Fremantle and Brisbane AFL fans find 'homes away from home' in Melbourne

Fremantle and Brisbane fans in Melbourne are gearing up to welcome interstate fans ahead of this weekend's AFL Grand Final. A suburban pub in Melbourne's inner-north has become the unofficial home of the Dockers, while the Lions' historic home in Fitzroy is preparing to welcome thousands of Queenslanders. What's next? Fremantle are looking to secure their first grand final win on Saturday, while Brisbane are hoping to secure their third consecutive premiership. Interstate footy fans descending on Melbourne for this weekend's AFL grand final are gravitating towards two pubs serving as unofficial embassies for travelling Fremantle and Brisbane fans. This weekend is the fifth time two non-Victorian teams are competing in an AFL Grand Final and interstate fans are already streaming into the city. An unassuming pub in Melbourne's inner north is gearing up to be a home away from home for Fremantle supporters. Alistair Carragher bought the Great Northern Hotel in Carlton North in 2009. The Perth expat said the pub was historically a home for Fremantle and West Coast supporters who moved to Melbourne. "They'd go play a game of football at the park and then come to the pub after that," he said. "West Australians in general were a bit neglected in sport and pubs." Mr Carragher said since 2013, when Fremantle played its first grand final, the popularity of the hotel for local Dockers fans exploded. "It's great to have somewhere to go, especially being the smaller group in Melbourne, there's not always a place that you can find people," Fremantle cheer squad member Jess Ritchie said. Dockers fan Nacha Kirilak said it was "nice to have a safe ground to come to with like-minded people who aren't going to yell at you because you're wearing a different colour". Along with local supporters, the hotel is expecting to host hundreds of Fremantle fans visiting Melbourne who were unable to get a ticket to the game at the MCG. "It's a little bit of a community home, somewhere they can see their team," Mr Carragher said. "Everyone's just super pumped." A different story for the Lions While Dockers supporters in Melbourne needed to commandeer a suburban pub, just a few kilometres to the east, Lions fans had a very different story. The suburb of Fitzroy is the spiritual home of the Lions, after the Victorian football club amalgamated with the Brisbane Bears 30 years ago, to form the Brisbane Lions. Scott Villiers, a self-described Lions nuffy, said the team has always felt like the Fitzroy Lions to him. "It's nostalgic, I actually feel proud to be part of a family, because that's what the Brisbane Lions is," he said. "The club does an amazing job to preserve the history of both Fitzroy and the Bears." Mr Villiers acknowledged that a new generation of Brisbane fans have emerged since the amalgamation. "I hope they feel welcome down here, we're an extended family by default," he said. For the past three grand finals, the Royal Derby Hotel on Brunswick Street has served as the home of the Lions in Fitzroy. "Thousands upon thousands of bowls of chips, 120 kegs of beer flowing, good vibes and lots of cheering," its venue manager Liam Huxley recalled. The hotel staff are preparing to do it all again for a fourth consecutive year, while welcoming Queensland fans joining the Fitzroy fraternity. "Last year, the amount of Bundy [rum] and Great Northern we went through — it's just unbelievable," Mr Huxley said. Victoria to reap the benefits Both pubs completely booked out tables months ago, with staff expecting hundreds more walk-ins across the long weekend. RMIT University finance professor Angel Zhong said the grand final weekend could generate up to $75 million in economic activity for the state. "When interstate fans fly in, stay in hotels and eat in our restaurants, that is genuinely new money entering Victoria," she said. Dr Zhong also highlighted the economic strain placed on small business owners, who are required to pay penalty rates on Friday's public holiday in Victoria. "How it balances out depends on the individual business, whether it opens, how busy it is and whether it can make up the lost day." Melbourne Airport said more than 114,000 passengers are expected to travel through its terminals on Saturday. While Melburnians may be used to living in the football capital of Australia, this weekend, it's the interstate fans who will be calling the city home. [Image text:] OGGAS 50 FREM