Roy Hay: Is It Time for More Cooperation?

Roy Hay’s contribution to The Footy Almanac during the 2015 Asian Cup can’t be undersold.

It was with great pleasure that we were alerted to an article Roy co-authored with historian Tony Ward today for The Guardian Australia.

For too long, administrators of rival sporting codes have operated under the assumption that fan loyalty is finite: that winning some spurious battle for the hearts and minds of fans would guarantee eternal fealty to AFL or the NRL to the exclusion of all their competitors. As Roy and Tony argue, however, it’s time for the bickering at the top to stop and the cooperation to start as the evidence continues to mount that your average Hawthorn or South Sydney fan is just as likely to be happy to dip into the pocket for a Melbourne Victory or Sydney FC membership.

“One other result is true of both AFL and league. The more often people went to soccer, the more likely they were to go to several AFL or [NRL] games as well. The highest rate of occasional attendance (one to two times a year) at AFL and league comes from those who did not go to any soccer games…”

Click HERE to read the Guardian article in full.

 

 

For lovers of the round ball game at grassroots level, Roy has also been swept up in some quality football in the Diversity Cup that’s currently taking place in Geelong.

This weekend saw Geelong advance to next weekend’s final against Corio after downing a dogged North Geelong Youth team.

“Another goal and North’s youth would be in the final, but in a breakaway Stojanovic pulled off one of the goals at the death which was his signature contribution at Corio last season. Geelong depend heavily on his speed and skill and will be a force in the coming league season as a result..”

Click HERE to read Roy’s diversity match report in full.