Ever been caught out by a fixture change?

[Norris Lurker]

I certainly wasn't expecting one tonight. The weather was good - I checked this board a couple of times at work today to see what was being discussed, but it never occurred to me to go onto the Sydney AFL website because if the surface was OK on Saturday night I didn't think there'd be any problem tonight.
It was @@@@ing dark out at Henson tonight. I know that because I went there.

Do any of you have similar stories from the past? Of times when people have turned up to cancelled games, or gone to the wrong ground or on the wrong day or time? Has it ever happened to you, or someone you know of?

Props in advance to the person with the funniest story....

[BeeEmmAre]

I once travelled 45 minutes to an under 14s cricket game to find out we had been washed out and noone bothered to tell me.
Mum was bloody happy about that.

[Rafters]

The Kassem family were notorious for being caught out with a fixture change ... you would almost certainly expect them to show up at the wrong ground. A few frantic calls & they would rock up a few minutes before the game & then play their usual blinders.

I remember paying a visit to Sydney Uni No 1 circa 1992 - with all of the other Goannas across all 3 grades - only to see the groundsman saying that the ground was closed because of the rain earlier in the week. The Students knew about the closure but failed to inform us. With mobile phone technology nowhere near where it is these days the communication channels were poor and all rocked up, paid their $5 entry fee into the university grounds (no refund issued which inflamed the situation) and my old man even had a parking ticket issued for parking in a no standing zone by the uni cops! From memory the club complained & we were granted a forfeit from the league. A handy 4 points!

[Norris Lurker]

Bumping up an old thread, it happened again - went to Gore Hill today, but no footy.

[Pace To Burn]

Bumping up an old thread, it happened again - went to Gore Hill today, but no footy.

Norris just check the Sydney Afl site in future its always on there

[BeeEmmAre]

Apparently called off by the Bombers at 8.30am yesterday morning.

[Coastal Boy]

Apparently called off by the Bombers at 8.30am yesterday morning.

Since when does a club have the call on whether wet weather postpones a game?

[Norris Lurker]

Nothing on the Sydney AFL website when I logged on at about 8am. But it looked strange when I arrived at the ground and no-one was there.
Not to worry, just goes to show that it's possible to get caught out.

Having been out to the ground and having a walk on the playing surface, calling the game off was probably the right call - particularly at the northern goalsquare, with the water runoff from the hospital.

[Steamboat]

Willoughby council were making an early morning inspection which was meant to be posted on council website and wet weather line at 7am, inspection was not completed until approx 745am, game was officially called off due to ground closure under the council criteria of player safety,possibility of damaging ground etc shortly before 8am.

It was dissapointing that the council website stated that it would be on there prior to 7am and was not as i have at least 4 players that started travel to the game a little after 7am and was constantly making phone calls as they expected decision to be made and did not want to travel for nothing.

As far as i know, it was not Nth Shore decision or fault, decision made by Willoughby council,correct one but given the grounds wet weather history, one which could have been made on Friday afternoon.

[tara]

[QUOTE=Steamboat;439914]council criteria of player safety,possibility of damaging ground etc shortly before 8am.
QUOTE]


Sick to death of hearing that line from councils. Safety my arse - its a winter sport FFS - why dont they just come out and say they dont want their grounds getting chopped up and then having to actually maintain them.

[BeeEmmAre]

Sick to death of hearing that line from councils. Safety my arse - its a winter sport FFS - why dont they just come out and say they dont want their grounds getting chopped up and then having to actually maintain them.

Bingo Tara, absolutely Bingo.

Since when does a club have the call on whether wet weather postpones a game?

I don't know the situation at Gore Hill, but at Bensons Lane we (Nor-West Jets) have an agreement with the Hawkesbury Sports Council that allows us to make the decision on whether we play or not, on the proviso that we are responsible for any damage that may be done.

[Offal]

I don't know the situation at Gore Hill, but at Bensons Lane we (Nor-West Jets) have an agreement with the Hawkesbury Sports Council that allows us to make the decision on whether we play or not, on the proviso that we are responsible for any damage that may be done.[/QUOTE]

The situation has always been similar at Gwawley Oval - it's the club's call. In 2007 we hosted 3 First Div games featuring 6 clubs in a Super Saturday style format as it was one of few grounds that could be played on.

[Coastal Boy]

These council-club arrangements sound dodgy to me.

So you're playing the bottom side and you need a % boost so you push to get the game played......and cancelled if you are playing a gun team. Am I too pessimistic???? Dont think so.

Surely the local council should have the "lease" to use each ground with the Sydney AFL and not each club. But this would be too much work and too intelligent for the management to consider I'm sure.

[tara]

These council-club arrangements sound dodgy to me.

So you're playing the bottom side and you need a % boost so you push to get the game played......and cancelled if you are playing a gun team. Am I too pessimistic???? Dont think so.

Surely the local council should have the "lease" to use each ground with the Sydney AFL and not each club. But this would be too much work and too intelligent for the management to consider I'm sure.

Far too pesamistic to be honest given there are better and easier ways for clubs to rort things should they want.

We want our ground open 365 days a year and to be honest cannot see why it isnt - Im sure that Offal or Pekay would be able to agree that of all the grounds in Sydney ours is one of the last that should be closed but our precious council seems to prefer it to look pretty as opposed to actually being utilised.

But in all honesty most clubs dont have the luxury of making the decision themselves and have to bow to council decisions.

[BeeEmmAre]

These council-club arrangements sound dodgy to me.

So you're playing the bottom side and you need a % boost so you push to get the game played......and cancelled if you are playing a gun team. Am I too pessimistic???? Dont think so.

Surely the local council should have the "lease" to use each ground with the Sydney AFL and not each club. But this would be too much work and too intelligent for the management to consider I'm sure.

If we were thinking that way we would have certainly closed our ground on the weekend as both our teams were playing the undefeated ladder leaders.
And if they were called off, we would all have to come back on the long weekend and play them then anyway.

The aim of footy is to play, regardless of the opponent, and it wouldn't matter if we were playing the Sydney Swans or the Timbuktoo under 10s, we'd still want to get on and play the game.

P.S. Both our teams were beaten by better, more committed opponents on the day, but you won't hear us complaining, more celebrating the fact that our winter sport got played in winter conditions, as it always should.