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OPINION: Struggling for crowds, it’s now decision time for the Lions
An empty Ellis Park at 3pm on a Saturday afternoon for a big derby match between the Lions and Sharks is not a pretty sight.
Plenty of empty seats greeted the Lions and Sharks at Ellis ark on Saturday. Picture: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images
What are the Lions going to do to get their fans back in the stands supporting them?
Their home ground Ellis Park is one of the major rugby stadiums in the world, and certainly one of the finest and most intimidating for visiting teams, but it means nothing when the Lions play in front of empty seats and a handful of supporters.
It is nothing new; the Lions have struggled for years now to lure fans to Doornfontein to watch them in action, but it seems things are getting worse by the week, month and year.
Sharks game
After a month on the road, the Lions were back at home on Saturday, with a favourable 3pm kick-off against the Sharks and yet only a handful of supporters turned up to watch the game.
Getting the official attendance figure will be hard because there may well be plenty of embarrassment about it, but be that as it may, there will be plenty of concern about how few fans are turning up to watch a team that is also struggling to make an impression in the URC.
Suggestions have been made before and are doing the rounds again now; the Lions must give up Ellis Park and move elsewhere; they must play their matches at smaller stadiums and in safer areas.
Will it happen? Unlikely.
More concerning perhaps is the actual state of the team, and possibly a reason why so few are willing to pay to watch them. Losing 29-7 at home against a depleted Sharks team will not sit well with fans.
41,000 fans at Loftus
Contrast all this to what happened less than 100km up the road at Loftus Versfeld two hours later on Saturday, with a 5pm kick-off. More than 41,000 fans turned up to watch the Bulls take on the Stormers.
Yes, there was some rain around in Joburg on Saturday, but so, too, was it the case in Pretoria — and none of those fans’ spirits were dampened.
There was an electric atmosphere at Loftus and everything that is good about South African domestic rugby was on display.
It was a match hyped up by the Bulls’ bosses for weeks before the time, but what did the Lions do to hype up their fans and market the game?
The Lions have some thinking to do … and best they do it quickly.
