'What the hell': AFL fans rage over 'absolute shambles' at MCG

What was meant to be a triumphant return to the AFL's home in Victoria instead left many footy fans wondering what happened, after the MCG was hit with a barrage of complaints over the weekend.

After another disrupted season in 2021, which saw the grand final played outside of Victoria for the first time in AFL history, excitement was high for footy to come back home.

'THAT'S UNFORGIVABLE': St Kilda star under fire for 'droppable offence'

BRAVE: Megan Barnard speaks out after Tom Morris sacked by Fox Sports

However crowds fell somewhat short of expectations, and those who did go found themselves waiting in lengthy queues for food and drink due to shortages of staff.

Plenty of fans took to social media to complain, with the MCG's official Twitter account kept busy over the weekend replying to disgruntled ticket holders.

Additionally, complaints flooded in about the stadium's PA system blasting music during every break in play, as well as an internet banking glitch during Saturday's Essendon-Geelong clash which disrupted non-cash payments.

Fans also noticed plenty of food and drink vendors without stock, prompting a response from the MCG.

“Unfortunately, like the rest of the hospitality industry nationally, the ‘G is experiencing some staffing shortages today which has meant the closure of some bar & food outlets throughout the venue,” MCG staff posted on the account, a message which was shared to fans several times.

“We apologise for the inconvenience caused.”

While far from being a complete disaster, it was a slightly inauspicious return to footy for one of the most iconic venues in Australia.

There was frustration among some fans that the stadium had not learned any lessons from the last two years of disruption thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Fans were unimpressed by lines stretching more than 50 metres and wait times approaching the length of an entire quarter of football.

Below expected crowds in round one an AFL curiosity

In addition to the problems faced by the MCG in round one, it will come as no consolation that the crowd figures were well below what was predicted.

Wednesday night's season opening grand final rematch between Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs attracted 58,002 fans, well below the hoped-for 80,000.

It was a similar story for Thursday and Friday night's games, which attracted 72,000 and 40,000 fans respectively - well below expectations.

Veteran AFL reporter Gerard Whateley said it was not the start to the season the AFL would have hoped for after the disruption of the previous two seasons.

Speaking on SEN's Crunch Time program, he suggested the league may have overlooked the fact that many people may still be hesitant to go to big venues in the wake of multiple lockdowns.

“The idea was that there was this incredible thirst to return to the game and that we were ready as a community and it still might’ve missed a bit of the hesitancy that needs to be overcome," Whateley said.

“Thursday night felt like the bar was 80,000 and it landed 72,000 and then last night (Friday) no one would hear of less than 45,000 and it was 40,000.

“The obstacles for footy fans haven’t been smoothed over and that’s everything from bar codes to ticketing to carparking to public transport, and then there’s this additional dynamic of if you did come, you’re not having a great experience. That’s clearly the feedback. It ignores 2 years worth of scarring.

“We needed that cultural movement because I think that Covid renaissance is still there in the community, it’s playing out in front of us, and as a people we’ve got to overcome it.”

According to a survery conducted by the AFL Fans Association, respondents were 26% more likely to watch games from home this season compared to coming to the venue.

Click here to sign up to our newsletter for all the latest and breaking stories from Australia and around the world.