Free tickets or not they still turned up on Friday nights and Sundays in bigger numbers than they do now by some distance the reason for this I dont think we will ever agree on!!
Regardless, the crowds declined before the nix. So that kind of screws up your nix argument doesn't it?
Plus I will take 50 less of a crowd in the ASBP if it means 8000 more people get out to watch a professional football match every 2nd week, and youngsters have an additional pathway to pro football within our own country.