I'm with Stopper - the AFC crowd by all accounts would have made the 30,000 mark had the hills been officially open - ticket sales online sold out quickly and the large interstate and Sydney contingent couldn't get here.

As for Coff's we've been expecting this a while. I doubt there will now be a switch as if there was Coff's will then go on about the FFA and tell them to stick their league.

The issue now is the stadium - it's sort of a long weekend, the ground has one small grandstand and apparently a capacity of 20,000 (though if you look at pics of it you wonder how). Alot of locals will attend and many will come down from the north coast too. A fair few Newcastle people will make a weekend of it and there is member admission.

What if the thing sells out and members who travel up on the day can't get in? We already have Gold and Platinum members banished to the grass. If both sides are doing well and Timmymania has been ramped up it good get ugly. And if there is a summer storm....