SCG Match Day Experience

[undy]

I'm with everyone else on this thread - the high-volume and relentless nature of the entertainment means:
1) I now tune it ALL out
2) I don't get to spend much time talking to the friends I have seats with although we come from as far as Canberra to catch up
3) I deliberately get to the game just before the bounce to minimise how much of the "entertainment" I have to experience

[Doctor]

It's not just that the PA is loud it's that those with the microphones feel the need to yell into them rather than just talk and let the mikes do their job. It's not as loud in the Concourse as in the stands as we don't have the sound being captured by the walls behind us but I have sat up there and know what you mean.

My match day issue is the food and drink prices have been jacked up yet again. They are running far ahead of inflation and are beyond the pale really.

I also had two blokes behind me who didn't like being asked to stop swearing, but that's not the fault of the Swans or the SCG.

[Jimitron5000]

Aah..."match-day experience"...a term that sends shivers down my spine.
In a perfect world I would have reserves (featuring affordable food and drinks), followed by seniors (featuring affordable food and drinks), followed by a kick on the ground all without being aurally assaulted by advertising.

[ugg]

Hi
One minor matter is the opening of the Gates for the NEAFL games. There are announcements that they will open at 3.40 with the game scheduled for 3.45 but they didn't open until well after that hence we all missed the start of the game. Small issue I know.

Been complaining about this for the best part of 12 years, I'm not holding my breath. If the SCG Trust are going to be so particular as to give a small window of 5 minutes to get to your seats, then the least they could do is to honour that start time.

[KTigers]

I think the fact that the term or should I say marketing concept "Match Day Experience" even exists should set off alarm bells.
Anyone who has ever spent any time going to major sports in the US will know where this "experience" has been imported
from. At least watching a game on TV you can turn the sound off.

[AnnieH]

So Sweet Caroline got a massive percentage of votes in about 3 seconds flat.
This song ruins my match day experience. Every. Single. Time.
Just give it up. Please. It's got nothing to do with football and everything to do with NAH NAH NAH.
Teach the kids how to sing Up There For Sydney, and after a few weeks, you won't need a bouncing ball. I'm sure the players would get more revved up by it than Sweet Freakin Caroline.
It has far more to do with footy and we can pay royalties to an Australian (rather than Neil Diamond... is he still alive?).

[conradhc]

We?ve had problems in the past with the speakers in our part of the ground not being on at all. We?ve noticed the new speakers and haven?t found a particular issue with volume, although it?s difficult to make out a lot of what comes out, especially the prerecorded material that we?d be most interested in.

My personal gripe is that whoever is responsible for turning on the Sportsears feed (umpires and/or TV commentary) periodically forgets to do so. When they do turn it on, they will often turn it off on the siren, even when there is a set shot still to be taken.

[undy]

Teach the kids how to sing Tom Wills Would, and after a few weeks, you won't need a bouncing ball. I'm sure the players would get more revved up by it than Sweet Freakin Caroline.
It has far more to do with footy and we can pay royalties to an Australian (rather than Neil Diamond... is he still alive?).

Alive, but has Parkinsons.

[Dave]

My match day issue is the food and drink prices have been jacked up yet again. They are running far ahead of inflation and are beyond the pale really.

Yep. The catering at the SCG is absolutely atrocious compared to how it was at ANZ Stadium. Shrunken, dry Four 'n' Twenty pies and sausage rolls that taste disgusting and cost a fortune, with some dimwit behind the counter getting the order and being the cashier.

And no, I don't want Doyles fish and chips. If I want that I'll drive to Watons Bay. It's footy, not a day at the beach.

Oh for the days of ducking down to the self serve at ANZ for a handful of Vilis pies & sausage rolls at about 30% less the price they are at the SCG, not to mention taking the order to any of 4 or 5 cashiers waiting to serve...

[KTigers]

Yep. The catering at the SCG is absolutely atrocious compared to how it was at ANZ Stadium. Shrunken, dry Four 'n' Twenty pies and sausage rolls that taste disgusting and cost a fortune, with some dimwit behind the counter getting the order and being the cashier.

And no, I don't want Doyles fish and chips. If I want that I'll drive to Watons Bay. It's footy, not a day at the beach.

Oh for the days of ducking down to the self serve at ANZ for a handful of Vilis pies & sausage rolls at about 30% less the price they are at the SCG, not to mention taking the order to any of 4 or 5 cashiers waiting to serve...

The way the catering deals work is that the catering company will pay an upfront fee and/or royalty to the venue to secure the
deal for x number of years.Then they will spend the duration of the contract trying to recoup the advance and/or cover the
royalty by charging as much as they can while offering as little as they can in return. The venues don't care, they've got their money,
and the more they get from the catering company, the higher the prices and the lower the quality will be. This is the so-called
"business model" folks. On Saturday night during the second quarter Mrs Tigers bought the last sandwich in
the Brewongle, and by that I mean two tired slices of bread with a piece of pumpkin and lettuce between them that looked liked
it had been sitting in an unrefrigerated warehouse in Wetherill Park since the Tommy Hafey days for $9.
All part of the "Match Day Experience" I suppose.

[Swansongster]

Taking three kids to the footy is very expensive if you rely on in-house outlets. Docklands and MCG are a bit better than SCG in my experience but still a rip-off.

That's why I pack a delicious hamper from home which affords much better quality food at a fraction of the cost. I realise not everybody can do this but it can be as simple as buying a baguette, some ham and some cheese (adding sun-dried tomatoes and pesto helps). Take a packet of chips or a healthier snack plus water and a handful of apples and everyone is happy and well fed.

Whack it all in a back-pack and Bob's your uncle. Works for me. It's not that hard.

They do get an ice-cream at half time which tallies over $20. Robbery.

Now, about those over-bearing PA systems and flashing lights at ground level. "Match day experieince" is a blight.

[Hotpotato]

Taking three kids to the footy is very expensive if you rely on in-house outlets. Docklands and MCG are a bit better than SCG in my experience but still a rip-off.

That's why I pack a delicious hamper from home which affords much better quality food at a fraction of the cost. I realise not everybody can do this but it can be as simple as buying a baguette, some ham and some cheese (adding sun-dried tomatoes and pesto helps). Take a packet of chips or a healthier snack plus water and a handful of apples and everyone is happy and well fed.

Whack it all in a back-pack and Bob's your uncle. Works for me. It's not that hard.

They do get an ice-cream at half time which tallies over $20. Robbery.

Now, about those over-bearing PA systems and flashing lights at ground level. "Match day experieince" is a blight.

Perfect .
No ice creams then , just a bag of glucose jellybeans from a chemist shop @ $3.85

[stevoswan]

I went to the MCG last year to see the Swans play Hawthorn. It was the first time I'd been to the 'G for a number of years, since before the new Great Southern Stand was built. I was in the members area and I was very impressed with both the food and the prices. Service was quick and efficient as well. I went to Simmons Stadium in Geelong the year before last and was impressed by the new stand and while the food and drink situation was OK, it was nothing special. I've been to Etihad a few times in the last few years and that's not too bad but for food and drink, I thought the MCG was much better. The AFL has been bragging about cheaper food prices and more food choices for a couple of years now.....did they mean just for Victoria?

[Lado]

Thanks to those that responded to my post regarding the really loud pa system at the scg. The term match day experience was used by me for want of a better term. It is a bit of an advertising term. I am going tonight but I will sit on the concourse behind the goals. I might go up to level 1 and see if the pa is oppressively loud.
Thanks to those that raised other issues too. I hope that somehow the scg can get the message that loud pa systems, wall to wall advertising and overpriced food is a turn off to fans. I will write to the Swans and formally complain about the loudness of the pa system.
Go Swans!

[jazzamcc]

How do you go last night Lado?

I'm praying they don't bring in light laser shows! Some of the advertising lighting around the ground is quite annoying and as I sit in the Trumper Stand, I have quite bit to look at. I have epilepsy and lights can have an affect on me.

The speakers aren't any different to last year though I'm sure they turn that damn music up for Sweet Caroline for which I try and seek refuge out the back on Level 3 of the Trumper Stand. And turn the music down full stop. We are not at a concert!

And I've been saying on Twitter that they should bring back "Up there for Sydney" at 3/4 time like they did a few years ago.

And don't get me started on the food! Abysmal, over priced, rude and clueless staff. Thank goodness I'm Premiership Club and could cross into the Red Zone as Trumper Stand and also the outlet behind Bay 33 did not have any wraps. I'm going to Subway beforehand next time!