NUMBERS BACK NEED FOR FAR NORTH FOOTY TO BE PLAYED IN JULY

SPECULATION sprung from commentators, players and fans alike after Cazalys Stadium was only able to conjure 6645 punters to the footy on Saturday night to watch what turned out to be the second-least accurate game of AFL ever played.

It’s certainly not the mammoth return to AFL in Cairns stakeholders were hoping it would be.

A quick look at historic attendance numbers can identify a few things we can take for our next shot at bringing elite footy to the Far North.

Of the four AFL games in Cairns that netted more than 10,000 attendees, three of the four games were at night (thus debunking the “don’t play night games in Cairns” argument).

Of those four, three were in July (the other was a Wizard Cup game in 2003).

A further four games that attracted 9000-plus patrons were also held in July.

AFL Cairns president Gary Young has conceded winter is the preferable time to have it, but conflicting events and themed AFL rounds affect the viability of scheduling at that time.

The region appreciates every AFL game it can get, but the numbers clearly back up the need to push for a game in winter.