The old suburban VFL/AFL grounds

[Teagueeee15]

Also been Down to Glenferrie Oval, which is completely open to the public and has the awesome Michael Tuck Stand and the soon to be demolished Ferguson Stand:

Rear of the Ferguson stand

Side of the stand

Front of the stand

Peeking inside the stand through the window

 

[Teagueeee15]

Michael Tuck Stand

Unfortunately, no access to the seating is possible

Looking down the Hawthorn race

Erected in 1938

Turnstile

Side of the stand

Old Hawks reception entrance

Rear of the stand

Steps up to the back of the stand that lead to a closed off access to seating in the stand

Peaking in through the windows of the Hawks training base up til 2006

 

[Teagueeee15]

Interchange benches

Views from the centre circle

Looking at Glenferrie road end

 

[Silent Alarm]

I really like Glenferrie. It's my lunch spot at uni actually, and I always find it weird to imagine more than... 10,000 people there. It's completely chastised – by railways, by carparks, by houses and suburban roads... it's probably the most tucked away, 'suburban' ground in Melbourne. Though Waverley's new estate looks pretty tightly built as well.

What I don't like is the weightlifting building. It's just really ugly and takes away from the charm of the old Tuck Stand. Is it even used anymore? Or is it a white elephant from the Commonwealth Games?

I get the feeling that Hawthorn and Glenferrie Road would've been a lot like Freo and the Cappuccino Strip is now. Y'know, players having coffee on the street. And plenty of other people walking around in regalia. That kind of vibe, or blocking it, is something I really think the Fremantle Council will completely regret in 20 years.

Does anyone know when that Ferguson Stand is actually being dismantled?

 

[bradrowe#32]

Why are they pulling Ferguson down? And do any clubs play at Glenferrie nowadays?

I've always liked Waverley. What's the access like? Can you just wander in?

And, could I ask anymore questions?

 

[Teagueeee15]

I really like Glenferrie. It's my lunch spot at uni actually, and I always find it weird to imagine more than... 10,000 people there. It's completely chastised – by railways, by carparks, by houses and suburban roads... it's probably the most tucked away, 'suburban' ground in Melbourne. Though Waverley's new estate looks pretty tightly built as well.

What I don't like is the weightlifting building. It's just really ugly and takes away from the charm of the old Tuck Stand. Is it even used anymore? Or is it a white elephant from the Commonwealth Games?

I get the feeling that Hawthorn and Glenferrie Road would've been a lot like Freo and the Cappuccino Strip is now. Y'know, players having coffee on the street. And plenty of other people walking around in regalia. That kind of vibe, or blocking it, is something I really think the Fremantle Council will completely regret in 20 years.

Does anyone know when that Ferguson Stand is actually being dismantled?

From the look of it, the weightlifting stadium is just a run of the mill Gym now, so at least it isn't a white elephant I guess.

Don't know when the Ferguson stand is going to actually be demolished, but the Boorandara council have said it will happen.

Why are they pulling Ferguson down? And do any clubs play at Glenferrie nowadays?

I've always liked Waverley. What's the access like? Can you just wander in?

And, could I ask anymore questions?

I believe the Ferguson stand is going to be demolished as it has no heritage listing (unlike Tuck stand) so that the council can open the ground up some more into a community space.

At Waverley, you can just walk in and walk on the oval as there aren't any fences and many different access points from the housing estate. Obviously access would be somewhat restricted when Hawthorn are using the oval, but otherwise it's fine to have a kick on there as 10-15 others were doing when I was there.

If you have any other questions, then feel free to ask away.

 

[bradrowe#32]

Cheers mate.

 

[budge27]

Why are they pulling Ferguson down? And do any clubs play at Glenferrie nowadays?

I've always liked Waverley. What's the access like? Can you just wander in?

And, could I ask anymore questions?

As far as I know no one plays there anymore. Swinburne Uni used to play there in mid 90's until Hawthorn thought we were wrecking the surface from our game once a fortnight I managed to snag a few goals there in the day - always loved playin at that ground.

 

[FootyJunkie]

Yes mate, an ex-bomber, steven clark was having the shot. He sadly died of cancer a few years ago.

 

[Silent Alarm]

As far as I know no one plays there anymore. Swinburne Uni used to play there in mid 90's until Hawthorn thought we were wrecking the surface from our game once a fortnight I managed to snag a few goals there in the day - always loved playin at that ground.

Do you know if anyone could play there these days?

Hawthorn Auskick is there. Some social league is there a few weeks as well. But if they tear down that stand and give it the Vic Park treatment, which would look really cool with the tidying up of the place, you could definitely have one or two clubs train and play there.

 

[West_Coast_Eagles]

I find it funny that hippys are protesting a McDonald's being built in some town at the end of the world but nobody seems to give a f@&k that local councils have taken away the history of almost every vfl ground. It's quite pathetic to see all these stands demolished for no good reason than to put in a few trees & a BBQ. Arden street is nothing. Western oval demolished the grandstand clock outer wing for no bloody reason. It's not just bloody grass. Now foots ray in the vfl will struggle to play there as all the "original" features to play a game of footy are gone.


I find it depressing to see things pulled down for no good reason. Look what athletics did at lake oval. A bit of bloody common sense right there.

 

[arkie]

I really like Glenferrie. It's my lunch spot at uni actually, and I always find it weird to imagine more than... 10,000 people there. It's completely chastised – by railways, by carparks, by houses and suburban roads... it's probably the most tucked away, 'suburban' ground in Melbourne. Though Waverley's new estate looks pretty tightly built as well.

What I don't like is the weightlifting building. It's just really ugly and takes away from the charm of the old Tuck Stand. Is it even used anymore? Or is it a white elephant from the Commonwealth Games?

I get the feeling that Hawthorn and Glenferrie Road would've been a lot like Freo and the Cappuccino Strip is now. Y'know, players having coffee on the street. And plenty of other people walking around in regalia. That kind of vibe, or blocking it, is something I really think the Fremantle Council will completely regret in 20 years.

Does anyone know when that Ferguson Stand is actually being dismantled?

Swinburne?

 

[Rusty Brookes]

Fantastic thread. I've been taking my five year old son to all of the old VFL grounds. He likes Victoria Park and Glenferrie Oval the most but he had a great time at Moorabbin and Windy Hill.

Here's some photos from Glenferrie Oval circa 1961.

http://www.peterelliston.com/Webpage_Football 1961/index.htm

 

[The King!]

glenferrie looks a tight ground.

great pics

 

[Lex22]

I find it funny that hippys are protesting a McDonald's being built in some town at the end of the world but nobody seems to give a f@&k that local councils have taken away the history of almost every vfl ground. It's quite pathetic to see all these stands demolished for no good reason than to put in a few trees & a BBQ. Arden street is nothing. Western oval demolished the grandstand clock outer wing for no bloody reason. It's not just bloody grass. Now foots ray in the vfl will struggle to play there as all the "original" features to play a game of footy are gone.


I find it depressing to see things pulled down for no good reason. Look what athletics did at lake oval. A bit of bloody common sense right there.

Spot on. They have ripped down a lot of things at them suburban grounds for no purpose. They dismantled a good part of the Whitten Oval for no apparent reason, even took down the old scoreboard. Now its just windier and looks way worse than it did before.

They do all these things before thinking that they might need the venue in the future, eg having your 2nds play on it.

 

[SJ]

Spot on. They have ripped down a lot of things at them suburban grounds for no purpose. They dismantled a good part of the Whitten Oval for no apparent reason, even took down the old scoreboard. Now its just windier and looks way worse than it did before.

They do all these things before thinking that they might need the venue in the future, eg having your 2nds play on it.

Well they rip a lot of it down because it is neglected and requires money for maintenance for very little purpose.

 

[Silent Alarm]

Well they rip a lot of it down because it is neglected and requires money for maintenance for very little purpose.

The other thing to remember is that it's really just nostalgia. Grey, concrete, permanently wet terraces aren't really too aesthetically pleasing. While it might fit in with a hipster's idea of grunginess in Abbotsford, Vic Park is immeasurably more pleasant looking with the grass banks. Same could be said for the parkland that'll replace that stand at Glenferrie.

The real eyesores are the weird in between jobs. You get them at the WAFL. There's still a need for terracing because you're getting a few thousand there every weekend or two. But it's not parkland. And it's not elite sport. I reckon Leederville is the tackiest with those limestone bricks:

Which is a shame because it's a nice little ground. People would still talk about it if the WAFL was a top level competition into the 80s or even 90s. Lots of places to eat, a real communal vibe, and a tidy set of grandstands. They've left the bottom rung open, which is a nice place to laze around on a Saturday arvo (I'd imagine – never seen a game there). But the top could've been done a little better.

Save for this winter, you don't really get those blue skied July days in Melbs. So as good of a middle ground as it could be, it'd be mostly useless at Western Oval or something.

 

[Freofalcon]

The other thing to remember is that it's really just nostalgia. Grey, concrete, permanently wet terraces aren't really too aesthetically pleasing. While it might fit in with a hipster's idea of grunginess in Abbotsford, Vic Park is immeasurably more pleasant looking with the grass banks. Same could be said for the parkland that'll replace that stand at Glenferrie.

The real eyesores are the weird in between jobs. You get them at the WAFL. There's still a need for terracing because you're getting a few thousand there every weekend or two. But it's not parkland. And it's not elite sport. I reckon Leederville is the tackiest with those limestone bricks:

Which is a shame because it's a nice little ground. People would still talk about it if the WAFL was a top level competition into the 80s or even 90s. Lots of places to eat, a real communal vibe, and a tidy set of grandstands. They've left the bottom rung open, which is a nice place to laze around on a Saturday arvo (I'd imagine – never seen a game there). But the top could've been done a little better.

Save for this winter, you don't really get those blue skied July days in Melbs. So as good of a middle ground as it could be, it'd be mostly useless at Western Oval or something.

Travel to Melbourne once a year to catch up with a mate. Always make it to a VFL game while I'm over there. Couple of years ago it was Collingwood v Northern Bullants ( or whatever team is associated with Carlton ). I really wanted to go see that game as it was at Victoria Park ( just before they started the upgrade ). I could see how it would have been horrible for an opposition supporter to go and their team play there. They were feral enough and there was only about 1000 there that day. I couldn't imagine 30,000. Had the pleasure of seeing Nathan Buckley rip the front fender off his Lexus as he was leaving at half time. I tried to warn him but he ignored me .

Why I'm really posting , and it's off topic , is because as a young lad , I grew up at Leederville oval in the late 70's early 80's watching West Perth. Love the ground and many fond memories of huge crowds when WAFL was king in WA and the only VFL we saw was Winners on a Sunday night with Drew. West Perths last game there before they moved to Arena in Joondalup drew over 20,000 in 1993.

 

[Teagueeee15]

Here are some shots of the surrounds down at Moorabbin.

 

[Teagueeee15]

View from the seats

Must be a saints home game coming up

Coaches box and TV Gantry are still there

It's an interesting design in that there was no concourse at the ground.

Looking down the Players race

 

[Silent Alarm]

Ahhh, no concourse! I knew there was something a little empty and incomplete about it, but I assumed it was just the demolition of the other stands. Cost saving?

 

[Teagueeee15]

There was an open door so I was able to grab some shots from inside the Huggins Stand. You really get a nostalgic feeling walking through the inner sanctum of what used to be the St Kilda footy club.

Boot studder's room and a laundry up the far end

Some sort of Store room

Pictures of club legends line the walls

Heritage Museum which looked like it's been moved to Seaford???

Entrance to the Arthur Dunkley Gym. The Gym was still full of equipment and notice all the training bags just dumped on the left

The sign on this door said Squash room and you can see the markings left over on the floor.

 

[Teagueeee15]

Ahhh, no concourse! I knew there was something a little empty and incomplete about it, but I assumed it was just the demolition of the other stands. Cost saving?

It's a bit of a strange ground in that suburbia from Linton St seems to back right back onto the rear of the remaining stands so I guess space was the main issue.

 

[Teagueeee15]

Here's Punt Road. Nothing of real interest and it's fenced all the way around so not really happy with my pictures.

Rear of ME Bank centre.

Jack Dyer statue

Rear of the old stand

The Museum (Which was closed)

Behind the goals at MCG End

Front of old stand peaking through the fence. Notice the proximity to the MCG

ME Bank centre

 

[The Blue Baggers]

been watching the cricket from england and thinking how great their grounds are for cricket, crowds around 20k, great atmosphere.

relating this back to footy, would have loved the Vic clubs to have kept their suburban grounds for games against the interstate clubs.