Huge numbers of fans cross the footbridge before Sunday's Showdown.

Adelaide Oval management came close to turning away ticketed spectators and members as last Sunday’s Showdown busted the maximum listed capacity of the redeveloped ground.

The Oval’s capacity is set at 53,500 – but on Sunday, 54,468 people packed into the ground.

The extra 1000 spectators were accommodated in standing zones – the hill at the northern end and on concourses.

Management were surprised by unprecedented “show rates” for members and all other ticket categories, as South Australia’s football community turned out in strength to honour the late Crows coach Phil Walsh.

The general manager commercial at the Stadium Management Authority, Darren Chandler, told InDaily that management came close to turning people away.

“We monitored it very closely with police and made the call it was still safe,” he said.

“Could we have gone much higher than that? Absolutely not.”

Chandler believes it is very unlikely that Oval management will be put in that situation again given the unique significance of this Showdown.

The SMA judges likely attendance based on historic show rates, but the unprecedented circumstances of the Showdown meant those calculations were meaningless.

Walsh was a revered figure at both local AFL clubs. As well as being the Crows senior coach this season, he was a long-serving assistant at Port Adelaide during its most successful years in the AFL.

Players entered the field through a joint banner, and the best player of the match was awarded the Phil Walsh medal.

Walsh’s daughter Quinn was involved in the post-match presentations.

Chandler believes the nature of the occasion helped ensure the over-capacity crowd was well-behaved.

There were no problems with spectators leaving the ground after the match, despite the usual tight squeeze on the footbridge.

However, Chandler said there were some spectator complaints about sight lines being obscured during the match.

The ground came close to its capacity the very next day, when Liverpool took on Adelaide United in front of 53,008 fans.

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