Bennett wins back the fans
Tim Barrow, Illawarra Mercury | May 6, 2009 - 11:26AM
THE Wayne Bennett factor and St George Illawarra's stunning early season form have arrested an alarming slide in crowd numbers at Dragons games in Wollongong.
The club's average crowd figures at WIN Stadium had dropped from 15,074 per game in 2005, when the Dragons made the preliminary final, to 12,237 last season.
However, with the arrival of Bennett spurring the team to second on the NRL ladder, St George Illawarra have attracted home crowds of 13,329 against the Titans and 14,562 on Sunday against the Warriors.
The surge in support comes despite the rusting western grandstand at WIN Stadium being in urgent need of an upgrade.
A State Government report released earlier this year said the ground would effectively be condemned within five years if a massive redevelopment of the grandstand is not undertaken.
The latest redevelopment at Kogarah's Jubilee Oval saw a bumper crowd of 20,047 for the grand opening when the Dragons took on arch-rivals the Sharks, as well as a healthy crowd of 14,477 against Newcastle.
A St George Illawarra spokesman yesterday said the club was hoping for close to 20,000 next Friday night for what could be a top-of-the-table clash with the Bulldogs at Kogarah.
"The early indications are they are headed that way," he said.
"There have been more than 10,000 tickets pre-sold already."
The Dragons' next two home games in Wollongong are on Friday night, May 29, against Penrith and Sunday, June 14, against North Queensland.
St George Illawarra have already proven to be a ratings hit on Channel Nine's Friday night football in blockbusters against Brisbane, Parramatta and in the season opener against Melbourne at Olympic Park.
But with renewed calls for more afternoon football, the crowds have flocked to daytime Dragons games.
The Anzac Day battle against the Roosters, played on a Saturday afternoon, attracted 28,926 people, the third biggest in the annual fixture's history.
The average crowds across NRL clubs after eight rounds is 17,149, boosted by a massive following of the Broncos in Brisbane.
That average is more than 1500 people per game up on last year's season average of 15,610.
Of the Sydney-based clubs, not including the Dragons, the average crowd this season is 15,344.
The Dragons are ranked sixth highest in average crowds in the NRL this season and third among the NSW clubs, behind the Dogs and Roosters.