Double headers have long been debated by women’s sports fans, who lament the way female athletes are treated as a curtain raiser to men’s sport.
We have even seen a sport like cricket, where the staging of international and Big Bash double headers was once common, outgrow the concept, with the WBBL evolving to a standalone competition.
In football, the W-League and A-League regularly play double headers, but Saturday’s Sydney derby at the Olympic stadium is doing so with a slight twist.
Flipping conventional practice, the A-League game will kick off first (5pm AEDT), with the women following (7:40pm AEDT) at Sydney Olympic stadium
It is not the first time the code has trialled this model, but it is certainly not a regular occurrence.
And for Ante Juric, head coach of the Sydney FC women’s side, it will be the first time he has witnessed the flip, after four years at the helm of the sky blues.
“I like double headers,” he told the ABC.
Another positive, is that the game will be played later in the day with much nicer conditions for football.
“From a coaching perspective, I’m happy we’re not playing at 3pm in the heat,” he said.
“It should be good from a TV coverage point of view too, playing in prime time we may get some different viewers on a Saturday night if people are home with their kids.”
The early afternoon kick-offs in the W-League have been contentious amongst fans, especially during the middle of the week.
Avid Wanderers fan Christina Trajceska, who has been a member of the Red and Black Bloc (RBB) since she was 14 years old, has not been a fan of early kick-offs.
“The early kick-offs kill the atmosphere, and it makes it almost impossible for any of the active support [like the RBB] to get to the women’s game,” she said.
“We all have working day jobs, some of us don’t get off early enough in the afternoon and so by the time we’re able to attend it’s already half-time or the 80th minute.
“Sometimes I just come home and watch the match on TV instead or I have to wait overnight for it to be replayed.”
One club, two teams mentality for supporter groups
Now 23, Trajeska is the executive assistant at The Ladies League — a fan-led platform on social media with a weekly football podcast.
On that platform she is vocal about her desire to see A-League ultras turn up to W-League matches on a regular basis, and offer the same passionate support to the women’s team.
“I enjoy the doubleheaders to an extent, and I think the only reason I have disliked them before is because of how early the women’s game has been on,” she said.
“But I think the double header this weekend, with the women’s game second, will be the best way to get the crowd’s attention and to show them there’s more football outside the A-League for their club.
“The Sydney crowd will already be there and there’s an appeal of staying to watch another game, rather than trying to find your car, or sitting and waiting for a train home.”
Juric believes the gap between the two games this weekend should only be about 30 minutes, which should help things roll straight from one match to the next.
But he added there needs to be better promotion of the W-League, beyond double headers.
“Obviously, having the game on straight after and people seeing the women get warmed-up and ready, we’re hoping people will decide to stay,” he said.
“However, I still think more promotion would help the game grow. I know it all takes money, but more promotion on TV and in the papers would really help.”
Build it and they will come
With the A-League and W-League’s move to ‘unbundle’ from the FFA, a boost in promotion has already been touted as a priority for the Australian Professional Leagues (APL).
Trajceska says there is proof that advertising works.
In the lead up to the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, there was a lot of attention on the W-League, as players vied for positions in the Matildas squad.
It was around this time that Trajceska says she noticed more men turning up to W-League games.
“The W-League got a lot more hype that season,” she said.
“A lot of the international stars and overseas players really made it shine.
With the next World Cup still a couple of years away, and so many of the Matildas now playing abroad, that level of promotion has dropped off.
Juric wants more investment placed in the promotion of up-and-coming Australian players, to keep reaching beyond the existing fan bubble.
“I know it all takes money, but if you’re going to get people to go to games you need to be seen,” he said.
“There’s been a little bit of negativity initially about having less Matildas, but there’s new superstars there to be promoted and found by the public.
“The quicker we do that, the quicker we build new stars up.”
Watch the Sydney FC vs Western Sydney Wanderers in the A-League live on ABC TV from 5:00pm AEST.
PP=Postponed
