I like soccer at its highest levels, I just don't care about the A-League. And I stopped using TWG a decade ago because I found better sites based in Europe for soccer news. I'd imagine many Australians who follow soccer are like me. Much like basketball, the best soccer can hope for in Australia is to be a niche sport feeding top talent to the big time.2. sportingnews.com 15.4
Re SBS The World Game soccer website closure (apparently due to very low useage & click rates)
Long time soccer fan & soccer journalist V. Rugari said
""...about TWG...to lose a brand so strong- after all the cuts to football coverage [in the MSM]-is a massive gut punch that alone is devestating...".
Soccer promoter & soccer journalist S. Hill said
"Incredibly sad news of the demise of TWG. Football's media footprint continues o shrink".
Football fans slam SBS decision to end The World Game
Australian football fans are in mourning after SBS confirmed the end of long-running media outlet The World Game.www.sportingnews.com
They won't. Stadium is too narrow anyway.
I suspect some sort of compromise staged demolition/rebuild like this will happen, with some games at Carrara, Cairns, Darwin etc. Maybe the Springfield Reserve for games against low-drawing clubs the Giants or Fremantle.
I could be wrong, but I just can't see Qld Athletics moving to an upgraded park in Woolloongabba from Nathan where they have all the facilities they need, including well established administration buildings. Plus the fact that if that it leaves QSAC without a tenant post-games, which is the sort of result the Qld government is trying to avoid.
I'm sure their rental will go up as well to reflect that
The nationals just concluded at Sydney Olympic Park. Is that what you meant by there? Some decent results.
www.sen.com.au
www.aflq.com.au
Architectural rendering of proposed new Gabba Stadium. Concept image by Populous.
I bet Whately is hoping they can have horse racing on the perimeter LOL1. SEN Melb. G. Whateley program 21.4
G. Swann, Brisbane CEO, said the Lions were involved in the negotiations with the Qld. govt. to select the Gabba as the Olympic Stadium Oval.
He said:-
. "the Gabba will be a 3 level stadium, & the demolition will probably start 2025...not yet determined if the demolition will be in stages [allowing games to continue], or a total demolition".
. "the school at the back of Gabba will be relocated, possibly Gabba will be re-alligned, capacity to go further out into the park".
."some small games to be played in Springfield, others in Carrara. Might sell some home games to Melbourne, others to Cairns".
. "The build will be between anywhere from 2-3 years".
. "With the growth & everything that is happening here (AFL & GR growth in Qld. -my words), 50,000 is the perfect size for us".
(Scroll to 21.4 "Whateley Interviews G. Swann- then go to 1. min. 40 secs. - 4 mins. 50 secs.)Whateley | 1116 SEN
Combining authoritative journalism and sharp-eyed analysis with emotive broadcasting, Gerard Whateley is a unique voice in the coverage of sport in Australia. He'll bring all that and more to SEN mornings.
Having a state-of the-art 50,000 stadium, where the new underground station is close to the Gabba, is an huge boost for the AFL & GR AF in Qld.
2. Rnd. 1 of the VFL should obviously not be considered an accurate guide for the rest of the season, but Qld. 2nd tier results may be indicative of the strength of the Qld.'s former NEAFL teams Aspley & Southport. If the latter two can win 40-50% of their VFL games in 2021, it will boost the reputation of Qld. AF- & provide further evidence of the "elite" status of the QAFL., & GR AF growth in Qld.
"The NEAFL was supposed to have been a vastly inferior competition to the VFL...Brisbane extended their winning streak to 21, with a 66 point beating of Essendon at Moreton Bay, then Aspley defeated Port Melbourne by 53 points...". Southport defeated Carlton by 1 point at Prince's Park.
"Injury-ridden Gold Coast...went down to Footscray by 67 points at VU Whitten Oval".
It's a banana republic! Queensland teams dominate VFL action in Round one. - AFL Queensland
By Brendan Rhodes – AFL Media THE NEAFL was supposed to have been a vastly inferior competition to the VFL. One round might be an impossibly small sample size to make a true judgment on that belief, but it took just…Read more ›
EDIT: AFAIK, the $1b does not include the demolition costs of the Gabba.
New $1b Stadium: Gabba to be rebuilt as main Olympic stadium
Architectural rendering of proposed new Gabba Stadium
Under initial plans unveiled by the Government, the Gabba would essentially be demolished and a $1 billion main Olympic oval stadium rebuilt in its place.
The Premier said the Gabba has been home to Queensland sport including cricket and AFL for 126 years.
But to take it to that level will need the continued support of all levels of government including the Commonwealth.
“Every games needs a home,” the Premier said.
“A home for the 2032 Olympic Paralympic Games could be its crowning glory.
Formally known as the Brisbane Cricket Ground, the Gabba was been earmarked for upgrade because:
A potential upgrade would increase capacity to around 50,000.
- It is already well-used for AFL, cricket and other events
- Is existing infrastructure already connected to the SEQ busway network
- Is centrally located and
- Will have its own Cross River Rail station already under construction connected to the stadium.
It would also include a new pedestrian plaza linking the stadium to the Cross River Rail station which is currently under construction.
The Premier said having a main stadium two kilometres from the CBD gave Queensland an advantage other Games hosts haven’t had.
As a result, the Premier said, the entire city would become a games venue with hundreds of thousands able to share the atmosphere whether they were inside the stadium or not.
Thousands will be able to board trains at a new Albert Street station in the city and arrive at the stadium in as little as three minutes.
Current Stadium
Proposed Olympic Stadium
This made the games more accessible to people with disabilities and the elderly.
The Premier said the pedestrian plaza could become a games hub of its own with concerts and even medal presentations.
“I can see the river lined with people watching big screens all taking part in the fun and excitement of the games,” the Premier said.
“There’s South Bank leading to West End which is connected to Roma Street via the Kurilpa Bridge with a new bridge under construction for the new Queen’s Wharf development.
“There are city cats offering even more options for transport.
“All of this is infrastructure we already have.”
Minister for Sport and Minister Assisting the Premier on the Olympics Stirling Hinchliffe said the Gabba is a work-horse, not a white elephant.
“It’s used on average for 40 weeks of the year with major sports played in summer and winter including international sport,” the Minister said.
Brisbane Stadium Designing firm Populous had provided concept designs for a possible Gabba upgrade.
Director Chris Paterson said the Gabba satisfied the three rules of good development: location, location, location.
“Brisbane already boasts the world’s best rectangular stadium in Suncorp Stadium.” Mr Paterson said.
“This is an opportunity to compliment it with the best round field stadium right in the centre of the city.”
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1. WWOS S. Worthington 21.4.21
Worthington said
Former Wallabies Morgan Turinui and Tim Horan have expressed their excitement at the news two Pacific Island teams are set to join an expanded Super Rugby competition next year.
But Turinui still holds fears that Moana Pasifika - to be based in south Auckland - will simply become a sixth New Zealand franchise.
Moana Pasifika general manager Kevin Senio told The Breakdown that "eighty per cent of the team will have to be eligible and/or have played for Samoa, Tonga or Fiji."
That meant those Moana Pasifika players "can't play for the All Blacks or Australia," Senio confirmed.
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But Turinui said plenty of questions still remained over the expansion franchise.
"The big thing about Moana Pasifika is that it's very much New Zealand led," Turinui told Stan Sport's Rugby Heaven.
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"Kevin Senio... also works for the New Zealand Rugby Players' Association.
"So he knows the environment and he's saying they will have 80 per cent of players who are eligible to play for Tonga and Samoa and that's about as direct a link as we can find to those two unions at the moment.
"There is a genuine fear that it just becomes another New Zealand franchise. It's great to hear some info saying that's not the case but it isn't really cut and dried and clear for everyone at the moment."
READ MORE: Full story behind Wallaby's NZ rugby flirtation
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Michael Alaalatoa of Moana Pasifika leaps during a cultural challenge at FMG Stadium Waikato. (Getty)
The second expansion team, Fijian Drua, is a simpler model.
The Drua - who have previously played in Australia's NRC competition - will be based in Fiji and funded by World Rugby.
Former Wallabies assistant coach Simon Raiwalui - now Fiji's general manager of high performance - will oversee the Drua.
"It's an exciting time," Turinui said.
"It will be a genuine, direct pathway for Fijian players in clubs, through to Drua and into the Flying Fijians national team. This will be the most important thing that's happened to Fijian rugby in decades...".
ESPN 21.4.21
Pacific Island rugby on cusp of greatest step forward since turn of professionalism
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15 Apr, 2021
Wednesday was a landmark day for Pacific Island rugby.
- Liam Napier
- Facebook Messenger
They are not there yet, but New Zealand Rugby's decision to hand Moana Pasifika and the Fijian Drua conditional licences to join the 10 Kiwi and Australian Super Rugby teams from 2022 is the most significant step toward forging genuine Pacific pathways since the turn of professionalism.
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It should not, of course, have taken 26 years to reach this juncture. But as the legendary Sir Bryan Williams remarked at the announcement, it's "better late than never".
Global rugby has benefited immensely from the spread of Pacific talent and the captivating skill Fiji, Samoa and Tongan athletes frequently produce. There is no one else like them on the planet. One could go as far to suggest the failure to return the favour by establishing professional entities in the Pacific before now was a cynical ploy to keep their talent flowing to the established elite.
EDITOR'S PICKS
In some respects, that assertion holds true, but it's also too simplistic a brush to paint a vexed issue.
Much more could have been done but so, too, does natural migration play a big part in the many Pacific players who have, and continue to, represent the All Blacks and Wallabies.
Furt
2. Aust. pro RU & RL have increasingly relied on Pasifica talent for players, & to increase the skill levels of Aust. & NZ teams.
Now, however, since it appears very likely that Fiji & Moana Pasifica, will have their own teams in Super Rugby (being paid wages similar to NZ Super players), there will probably be less of these talented players (mainly from Fiji, Tonga, & Samoa) playing in Aust. Super & Wallabies' teams; & in the NRL.
The NRL (where average skill levels are in decline, according to many MSM RL experts) has been hoping to recruit more Pasifica (& Maori) players away from RU, & into the NRL. P. Gould is assisting the NZ Warriors to increase elite pathways in NZ, & the PI region.
The probable success of the Fiji Drua & Moana Pasifica (latter based in South Auckland), therefore will be a significant setback for the NRL, if skill levels continue to decline in the NRL. Such decline will have an adverse impact on crowds, ratings, Rights' $, & MSM interest in the NRL.
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