Australia over restricting crowds

[gbatman]

Australia over restricting crowds

What happened to the days where you could bring your own booze to the cricket, use your slab as a seat, never have a shortage of beach balls overhead and mexican waves ruled? As for the whistle when a bowler was running in? That's right, the whistle and other musical instruments are banned.

Now you go to the cricket pay dearly for mid strength beer there and get kicked out (some times for life) if you start a wave or blow up a ball. Have we gone over the top? Are we trying to chase people away? Are we trying to kill cricket? Do we prefer if people stay at home and watch the game with mates in air con comfort, getting as rowdy as they'd like?

Ok, fair enough you can't take a slab of beer in, that used to work back in the day but for some reason society can't handle it any more. But what harm is a mexican wave or a harmless beach ball going to cause! The game has a culture and so do the crowds that attend the game and we are killing that. Let the crowd have fun! Lets let bay 13 and areas like it be that way!

So lets discuss all the heavy restrictions on crowd behavior in Australia? Are we going over the top? Are we getting it right? Have we failed to find the happy median? What are your thoughts on culture/culture changes with cricket crowds in Australia?

To be honest, there is nothing wrong with test cricket. It's a great game and still very popular, it's just that people don't want to sit there all day doing nothing watching cricket. Let them bring an instrument, whistle, beach ball and let them throw a big wave! As for beer prices? Does the price of alcohol stop people from drinking more or does sway people's decision to go to the cricket or stay at home in favor of staying at home? Drinkers have a few drinks and stop caring about the price and will drink as much as they want, that's my opinion.

 

[a for effort]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

Any restriction that hinders the enjoyment of the cricket for the bogans in bay 13 is fine with me because the people who sit in bay 13 are all terrible

 

[Boris]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

There is that happy median, but really the people have brought it on themselves.

There used to be the good old mexican wave. Now the mexcan wave involves throwing rubbish in the air as you stand up.

The beach balls kept getting purposely hit onto the ground.

Streakers became safety hazards after they starting charging players

And with the way alcohol is in this society currently I don't think a lot of people's idea would be to come to watch the cricket and have a beer. It would be go to a stadium to get drunk, interrupted by some cricket viewing. Just the sad state of current affairs unfortunately.

 

[spinner]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

I can barely even remember the days when you could bring your own beer. Bring back the old days!

 

[gandalf]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

Definitely over the top. I heard recently that they have banned people from brining in trumpets. I think back to the ashes series in England and every match there was a trumpet player playing popular tunes to the delight of the crowd around him. I'm sure anyone who watched the series would have heard him. Then I think of games in the west indies where lively music is always a feature of the crowds. When I was young I used to go to the cricket and things like the wave and the beach balls were often more entertaining than the game. Its for stuff like that you didn't mind paying the criminally high ticket prices. If I went today I would be scared to breath for fear of the fun nazis throwing me out.

Any restriction that hinders the enjoyment of the cricket for the bogans in bay 13 is fine with me because the people who sit in bay 13 are all terrible

So don't sit in bay 13. Bogans generally congregate in the one area, and its pretty easy to avoid them if you want to. Personally I find the bogans good entertainment value - but I can watch them from a safe distance.

 

[Boris]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

Definitely over the top. I heard recently that they have banned people from brining in trumpets. I think back to the ashes series in England and every match there was a trumpet player playing popular tunes to the delight of the crowd around him. I'm sure anyone who watched the series would have heard him. Then I think of games in the west indies where lively music is always a feature of the crowds. When I was young I used to go to the cricket and things like the wave and the beach balls were often more entertaining than the game. Its for stuff like that you didn't mind paying the criminally high ticket prices. If I went today I would be scared to breath for fear of the fun nazis throwing me out.



So don't sit in bay 13. Bogans generally congregate in the one area, and its pretty easy to avoid them if you want to. Personally I find the bogans good entertainment value - but I can watch them from a safe distance.

Very well put.

That is another point, why does it cost so much, especially with games that would never reach a sell out?

 

[LIONS then DAYLIGHT]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

Here we go again.

Those might have been the good old days, as you say, but things change for a reason.

You can't go bringing in a slab of beer because when the soft lads get hammered then someone gets a bottle smashed over their head, et al.

The mexican wave in theory is harmless fun, unfortunately, for many years the mexican wave was associated with an array of missles being hurled into the year, mainly during one day games during the second session at night. I have heard tales of an array of items ranging from padlocks, to half cut bricks and even raw chickens being hurled skywards. Obviously, these things come back down with painful and dangerous results. The mexican wave being banned really is a no-brainer when you consider what has happened over the years.

Musical instruments should be banned in Australian grounds, there is no tradition associated with smashing drums or crashing cymbals in Australia unlike regions like the West Indies. The barmy army may provide an atmosphere on television, but I know of people who have drawn seats next to these clowns and basically they are bored shitless by the second session after being subjected to mindless songs.

The problem with the barmy army is they inherently think they are part of the show, especially when the Ashes series rolls around every 2 or so years. They are not part of the show or the entertainment, no-one buys their ticket to the cricket for the joy of hearing the barmy army sing.

Different grounds and countries have differet traditions. I remember watching some ODI's between Sri Lanka and Australia in Sri Lanka in 03/04 and during the games there was a continous drum banging and what not. That is fine, it's what they do.

It is different here, where you have seated areas and you are given a seat to sit at. If you have to sit next to some clown smashing a symbal all day sooner or later your going to crack it.

Over at the West Indies you can wander whereever you want basically in the ground, if you want some piece and quiet you can walk around to the otherside of the ground.

You can't do that here.

 

[Boris]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

Here we go again.

Those might have been the good old days, as you say, but things change for a reason.

You can't go bringing in a slab of beer because when the soft lads get hammered then someone gets a bottle smashed over their head, et al.

The mexican wave in theory is harmless fun, unfortunately, for many years the mexican wave was associated with an array of missles being hurled into the year, mainly during one day games during the second session at night. I have heard tales of an array of items ranging from padlocks, to half cut bricks and even raw chickens being hurled skywards. Obviously, these things come back down with painful and dangerous results. The mexican wave being banned really is a no-brainer when you consider what has happened over the years.

Musical instruments should be banned in Australian grounds, there is no tradition associated with smashing drums or crashing cymbals in Australia unlike regions like the West Indies. The barmy army may provide an atmosphere on television, but I know of people who have drawn seats next to these clowns and basically they are bored shitless by the second session after being subjected to mindless songs.

The problem with the barmy army is they inherently think they are part of the show, especially when the Ashes series rolls around every 2 or so years. They are not part of the show or the entertainment, no-one buys their ticket to the cricket for the joy of hearing the barmy army sing.

Different grounds and countries have differet traditions. I remember watching some ODI's between Sri Lanka and Australia in Sri Lanka in 03/04 and during the games there was a continous drum banging and what not. That is fine, it's what they do.

It is different here, where you have seated areas and you are given a seat to sit at. If you have to sit next to some clown smashing a symbal all day sooner or later your going to crack it.

Over at the West Indies you can wander whereever you want basically in the ground, if you want some piece and quiet you can walk around to the otherside of the ground.

You can't do that here.

That is all completely correct. The public has brought it mostly on themselves.

I am more willing to comment on the bad behaviour of people instead of the actual authorities.

 

[LIONS then DAYLIGHT]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

Agree, it all started with the one day games especially during the night sessions.

I remember around the 2001/02 VB series the authorities had a shitload of problems with crowd control not only inside the ground but outside with assaults and what not.

It really only takes one clown to hurl a padlock into the air and for someone to have to got to hospital to get stiches for a head wound that causes these things to be banned.

 

[Boris]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

Now they have gone as far as making twelth man and anyone else related to the team wear vests so they know who to let on the field. If Ponting was 12th man they wouldn't let him on the field without a vest, even if they know completely well who they are. They won't even let Richie Benaud out there without his pass. It's not as if there are too many Benaud impersonators around...

 

[LIONS then DAYLIGHT]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

I think one of the issues with the vests was due to the ever increasing members of back room staff and players who aren't in the team coming down to watch the game from the boundary edge dressed in full kit.

I understand that the ICC was worried batsmen would mistake these people for fielders in the field of play.

Fair enough I guess, if your a batsmen in may be hard to differentiate between proper fielders and guys on the boundary rope watching the game from outside the playing arena.

 

[Boris]

Re: Australia over restricting crowds

I think one of the issues with the vests was due to the ever increasing members of back room staff and players who aren't in the team coming down to watch the game from the boundary edge dressed in full kit.

I understand that the ICC was worried batsmen would mistake these people for fielders in the field of play.

Fair enough I guess, if your a batsmen in may be hard to differentiate between proper fielders and guys on the boundary rope watching the game from outside the playing arena.

It's understandable why, just sometimes you wonder if it is more harm done than good.

And the Pakistani and Australian colours are way too close, so it could be easy to mistake someone.