Perth’s AFL grand final revisited: Behind the scenes of how WA secured its biggest-ever sporting event

For one night only, Perth was the centre of the AFL universe. The roar that erupted once Western Australia crowned its adopted premiers was always going to be deafening. Louder than decades of angst traded between two football-mad states. WA wasn’t going to let another opportunity slip. The seeds that spawned Perth’s historic AFL grand final were sown in July, more than two months before the AFL circus arrived in town. Simultaneously the AFL remained adamant their showpiece would return to the MCG, AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan declaring on July 22 “until a point where we can’t do that, that’s where it will be”. But behind the scenes, Optus Stadium CEO Mike McKenna and his team were proactive, reinstating their desire, which was sparked last season, to bring the grand final west. On September 25, that dream was realised – Perth custodians for a day but making memories to last a lifetime. *** LIKE an eager prospective employee arriving for a job interview, Optus Stadium presented at AFL House with a laminated resume in hand. Perth has developed a track record of hosting major sporting events: State of Origin, the Bledisloe Cup, the 2019 A-League grand final. But few fixtures in the AFL world are bigger than Dreamtime. On May 30, Optus Stadium was officially asked to host the blockbuster fixture between Essendon and Richmond. A week later, 55,656 people packed the stadium to witness the Tigers defeat the Bombers in a stunning celebration of culture on the Swan. The thirst for neutral football was there and when the AFL were parched by the thought of an empty MCG on grand final day, the tide turned west. “Dreamtime surprised the AFL. It didn’t surprise us but it surprised them,” McKenna said. “It also proved the financial returns we can generate from the stadium.” AFL Head of Commercial Kylie Rogers declared the occasion an example of “WA football at its best”. “No doubt the success of Dreamtime at Optus and the way Perth fans wholeheartedly supported that event and importantly, neutral sides, played a big role and made a big difference,” she said. “That was a big takeout for us.” *** IT was very early August when the AFL first conceded they were in trouble. A spattering of cases continued to surface - eight, then seven, then four - prompting the AFL to reach out to McKenna and pre-empt a proposal to draw up contingency plans. That request was officially issued on August 5 – the day Victoria was plunged into its sixth lockdown after six fresh COVID cases. By that point, the wheels were well in motion for Perth to deliver an event they’d spent two years planning for. “We knew the criteria from last year. We assumed it wouldn’t change much and we wanted to get ahead of the game,” McKenna said. “You have to start that reasonably early. We didn’t want the AFL to be thinking about things that they might not have time to think about. “By the time we organised most of that, it was more of a strong claim. If we asked for eight finals, we might get four.” Working with the same committee that delivered a proposal to stage the entire finals series in Perth last year, apart from one change of personnel, Perth delivered a 78-page bid on August 17. From Sorrento to Bunbury, the committee canvassed a range of accommodation options which were all within range of training ovals, gyms and green space for clubs in quarantine. But the cornerstone of Perth’s bid was hung on two pillars Melbourne couldn’t deliver: A 100 per cent capacity crowd of 61,266 and a proven history of COVID normality. “The most important piece was getting the largest crowd for the biggest game of the year. WA had no COVID cases at the time and was still open and functioning when other states were not in that position. It made a difference,” Rogers said. “The moment we understood capacity levels at each stadium, it became very clear we were going to move forward with Optus Stadium.” But McKenna wasn’t convinced and knew 2020’s bridesmaid Adelaide Oval was pining beyond the border. “The closer it got, the more confident we got,” he said. “The AFL were starting to do things that indicated they were committed to us but we weren’t sure what they were doing in Adelaide. They could’ve been mirroring it there. “Looking back now, it was pretty clear but we didn’t feel that way and continued to have our doubts. “We knew Adelaide couldn’t deliver enough money but their government was putting in money whereas ours wasn’t. “We’d run our own exercises on Adelaide Oval. We knew what the oval could deliver for them with the number of rooms and seats and we had insights on how much people generally spend there. “Head to head, we knew we were millions of dollars better off but we didn’t know how much money the Government was prepared to put on the table. “That was the element of doubt that remained right until the end. If they threw $20 million at it, we might not have been successful. Under $10 million, we were in good shape. “If we could get a full crowd, we were confident we could make enough money to offset the lack of Government contribution.” But all the wooing in the world couldn’t outweigh a crucial development out west - Premier Mark McGowan and McLachlan becoming friends. After a turbulent 2020 season, the WA government scaled back public jibes and upped its involvement in the proposal process but held firm on their refusal to foot any fraction of the bill. “They were very strict about meeting the health and safety guidelines and making sure they weren’t vulnerable to giving up any money,” McKenna said. “We wanted to make sure that anything we proposed wouldn’t lead to the AFL saying ‘oh you can give us some money here or you can let people into the State that might not otherwise be approved’. It gave us confidence the Government was behind us this time.” It was a repaired relationship Rogers and the AFL team recognised and eventually rewarded. *** CHAMPAGNE was on ice in Perth as dread clouded AFL House in Melbourne. McKenna was putting the final touches on his victory speech as McLachlan poured over a form of concession. On August 25, the AFL announced Optus Stadium would host the 2021 grand final if the MCG couldn’t. It was a win, but not a triumph. “Watching the first one was anticlimactic. Everyone was ready to go,” McKenna said. The hammer fell a week later on August 31 as an empty Marvel Stadium witnessed McLachlan declare Perth custodian of the AFL’s biggest day. “It wasn’t anywhere near ‘the winner is Sydney’ type of moment but it was a relief to hear it announced so we could get on with it,” McKenna said. Rogers added: “It was a very emotional time. I was purely focused on getting my team on a plane that night and saying goodbye to my family. “I was 100 per cent confident Perth could get it done. Football always finds a way.” The contract was signed that day and when the ink dried, Perth had 25 days to prepare for the party of a lifetime – 30 fewer than Brisbane and months shy of Melbourne. All eyes were on the last Saturday in September but Optus Stadium’s role as host ran much deeper. During September, the stadium hosted an AFL semi-final, a Bledisloe Cup game, an AFL preliminary final, the annual Starlight five chefs dinner, the Brownlow Medal, two open training sessions and another 57 major events. In total, 216,532 people passed through the gates to watch sport over the course of the month and another 9502 attended functions, parties and balls. The Brownlow threw up a culinary curveball. Optus Stadium’s hospitality team cleared the State’s supply of white asparagus and served 800 meals in nine minutes during a scheduled broadcast commercial. But entertaining is what Optus Stadium was built to do, no matter the size of the party. “We were ready with five days to go,” McKenna said. “On day 20, there was no panic, everything was sorted and there was a wave of calm where usually with big events you’re running around trying to tick off everything. “The reality is we do it all the time. We have big events almost every week. We average 47,000 every time we open the door so every event is a big event. And we’d already hosted big events on short notice. “It’s in our DNA really. Even the MCG, they’re not really tuned up to do big event after big event.” *** IT took exactly four weeks from the day Melbourne touched down in Perth to realise their premiership dream. But the staff at Joondalup Resort needed mere days to declare the Demons would finally end their 57-year premiership drought. Melbourne’s grand final opponents the Western Bulldogs as well as St Kilda, Sydney and Collingwood have all called the resort home over the past two seasons as Joondalup emerged as the key to WA’s sterile quarantine corridor. But none of them operated quite as effortlessly as the Demons. “Within a week, we knew they were the team to beat,” Joondalup general manager Justin Peters said. “The way they conducted themselves and operated was vastly different to other teams we hosted. “It sounds ironic, but they were relaxed and felt comfortable in their surroundings. We didn’t have to explain things twice to them. They were a well-oiled machine.” At the crux of their calm was Melbourne’s instant understanding of how Joondalup operated within the realm of strict quarantine requirements. Red zones were off limits to AFL teams. Yellow zones allowed players and Joondalup staff to interact, albeit while dressed head to toe in personal protective equipment. And green zones were the AFL’s to enjoy. Joondalup’s food and beverage team contacted every incoming club’s dietitian and accommodated special requests with near daily supermarket visits. Coffees were ordered via text. Nightly dinners were themed. Before their first grand final since 2000, Melbourne requested Joondalup round up every single member of staff who had served them throughout their visit for a group photo. And the day after, or rather in the early hours of Sunday morning, the Demons returned to the resort to flaunt their silverware. “Breakfast certainly was a jovial occasion,” Peters said. “When you’re living in a mate’s house for a month, you become mutually appreciative of each other. “It wouldn’t surprise me if our relationship with the AFL and the Demons continued in the future.” *** ELECTRIC was a frequently-used and fitting word to describe the atmosphere as 61,118 fans witnessed Melbourne defeat the Western Bulldogs by 74 points. Equally, the day recorded the biggest ever load on Perth’s power network. Optus Stadium stationed representatives from every organisation and agency crucial to the Perth peninsula around the precinct. Western Power, the Water Corporation and ATCO were on hand in the event of electricity, water or gas concerns. The planning committee dreamt up many and any dangers they could face on the day, and developed a plan to counter it. The biggest known threat was those who’d attempted, some successfully, to bypass WA’s strict border with phony excuses and false declarations. Melbourne bar owner Hayden Burbank, financial planner friend Mark Babbage and a third fan Caleb Cox all spent time in jail for falsifying documents. On the day, two Perth pranksters sneaked into the grand final after dressing up in high-viz. And Abra Bol copped a $1200 fine for streaking across Optus Stadium. But there were more troublemakers at large. “We know of at least six people and there may be more that never got trapped but the cops were all over it,” McKenna said. “They caught a few at the border but some got through. “Everything else went so well so to have those two high profile incidents on the day was really disappointing.” For one day, Perth had pitched tent on the national stage and accordingly, the entire city helped set up the campsite. Transperth carried around 28,000 patrons by train and 14,000 by bus to the stadium, some staff working extra shifts at short notice, making it one of the biggest events they’ve ever catered for. Rangers from various councils were called in to check bags at the gate. Staff were recruited from competing venues around the city and workers who had previously resigned from Optus Stadium’s permanent team returned to be involved in the occasion. With Sydney in lockdown and the NRL grand final shifted north, Optus’ sister venue Stadium Australia redirected their attention to remotely inducting 500 employees in Perth. “In the end we had 2600 staff members work on the day. It was too many staff and we actually overstaffed the event,” McKenna said. “There were so many people involved in the vision for this, who never would have expected an AFL grand final to be here but they always believed this space was good enough for it. “Some of the people we gave tickets to were the architects who worked on the event and the project managers who oversaw the build and former premier Colin Barnett as well. “I’m proud and pleased for those guys that their vision was fulfilled and for our staff, just to be able to get the reward for building the profile of this place towards what it deserves. “It’s almost the only place you’d play a grand final if you can’t play it at the MCG.” And while the AFL was rejoicing the end of their longest active premiership drought as Melbourne overran the Western Bulldogs, they were equally celebrating Optus Stadium’s performance. “My spine tingles when I think about the roar of the crowd,” Rogers said. “It was a true grand final but it was a grand final done Perth style. We are very proud of what we delivered.” *** A GRAND final first won’t be the last showpiece Optus Stadium hosts. Plans are already in motion to enshrine Perth as Australia’s next sporting epicentre. As McKenna puts it, it’s a matter of when not if Perth can continue to attract major sporting events after excelling expectations on the national stage. “It’s unlikely we’ll ever get another grand final but there’s nothing else we can’t get because of the profile the place has built up,” he said. “We sure would host another grand final. But what else do we want?” Written into Perth’s grand final proposal were plans to host a Dreamtime match annually in Perth, a five-year commitment to staging the AFLW derby at Optus Stadium and a $20 million investment to help upgrade the facilities of WAFL and women’s football clubs. The AFL have already linked up with the WA Government to pump $5 million into supporting community football in the Kimberley region. “I do think we have created a legacy,” Rogers said. “It’s been wonderful to share our blockbuster content around the nation and I have no doubt we’ll continue with some of these initiatives and carry them through future years.”

Perth’s AFL grand final revisited: Behind the scenes of how WA secured its biggest-ever sporting event

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