear Sturt Peter!

Are you going to the 1998 Premiership reunion dinner?

From the Port Magpies Website,

"Re-Live the Moments,

In 1998 winning the Premiership from the Elimination Final and remembering the Magpie Chant that brought the boys home after Sturt hit the front midway through the final term. And don't forget Brian Beinke's long bomb from the outer wing in the last term to seal victory".

http://www.portmagpies.com.au/news.php?news_id=307

[Tassie Blues]

Mate!

I'm proud to support the PAFC.

That is interesting to hear Sturt Peter!

Are you going to the 1998 Premiership reunion dinner?

From the Port Magpies Website,

"Re-Live the Moments,

In 1998 winning the Premiership from the Elimination Final and remembering the Magpie Chant that brought the boys home after Sturt hit the front midway through the final term. And don't forget Brian Beinke's long bomb from the outer wing in the last term to seal victory".

http://www.portmagpies.com.au/news.php?news_id=307

It would be inappropriate if he did go to it!

[Sojourner]

It would be inappropriate if he did go to it!

Not really, it wouldent be all that much of a stretch of the imagination to see the DVD of that game getting a regular run in SturtPeters DVD players, and after a few reds Sturt Peter on 5AA calling on the public of S.A to join him in the club song of his beloved Magpies!

"Cheer Cheer the Black and the White

Honour the Magpies day and by night

Lift that loyal banner high

Shake down the thunder from the sky

Whether the odds be great or small

We'll come out and win overall

While our players keep on fighting

Onward to VICTORY!"

[prowling panther]

Sojourner.....................go wash your mouth out this instance


This is not good coming from a "Southie"

[Barto]

When looking at supporter numbers surly club membership would be the best indicator of true supports. There would be more Port and Norwood supporters but they are what I call arsehole supporters. Those that claim to support a team but never attend games or sign up as members and wouldn't be able to name more than a few in the current team or even who they play next weekend. I am not saying Port and Norwood are the only clubs having these kind of supporters all clubs have them (my Dad is the number 1 ticket holder of Sturt arsehole supporters) but just think they would have the most due to the success over the years. I know when I was going through school in the 80's there were kids that went for all team but Port and Norwood had the most even thought very few would go to games or have interest past giving you stick if there side beat yours on the weekend.

The so called massive support for Port has been found out now that they have an AFL team and they're shite.

[Psyber]

When looking at supporter numbers surly club membership would be the best indicator of true supports. There would be more Port and Norwood supporters but they are what I call arsehole supporters. Those that claim to support a team but never attend games or sign up as members and wouldn't be able to name more than a few in the current team or even who they play next weekend. I am not saying Port and Norwood are the only clubs having these kind of supporters all clubs have them (my Dad is the number 1 ticket holder of Sturt arsehole supporters) but just think they would have the most due to the success over the years. I know when I was going through school in the 80's there were kids that went for all team but Port and Norwood had the most even thought very few would go to games or have interest past giving you stick if there side beat yours on the weekend.

There are a lot of surly clubs members and supporters about Tassie. At least it is a measure of their emotionality, rabidness, and tribalism.

[therisingblues]

Glenelg OVal - Glenelg and Sturt on 20 July 1968 crowd 17,171
Football Park - Port and Sturt on 28/9/1976 crowd 66,897
Adelaide Oval - Port Adelaide v Sturt 1965 SANFL GF: crowd 62,543
Alberton Oval - Port Adelaide v Norwood 1977 SANFL: crowd 22,738
Richmond Oval - West Adelaide v Glenelg 1969 SANFL crowd 15,742
Norwood Oval - Norwood v Port Adelaide 1971 SANFL: crowd 20,280
Elizabeth Oval - Central District v Port Adelaide 1984 crowd 16,029
Noarlunga Oval - South Adelaide v Glenelg 6/5/1995 crowd 10,123
Prospect Oval - North Adelaide v Port Adelaide 1958 SANFL: crowd 19,137
Thebarton Oval - West Torrens v Norwood 26/05/62 SANFL: crowd 20,832
Unley Oval - Sturt v Norwood 1924 crowd 24,000
Woodville Oval - Woodville v Port Adelaide 9/8/1986 crowd 11,026

Biggest minor round crowd Sturt/Port/Central/North Football Park 1988 crowd 38,213
Biggest minor round crowd stand alone Sturt v Glenelg Fathers Day crowd ? spelly ? 1975 ?

Good on ya Smithy!
I counted Port's participation in those figures 8 times.
Sturt appears 6 times.
Glenelg 4 times.
Norwood 3 times.
Perhaps the best generalization that can be made by the above is that every crowd record for any ground in the SANFL has involved either Port, Sturt, Glenelg or Norwood.
Norwood have marketed their ground on the Parade very well, but there isn't too much evidence in the above records of any crowd pulling supremecy by the Legs.

[SimonH]

Good on ya Smithy!
I counted Port's participation in those figures 8 times.
Sturt appears 6 times.
Glenelg 4 times.
Norwood 3 times.
Perhaps the best generalization that can be made by the above is that every crowd record for any ground in the SANFL has involved either Port, Sturt, Glenelg or Norwood.
Norwood have marketed their ground on the Parade very well, but there isn't too much evidence in the above records of any crowd pulling supremecy by the Legs.

The individual highest crowd for each ground is way too rough a proxy for each club's ability to draw a crowd.

For that, you'd need the average crowds over a number of years; or at worst, the 50 or so highest-attended non-finals of all time. (While of course there is a link between frequency of appearing in finals and a team's support, finals and in particular GFs will always be higher-drawing and so the list of 'the highest attended matches of all time' would unfairly favour teams who have played lots of finals.) If any of the stats gurus on here feel like going to it...

What would be particularly interesting is how clubs' popularity has ebbed and flowed over the decades. Not just with ladder position, but more for demographic reasons; for example cd's comment that West Torrens used to be one of the bigger crowd-pullers in the years leading up to 1964, and now regardless of how many years they spend at the top of the ladder WWT will be nearer to the bottom of the pile numbers-wise.

And yes, I understand that 'best ability to pull a crowd' is different from 'highest number of supporters'; but for reasons cd has explained, the latter concept is too vague and amorphous. You can put a definite number on crowds. You can put a definite number on club memberships too, but the benefits extended to members and the costs of being one vary over time, and so in times gone by, regular attenders at matches may have been either more or less motivated to buy memberships than now.

[SimonH]

The so called massive support for Port has been found out now that they have an AFL team and they're shite.

The sad fact is that Port has done better than any other stand-alone SANFL team entering the AFL would have done. The problem is with the concept of a stand-alone SANFL team entering a national competition as one of just 2 SA teams.

Even if you gave the Maggies a massive 25% of all SA footy fans' support as at 1996 (which might even be about right), that meant that 75% of SA footy fans hated Port and probably always would. If there were 4 or 5 SA teams (which is another debate), no worries. But you can't have those kind of numbers against you in a 2-team town.

The future: the bean counters realise that as the current supporter base stands, it's a pretty marginal business at best, and can only be grown by getting more like 50% of kids coming through supporting them. So they want to promote it as brand 'The Power' to kids who have grown up only knowing AFL, who will largely live nowhere near Port Adelaide, and who couldn't care less about what their parents used to think of the Maggies. Whereas the present supporter base says, 'Port Adelaide is our team. Port Adelaide Football Club: representing the Port Adelaide area since 1870. Forget this 'Power' marketing nonsense.' The administration of the joint is stuck between a rock and a hard place trying to expand the business while keeping the core base happy. I don't envy them their job.

But of course I hope they fail. Because I always hope that Port Adelaide fail in everything they do.

[am Bays]

The future: the bean counters realise that as the current supporter base stands, it's a pretty marginal business at best, and can only be grown by getting more like 50% of kids coming through supporting them. So they want to promote it as brand 'The Power' to kids who have grown up only knowing AFL, who will largely live nowhere near Port Adelaide, and who couldn't care less about what their parents used to think of the Maggies. Whereas the present supporter base says, 'Port Adelaide is our team. Port Adelaide Football Club: representing the Port Adelaide area since 1870. Forget this 'Power' marketing nonsense.' The administration of the joint is stuck between a rock and a hard place trying to expand the business while keeping the core base happy. I don't envy them their job.

But of course I hope they fail. Because I always hope that Port Adelaide fail in everything they do.

Make a bet, my kids are getting a crash course on why we hate the dis-honourable SANFL backstabbing filfth. Don't care who they follow in the AFL but it is well and truly known they only have a choice of 15 clubs. My 3 yo alreadys knows how to say "we hate Port Adelaide"

[mick]

My 3 yo alreadys knows how to say "we hate Port Adelaide"

This is of course the sacred duty of every decent South Australian

[SimonH]

Make a bet, my kids are getting a crash course on why we hate the dis-honourable SANFL backstabbing filfth. Don't care who they follow in the AFL but it is well and truly known they only have a choice of 15 clubs. My 3 yo alreadys knows how to say "we hate Port Adelaide"

I'm very very proud of you and hope that more South Australian parents are following your example.

[doggies4eva]

Good on ya Smithy!
I counted Port's participation in those figures 8 times.
Sturt appears 6 times.
Glenelg 4 times.
Norwood 3 times.
Perhaps the best generalization that can be made by the above is that every crowd record for any ground in the SANFL has involved either Port, Sturt, Glenelg or Norwood.
Norwood have marketed their ground on the Parade very well, but there isn't too much evidence in the above records of any crowd pulling supremecy by the Legs.

The individual highest crowd for each ground is way too rough a proxy for each club's ability to draw a crowd.

For that, you'd need the average crowds over a number of years; or at worst, the 50 or so highest-attended non-finals of all time. (While of course there is a link between frequency of appearing in finals and a team's support, finals and in particular GFs will always be higher-drawing and so the list of 'the highest attended matches of all time' would unfairly favour teams who have played lots of finals.) If any of the stats gurus on here feel like going to it...

What would be particularly interesting is how clubs' popularity has ebbed and flowed over the decades. Not just with ladder position, but more for demographic reasons; for example cd's comment that West Torrens used to be one of the bigger crowd-pullers in the years leading up to 1964, and now regardless of how many years they spend at the top of the ladder WWT will be nearer to the bottom of the pile numbers-wise.

And yes, I understand that 'best ability to pull a crowd' is different from 'highest number of supporters'; but for reasons cd has explained, the latter concept is too vague and amorphous. You can put a definite number on crowds. You can put a definite number on club memberships too, but the benefits extended to members and the costs of being one vary over time, and so in times gone by, regular attenders at matches may have been either more or less motivated to buy memberships than now.

I agree with your reasonong SimonH but would add that the face of footy has been changed so much by the entrance of two SA based teams in the AFL that comparisons of the current situation should only include those seasons that are post Pt Adelaide's entrance into the AFL.