New ground bounce: Can North defy history to beat the Gold Coast in the Barossa?
An in-depth analysis of how clubs perform in the first game at a new stadium
You’ve heard of the new coach bounce, but what about the new ground bounce?
The AFL world heads to Adelaide this week for the third year of Gather Round, where all nine games will be played across three different grounds: the Adelaide Oval, Norwood Oval, and Barossa Park (also known as Lyndoch Recreation Park).
The last of these grounds, located in a regional town in the Barossa Valley, will become the 51st different venue to host a V/AFL game, with North Melbourne playing the Gold Coast on Saturday afternoon before Richmond plays Fremantle the following day.
IMAGE: ABC News: Stephen Opie
One of the quirks of Gather Round is that the seven involving non-South Australian teams will be played at neutral venues, with home team designation – dictating which team has the choice of what uniform they wear, the change room they access, and the order they run out onto the field – being decided by a coin toss.
North Melbourne is the designated home team in their clash against the Suns. And while normally home field advantage is a good thing (the home team has won 57.6% of games in V/AFL history), this isn’t the case during the first game played at a particular venue.
Going back to 1897, the home team has won 23 of 50 (46.0%) first matches played at past and current V/AFL venues.
Recent history is even worse, with the home team winning just three of the 10 most recent debut matches for venues.
However, the Kangaroos can take some confidence from the fact that two of those three wins have come from the two most recent first games at new V/AFL venues: Fremantle defeated Gold Coast at Norwood Oval and the Brisbane Lions defeated North Melbourne at Summit Sports Park (Mount Barker) by 10 and 75 points (respectively) in the inaugural Gather Round event in 2023.
In addition, the home team won in the first V/AFL games played at the other two South Australian grounds: Adelaide defeated Hawthorn by 86 points at Football Park in 1991 and Port Adelaide defeated Melbourne by eight points at the Adelaide Oval in 2011.
And if that wasn’t enough, North Melbourne (who currently sit thirteenth on the ladder) can head into their clash with the Suns (third on the ladder) knowing that the home team being lower on the ladder ahead of the first match at a new venue isn’t something out of the ordinary.
Excluding the 13 games played in Round 1 (where all teams are equal on zero wins, the home team has been in a lower ladder position in 22 of the remaining 37 games.
Unfortunately, the home team has won just four of the 22 matches.
I’ve gone through the history books and compiled each team’s home record in first games at new V/AFL venues. Find out when your club last featured in such a game, and how they performed.
ADELAIDE
1 game, 1 win
Last game: Adelaide 24.11.155 defeated Hawthorn 9.15.69 by 86 points at Football Park, Round 1 1991
Adelaide entered the AFL with a bang, winning their first game in club history at the iconic Football Park after outscoring the Hawks 11 goals to three in the first half. John Klug, Bruce Lindner, and Peter McIntyre kicked four goals each, while Simon Tregenza had 31 disposals. It was their first of 167 victories (from 252 games) as the home team at the venue.
BRISBANE LIONS
1 game, 1 win
Last game: Brisbane Lions 20.20.152 defeated North Melbourne 12.5.77 by 75 points at Summit Sports Park (Mount Barker), Round 5 2023
The first AFL game at Mount Barker started off hot, with both teams kicking five goals each in the first quarter. But from then on it was all Brisbane, who led at 23 points at the main break and 59 points at three quarter time before finishing with a 75 point victory. Joe Daniher was dominant with five goals and nine marks inside 50, but Lachie Neale received the three Brownlow votes for his 37 disposals and 13 clearances.
CARLTON
2 games, 1 win
Last game: Carlton 17.15.117 defeated Hawthorn 11.14.80 by 37 points at Euroa, Round 8 1952
Round 8 of the 1952 VFL season was interrupted by Victoria facing off against Western Australia at the MCG – meaning the 12 teams were sent far and wide across the country in what has been referred to as “Propaganda Round”. The Blues and Hawks were sent to Euroa, a small town in north-eastern Victoria, and came home with the four points on the back of ruck-turned-full-forward Jack “Chooka” Howell kicking eight goals.
COLLINGWOOD
1 game, 1 win
Last game: Collingwood 5.11.41 defeated St Kilda 2.4.16 by 25 points at Victoria Park, Round 1 1897
Collingwood’s only game as the home team at a new venue occurred all the way back in the first round of the VFL, when they defeated St Kilda at Victoria Park. Players used a nearby pub as changerooms (there was no grandstand at the current time) before running to the ground in their uniforms to play.
ESSENDON
3 games, 2 wins
Last game: Essendon 24.12.156 defeated Port Adelaide 8.14.62 by 94 points at Docklands Stadium (Marvel Stadium), Round 1 2000
Built as a replacement for the aging Waverly Park, the first game at the Docklands Stadium was also the start of one of the most dominant seasons for any club in V/AFL history. Matthew Lloyd kicked seven goals as the Essendon handed Port Adelaide their biggest loss to that point in their existence. The Bombers went on to win 21 from 22 games during the regular season and defeated Melbourne by 10 goals in the Grand Final.
FREMANTLE
1 game, 1 win
Last game: Fremantle 15.10.100 defeated Gold Coast 13.12.90 by 10 points at Norwood Oval, Round 5 2023
The visitors controlled the game for much of the first half before the Dockers turned things around in the second, kicking nine goals to four to overcome the Suns. Midfielder Caleb Serong bought his own footy to Norwood, with 37 disposals, eight clearances, and five inside 50s, while Michael Walters kicked four goals.
GEELONG
3 games, 1 win
Last game: Geelong 12.14.86 lost to Essendon 23.17.155 by 69 points at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground, Round 8 1952
Geelong was sent to the Brisbane Exhibition Ground as part of the previously mentioned “Propaganda Round” back in 1952, but the game almost didn’t happen. Heavy rain on the Saturday meant the game was postponed (sound familiar?) until the Monday night – although it meant the two teams were the first to play an official match under lights. Bombers legend John Coleman kicked a lazy 13 goals as Essendon were never challenged after quarter time.
GOLD COAST
2 games, 0 wins
Last game: Gold Coast 11.10.76 lost to St Kilda 11.14.80 by four points at Riverway Stadium, Round 13 2019
After hosting numerous pre-season games over the years, it took until 2019 for an AFL match to be played for premiership points in Townsville. The Suns jumped out to a 21-point lead at quarter time, but St Kilda regrouped after half time to get themselves back in the game. Two fourth quarter goals to Jack Billings (who also had 33 disposals and three clearances) saw the Saints steal it late.
GWS
2 games, 0 wins
Last game: Greater Western Sydney 7.11.53 lost to Essendon 18.11.119 by 66 points at the Sydney Showgrounds, Round 9 2012
Long before Mason Cox called the Orange Team’s home ground “a showground for livestock”, Jeremy Cameron’s three goals were matched by Tom Bellchambers, Alwyn Davey, and Stewart Crameri as the Bombers led from start to finish. The result set somewhat of a trend for the first year Giants, who lost their first four games at the venue by an average margin of 79.3 points.
HAWTHORN
3 games, 1 win
Last game: Hawthorn 16.8.104 defeated Adelaide 12.91.91 by 13 points at York Park, Round 6 2001
Adelaide failed to take advantage early, scoring 1.5 from the first six scoring shots of the match to lead by 11 points after 15 minutes. Hawthorn responded with three goals in six minutes to take the lead, which got out to a game-high 43 points partway through the second quarter on the back of a further six unanswered goals to the Hawks. Three second half goals to Darren Jarman helped make the margin slightly more flattering, but the visitors couldn’t catch Hawthorn.
MELBOURNE
3 games, 1 win
Last game: Melbourne 11.9.75 lost to Port Adelaide 14.11.95 by 20 points at Traeger Park, Round 11 2014
Melbourne’s first trip to Alice Springs, having previously played home games in Darwin, didn’t start well, with the Demons conceding four goals inside the first 12 minutes of the match. While they were better from that point on, including kicking the first three after half time, their momentum was temporarily halted in the third quarter when Chad Wingard was concussed after copping a boot to the face from teammate Jay Schulz.
NORTH MELBOURNE
4 games, 2 wins
Last game: North Melbourne 28.15.183 defeated Greater Western Sydney 8.6.54 by 129 points at Bellerive Oval, Round 2 2012
The Kangaroos’ 129-point demolition of the Giants, who were playing in their second-ever AFL game, is the largest victory to date by a home side playing in the first game at a new venue. North Melbourne kicked 12 goals to none in the first half before kicking 16 goals to eight after the main break. Ryan Bastinac had 44 disposals and kicked 2.3, but the three Brownlow votes went to Michal Firrito for his 33 disposals (25 handballs), two tackles, and two clearances.
PORT ADELAIDE
1 game, 1 win
Last game: Port Adelaide 17.12.112 defeated Melbourne 145.14.104 by 8 points at the Adelaide Oval, Round 24 2011
Getting a brand-new stadium was one of the few shining lights for Port Adelaide’s 2011 season, with the team winning three games for the year. Justin Westhoff and Brett Ebert lead the way for the Power, combining for seven goals from 39 disposals. The narrow victory over the Demons was just enough to avoid the wooden spoon, lifting them above the Gold Coast.
RICHMOND
2 games, 1 win
Last game: Richmond 9.16.70 lost to Gold Coast 12.13.85 by 15 points at Cazaly’s Stadium, Round 17 2011
The three games Richmond played in Cairns may have been good for the club financially, but Cazaly’s Stadium certainly wasn’t a happy hunting ground for the Tigers. They lost their first match by 15 points with Gary Ablett Jnr collecting 27 disposals and a goal, lost the second courtesy of the famous Karmichael Hunt goal after the siren, but won the third by nine points.
ST KILDA
4 games, 2 wins
Last game: St Kilda 9.9.63 lost to Sydney 11.13.79 by 16 points at Westpac Stadium, Round 5 2013
The Saints hosted the Sydney across the ditch on ANZAC Day in 2013, but the Swans were too strong on the day thanks to an even spread of performers. Dan Hannebery (30 disposals) was deemed best on ground. Despite the club signing a five-year deal to continue playing games in Wellington until 2018, the local council pulled the pin on the deal after the 2015 game.
SYDNEY
3 games, 1 win
Last game: Sydney 11.17.83 lost to Essendon 12.13.85 by two points at Stadium Australia, Round 9 2002
The Sydney Olympic Stadium was reconfigured after the Games to allow AFL and other oval-based sports to be played at the ground. Despite only leading for 30 seconds during the first quarter, Swans ruck Ricky Mott had the opportunity to steal a victory for the home side with a shot after the siren. But Mott missed, meaning the Bombers would hold on for a two-point win.
WEST COAST
3 games, 2 wins
Last game: West Coast 13.8.86 lost to Sydney 18.7.115 by 29 points at Optus Stadium, Round 1 2018
Lance Franklin kicked eight goals as the Swans spoiled the first game at the Eagles’ new stadium and Nic Naitanui’s first game in over 18 months after recovering from a ruptured ACL. West Coast put up a good fight, getting within a goal at three quarter time before Sydney took control of the game late. Jake Lloyd etched his name in the history books after kicking the first goal at Optus Stadium.
WESTERN BULLDOGS
5 games, 1 win
Last game: Western Bulldogs 11.13.79 lost to Port Adelaide 14.12.96 by 17 points at Eureka Stadium, Round 22 2017
The sons of the west may have hosted more first games at V/AFL venues than any other team, but this experience counted for very little when they faced off against Port Adelaide in Ballarat back in 2017. The Bulldogs held narrow leads at each change, but six goals to two in the final quarter saw the Power run over the top late. Paddy Ryder was too strong for Jordan Roughead in the ruck, amassing 55 hit outs and kicking two goals.
In other news…
Cody Atkinson has launched “This Week in Football”, a collection of some of the best in football currently outside the walls of AFL clubs or broadcasters. It’s a great mix of content, and my contribution to the Round 5 edition can be found here.
This season I have joined the VAFA media team to cover the Division 2 Men’s competition - check out my season preview and weekly summaries here.
Nice one, Lincoln!
Great read Lincoln