ACT Brumbies fans are calling on bosses to give them an early mark on Friday to ensure they don't miss a moment of the team's bid to make history.
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The 5.05pm kick-off in Auckland for a semi-final showdown with the Blues will cause scheduling chaos for rugby supporters this week.
It will likely lead to early office exits, but one rival supporter has taken a swipe at the Brumbies' faithful - and Canberra in general - following the club's home quarter-final win.
The Brumbies beat the Otago Highlanders last weekend in front of their biggest home crowd of the year - 8817 people.
It was well short of the halcyon days of sell-out crowds, particularly for finals.
In saying that, it's not just a rugby problem. Crowds for all Super Rugby franchises - including in New Zealand - have endured a steep decline over the past decade.
But Jack Quigley - the outspoken rugby supporter who once held court with former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika - didn't hold back when seeing the crowd on the television coverage.
"The Brumbies as a rugby club deserve so much better than Canberra as a city," he said on X.
"So much sustained success and winning culture based on nobility and hard work. And the locals are just like, 'It's a bit cold tonight, don't think I'll go'."
![Brumbies crowds have been on a downward trend for 10 years. Picture by Matt Loxton Brumbies crowds have been on a downward trend for 10 years. Picture by Matt Loxton](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/j2iwCiKfwhVWJky39Vsdpt/b4823ea2-35ad-46fc-9108-90f4aa8849f3.jpg/r0_13_3000_1706_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Quigley is well known to rugby fans. In 2017 his passionate rant about the state of the Wallabies went viral and led to a phone call with then head coach Cheika.
This time, Quigley had Brumbies fans - and the entire city of Canberra - in his sights with a harsh take. His social media post was seen more than 20,000 times by Monday morning, and fired up rugby fans from Canberra and around Australia.
The devoted fan wasn't buying excuses in the replies of the long weekend meaning locals were out of town, or blame on the tanking levels of popularity of Australian rugby union and the Wallabies, or even that the stadium is not up to scratch especially in cold weather.
"You live in Canberra. You can't POSSIBLY have anything better to do this weekend," he added.
"What else is on? Exactly. Wear a coat and go to the game FFS [sic]."
The Brumbies rolled out all the tricks - with the help of some Rugby Australia marketing budget - to make the game more visible last week.
It worked - the finals crowd was the biggest and most vocal by a long way this year.
The challenge is getting people to engage with rugby more often and get back to the stands.
The exposure from the win against the Highlanders will help. Andy Muirhead was jokingly dubbed Andy "Messi" Muirhead for his soccer efforts to score a crucial try and the video is doing the rounds around the world.
Rusted-on Brumbies fan Steve Lenthall hopes bosses avoid scheduling Friday afternoon meetings to allow time for the semi-final hype.
"It has worked before, but we need a local politician to endorse this for Friday," Lenthall said on social media.
"A) wearing of Brumbies gear for casual Friday. B) early knock off to be able to watch the semi-final in Auckland. C) Lighting up landmarks in the Brumbies' colours."
'BRING OUT YOUR COLOURS': WHY THIS AUCKLAND TRIP WILL BE DIFFERENT
By David Pembroke
There you go, Canberra. That's much more like. Counted 9000 sounded like 12,000. And didn't the boys respond magnificently.
Never let it be said that crowds don't play a role in performance. So congratulations to you all. We will need to do that and much more when the final is played in Canberra in two weeks.
Final, you ask? Here is how. It starts with us rolling the Blues on Friday night. No easy task mind but Stephen Larkham looks and sounds in no mood for settling for anything less than the trophy.
![The Brumbies got the biggest crowd of their year to the quarter-final. Picture by Keegan Carroll The Brumbies got the biggest crowd of their year to the quarter-final. Picture by Keegan Carroll](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/j2iwCiKfwhVWJky39Vsdpt/603474a8-838e-4997-b347-2e36e8607398.jpg/r0_194_3795_2336_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
In the 10 years I worked with him at the Brumbies and Wallabies, George Gregan was the only one who matched his desire to win.
He was ruthless in his pursuit of victory. He hated losing in everything. Cards, chess, two-up, you name it ... he was a relentless.
Yes, Eden Park is a graveyard. I will never forget the team bus ride from the hotel to the 1997 final.
On a day of biblical rain, we were beaten before we got off the bus. The boys didn't believe. This week will be different. Trust me.
So once that is out of the way, fresh from dismantling the Reds, the marauding Chiefs will set upon the Hurricanes on Saturday afternoon.
The Chiefs were frighteningly good and if they rise to the same standard again, they will dispatch the men from Wellington.
So, in preparation for a home final and to celebrate this week how about we all "bring out the colours".
As someone who owned the Brumbies' merchandise rights for two years (please don't mention that to Justin Harrison ... he gets very upset), I know there are thousands upon thousands of caps, flags, jumpers, t shirts, umbrellas, raincoats, stubby holders etc lying around in cupboards and garages all over Canberra and the region.
Pull them out, put them on take a snap and put them on socials. Let's get this party started Canberra. Support these boys and they will respond.
- David Pembroke was a founding member of the Brumbies and an adviser to the team from 1996-2004.