The ACT Brumbies are set to cut the cost of membership packages and ticket prices in a bid to reignite fan interest and lure crowds back to Canberra Stadium next year.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
In a major win for supporters, the Brumbies have been working on overhauling their membership campaign and making Super Rugby games more affordable.
It comes less than a week after just 9771 fans watched the Brumbies play against the Wellington Hurricanes in a quarter-final clash.
The disappointing crowd figure was a symptom of Australian rugby's woes this year as the ARU fights to engage with disgruntled fans who are turning away from the game.
However, broadcast figures show the Brumbies are popular on television, with viewer numbers getting a significant boost compared to the corresponding quarter-final in Canberra last year.
The Brumbies are also set to turn a profit for just the fourth time since 2003 in what will be a massive off-field turnaround after losing more than $3 million in the past three years.
They will likely be the only Australian Super Rugby team to announce a profit and the club has found stable ground after a turbulent period.
The challenge is turning strong television viewership into crowds by getting fans out of the lounge room and back to Canberra Stadium.
The good news is chief executive Michael Thomson is keen to get on the front foot and reconnect with supporters who may have been lost in recent years.
The Canberra Times asked fans this week for their input for rebuilding the Brumbies' supporter base, and ticket prices and the cost of memberships were the biggest factors.
The Brumbies will announce the full details of prices and cuts when they launch their 2018 membership campaign in the coming weeks.
Their playing roster is almost finalised and superstar flanker David Pocock will return to the capital next year after a 12-month sabbatical.
"Now the season has ended, we're reviewing everything around our commercial program. One of the things we're looking very closely at is the affordability of our tickets," Thomson said.
The Brumbies hope to buck the trend of declining crowds in all sports around the world.
Brumbies captain Sam Carter hoped strong on-field results coupled with cheaper tickets would help convince fans to watch from the stadium rather than on television.
"We know that there is good crowd support out there because we've had it in previous years," Carter said.
"It has dropped off a little bit, but it comes on the back of playing good rugby. We've got to do our job first and then I'd say the fans will come back through the gates."
Carter was one of seven Brumbies who joined a Wallabies training camp on Thursday for a crucial building block before the Rugby Championships.
The hard-working second-rower will compete with Brumbies teammate Rory Arnold for a lock spot while Scott Sio and Allan Alaalatoa could be front-row partners for the first Bledisloe Cup on August 19.
Carter said the Brumbies were still licking their wounds after being knocked out of Super Rugby title contention by the Wellington Hurricanes.
But he said the quarter-final heartbreak would fuel their bid for Test selection and hopes of ending the New Zealand's stranglehold on the Wallabies.
Former Brumbies skipper Stephen Moore announced his international rugby retirement on Thursday and Carter paid tribute to the veteran hooker.
"[Moore] doesn't have to prove anything, he's done everything in his career and he's been a fantastic leader and player for Australia," Carter said.
"He's been massive for my career. I spent a lot of time with him and learnt a lot of things from him. The standards he set has been massive for my development."
