Parramatta and Wests Tigers will lobby the NRL to ensure their Easter Monday afternoon clash becomes a permanent fixture on the calendar.
A crowd of more than 50,000 poured into ANZ Stadium to witness the Tigers edge out the Eels 21-18 in a breathless encounter, rounding off a successful Easter weekend at the venue.
More than 43,000 attended the Good Friday clash between South Sydney and Canterbury with many supporters taking in a game and the Easter Show at the nearby Sydney Showgrounds.
That fixture has kicked-started the Easter weekend since 2012 and proved to be a resounding success and now the Eels and the Tigers want to lock in the Easter Monday slot.
“You have the Anzac Day game between the Roosters and the Dragons. The Good Friday game, I think it makes sense to lock in this Easter Monday game it would undoubtedly be a great fixture,” Tigers CEO Grant Mayer told AAP.
The two clubs are also drawing up a plan to share the gate from future fixtures, which would come into place once their current agreements with ANZ Stadium come up for renewal.
Unlike Souths and the Bulldogs, who are permanent residents at the stadium, the Eels and the Tigers do not take a full share of the gate takings.
“The difficult part is that both of us are on fixed guarantees out here, so no matter how big the crowd is we get what we get,” Mayer said.
“But the aim once we get off that is that we both drive the crowd and share the gate.”
Despite being local rivals, the Tigers and the Eels will meet only once this year but are hopeful that will change from 2015 and allow both clubs to work together to drive up crowd numbers.
“If we play each other twice, that gives you the ability to gate share,” Eels chief executive Scott Seaward told AAP.
“If one game is an Easter Monday when you get 50,000 and the other on a weekend where you may only get 20,000, then you get 35,000 each and share the marketing costs.”
The Tigers have four home games at ANZ this year in addition to hosting fixtures at Leichhardt and Campbelltown.
The Eels are on a flexible agreement where they can play a certain number of games in a season, if they believe the crowds can justify a switch from Parramatta Stadium.
With St George Illawarra now also playing two games at the venue this year, Mayer believes gate sharing with rival clubs to drive up attendances is the way forward.
“That’s the changing face of rugby league, sharing gates and both having clubs having a stake in the game,” Mayer said.
“But we’re not getting carried there is a lot of work to be done.”
