The 2026 Commonwealth Games are likely to be held in mid-November 2026 (not March as in 2006)
Eureka Stadium (Mars Stadium)
- Thread starter BallaratBoy1987
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The 2026 Commonwealth Games are likely to be held in mid-November 2026 (not March as in 2006)
- Dec 7, 2016
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- North Melbourne
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Who knows?
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Teen Wolf
Norm Smith Medallist
- Jul 5, 2011
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- Afghanistan women's cricket team
It'd be ridiculous if GMHBA Stadium doesn't host track & field:
If it is going to be at Mars Stadium, I don't see how they would have any other choice than to build a new stand replacing the hill, like so:
Note the overhang of the track, meaning no permanent stand is going to be built for that southern bend because it'll be useless once the ground is reconfigured to football mode. Therefore the only space for sufficient media facilities would be on that eastern side I've marked out.*
*unless there's a desire to waste a huge amount of money
- By my calculations the ground dimensions are pretty much perfect. At worst a corner of one of the sandpits might push up a little too closely to the fence.
- There are two ovals next door: one where the warm-up track can fit, the other which the Cats can use to train on while the main ground is out of action.
- If the CG are held in the first two weeks of March, it should only impact KP's ability to host AFL matches for the first 6 rounds (at most) of the 2026 season. During that time it'd be easy to ensure the Cats have 2 home games at the MCG and 4 away games.
If it is going to be at Mars Stadium, I don't see how they would have any other choice than to build a new stand replacing the hill, like so:
Note the overhang of the track, meaning no permanent stand is going to be built for that southern bend because it'll be useless once the ground is reconfigured to football mode. Therefore the only space for sufficient media facilities would be on that eastern side I've marked out.*
*unless there's a desire to waste a huge amount of money
Kardinia Park is too narrow. It’ll cost millions to take out seats
Teen Wolf
Norm Smith Medallist
- Jul 5, 2011
- 8,113
- 8,920
- AFL Club
- North Melbourne
- Other Teams
- Afghanistan women's cricket team
Ok so explain what part of this I have wrong:
See the 182.02m measurement (track with a steeplechase water jump outside the bend) and the 181.91m measurement (length of KP fence-to-fence), proving I haven't had to resize anything.
Can show where the current fenceline on the right is?
As a rugby fan I like seeing the Rebels go to the regions. But unfortunately that was a one off. When the old NRC was going I always wanted to the second tier side play in the country.
Highly doubt it gets more use than Marvel, AFL every week, home of the renegades then the car park is used everyday by CBD workers as well as all the conference rooms. Universities hold exams and graduations there. Don’t ask me why though attended a graduation there 35 outside under the roof was 40 plus in there.
Hang on two rugby games a year? You are taking the piss the Rebels have played one game there. With no plans to go back and the Storm are playing one pre season game there
You also don’t need to upgrade a ground for local footy lol
There has only ever been one Super Rugby match played there and that was the Rebels v Sharks. There were no Super Rugby games scheduled there after that. Also the Newcastle Jets play soccer FFSNo they add up. Two super rugby games have been played there since 2020 with another two cancelled due to Covid lockdowns. The first ever game was back in 2018 between Qld Country and Melbourne Rising. Further they've played two womens conference games as well drawing good local interest and support. So funnily enough that means to date that twice as many ARU womens games have been played at Mars compared to the AFLW. Also the ARU supporters haven't been all whiney about Mars Sadium being an oval the way that the A League fans have been. The rugby fans seem to like the venue for what it is with pretty favourable feedback from both playing teams and fans.
So far for 2022 there is the League trial of Melbourne Storm v Newcastle Jets. There is a small but very competitive Rugby Union following in Ballarat with rgably the strongest team at Fed Uni. The ground seems to be favoured by at least the Rugby Union perhaps because there aren'tany high quality rugby fields in regional Victoria and I oudn't imagine any Ballarat soccer club allowing rugby union or league to be played on any of heir best pitches
A look at how the restructured hill looks
- Jun 7, 2013
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- 410
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- Socceroos Geelong
A few months ago they had the christmas carols being sung there.
Now the NRL.
Also the A-league likes coming to Ballarat.
Also the AFL love it too.
Now the NRL.
Also the A-league likes coming to Ballarat.
Also the AFL love it too.
Yes A-League this coming weekend and AFLW the following weekend on the Labour Day long weekend. I am confident that Mars Stadium will have an even bigger role to play on Victoria's sporting landscape as it is developed in the coming years.
Victoria is growing and within a decade there is likely to be 8 million in the state with increased demand for clubs and sporting facilities. Existing leagues and competitions will grow as well as a reasonable expectation that new leagues and competitions will begin. This will only increase the demand for improved stadia across Victoria in all competitions and sports codes. When you consider the level of building and development of indoor stadiums around regional Victoria and no doubt within the metropolitan area that has occurred over the last ten years as well as the level of development that is now occurring in regional centres at Mildura, Shepparton, SE Melbourne, the Latrobe Valley and now Warrnambool. The expectations of athletes has changed. It is no longer acceptable for players to run around on mowed cow paddocks and mud pits. The liability alone on the leagues and clubs each time a player or member of the public is injured by the playing conditions leaves sports bodies and Councils vulnerable to litigation.
Victoria has had to invest hundreds of millions in new indoor sport stadiums in order to remain competitive when bidding for competitions and/or to keep local teams in competitions.
Mars Stadium has certainly been embraced by the Andrews Government as more than simply an electioneering platform. They are clearly envisioning it to eventually become something more significant than what the Ballarat Football community or Ballarat Council originally proposed back in 2008. The latter groups simply wanted a second tier stadium capable of seating 13-15,000 under cover that would have been utilitarian in its construct and amenities, similar to UTAS Stadium.
I am of the clear impression that the Andrews Government made a clear statement from the outset that they wanted it to evolve to eventually become more significant. Rather than being second tier, they are positioning it as Victoria's fourth "World Class" albeit 'Boutique' stadium. This was evidenced at the outset by appointing a leading global architecture firm "Peddle Thorp" to design it. That said, there were compromises in the first stage of its construction which were resultant of it's limited initial budget. Compromises included cheaper VFL competition grade lighting, no permanent amenities in the standing areas, no permanent entrances, and no catering facilities. However, Peddle Thorp did make provisions in their designs for the stadium to evolve with those amenities in future stages once funds became available. It's worth noting that if the government had wanted to save a lot of Sheckles then they could have easily have handed the design work straight over to a public works draftsman and yes we would have gotten a very utilitarian looking facility with very plain looking but functional stands and gates.
The recent building and development works that are in the final stages of completion ATM addressed improving standing area access, creation of concrete terraces, permanent toilets, new permanent covered ticketing and entry points, new catering facilities and hugely upgrading change rooms for players and umpires to accommodate female sports. Again, the latest works certainly make an architectual statement and are designed to compliment and enhance the Stage 1 construction elements of the stadium. Immediate upgrade works which the Council have now turned their eyes toward are parking and a full lighting upgrade. It will be interesting to see which parts of the ground are rebuilt or built up if the Government get the nod for the Comm Games and Mars Stadium is indeed nominated as the host venue for the athletics as has been discussed widely by the media.
My bet is that if the latter occurs then Ballarat's Llanberris Reserve will be re-located from Golden Point and onto the Showgrounds Site where the a new permanent athletics track would compliment the temporary games track, the new athletics pavilion would easily be utilised as a media centre during a major contest and after the Games, Mars Stadium and the new athletics centre would share the existing Gate 2 entry and the new southern toilets at Mars Stadium without the need or expense of building new said amenities. It actually almost makes sense particularly in consideration that the Council is currently chasing funds to re-surface Llanberris Reserve and to upgrade it's lighting. Again, problem solved - re-purpose the Mars Stadium's existing lights to the new athletics centre.Geez I ought to be running the Council
I imagine that Mars Stadium will be quite a showpiece once Creswick Road is upgraded and the showgrounds and former Eureka Valves sites are developed.
Do you think North Melbourne will/could relocate their Hobart games to ballarat in the future when that deal eventually finishes up pending the Tasmanian team coming into the competition
- Dec 7, 2016
- 2,128
- 4,693
- AFL Club
- North Melbourne
- Other Teams
- North Ballarat Roosters
That's a $25 million question. The Western Bulldogs are at this stage signed on in Ballarat to be reviewed again at the end of the 2024 season. I suspect that as long as the WBFC want to stay in Ballarat then they will stay there and won't want any competition from another AFL team. Technically North could bid for that place if for what ever reason the Dogs were to determine that they did not wish to continue with Ballarat after Season 2024. I imagine that it's unlikely that the Bulldogs would abandon Ballarat if the stadium was to be further upgraded in capacity and lighting leading to 2026. Effective broadcast standard lighting would change the whole dynamic at Mars Stadium because it would totally free up fixturing of games which are presently limited to Saturday and Sunday afternoons and this is a sticking point ATM for the WBFC. Night games would definitely offer flexibility for twilight and night fixturing thus broadening the stadium's potential threefold as well as offering live telecast games. Presently Channel 7 does not broadcast 1.30 pm Victorian fixtures and that affects the Bulldogs exposure much the same way that North presently misses out on national exposure being continually fixtured at twilight on Sundays.
Yes if North don't get a re-tenure in Tassie at some point in the future (for what ever reason) then they would likely chase another venue if one were available. It might be the chance for Bendigo or Shepparton to raise their hands. Shepparton already has a very good oval at its Deakin Reserve, while Bendigo's QEO would need some modernisation, it's still a very large capacity ground with a good surface that can accommodate up to 13,000 standing at present.
Deakin Reserve:
QEO Bendigo:
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Bulldogs only have 2 games at ballarat so with the major upgrades that has happened and continue to happen gives scope for more games so ballarat would be keen on more games
I know last year at gws v suns game some of the locals were pretty happy to have another game there albeit 2 interstate teams they have no interest in and in the middle of a pandemic
If north played gws and suns maybe freo in ballarat could be more financially viable than at marvel and easier for their members to get to than hobart
But like your previous post suggested regarding the CG it’s most likely Shepparton and Bendigo will get some sort of upgrade so in a few years we might see other clubs like st kilda chase money from those towns
- Dec 7, 2016
- 2,128
- 4,693
- AFL Club
- North Melbourne
- Other Teams
- North Ballarat Roosters
Good in theory, but the Bulldogs want to monopolise Ballarat and originally fought tooth and nail to get North Melbourne the hell out of Ballarat back in 2014.
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- Dec 19, 2011
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- Man Utd, Seattle SuperSonics, SA Spurs
Also, to add to what’s already well said by Roogal, put simply, Ballarat is west and Bendigo is north. It makes sense for the Bulldogs to establish themselves in Ballarat and someone else (North?) to consider Bendigo. I don’t think Shepparton or any other regional venue is a serious candidate for AFL football in the foreseeable future.
- Dec 7, 2016
- 2,128
- 4,693
- AFL Club
- North Melbourne
- Other Teams
- North Ballarat Roosters
One shouldn't rule out Lavington Sports complex in Albury in this conversation. The ground has recently undergone a $15 million upgrade to bring it to near AFL standard. It has a few tricks which Bendigo presently doesn't offer. It has a proper media broadcast facility, corporate boxes and broadcast quality lighting. Albury has an airport with regular scheduled flights to and from Sydney and Melbourne and is only a three hour drive North of Melbourne.
- Dec 19, 2011
- 2,090
- 2,844
- AFL Club
- Collingwood
- Other Teams
- Man Utd, Seattle SuperSonics, SA Spurs
Any thoughts on who would be willing to commit to that region? I genuinely don’t know.
- Dec 7, 2016
- 2,128
- 4,693
- AFL Club
- North Melbourne
- Other Teams
- North Ballarat Roosters
Your guess is as good as mine. The AFL would have to find North Melb a new region somewhere if Tassie boots them out. Richmond has the whole of Northern Victoria from Mildura, Swan Hill, Echuca, Bendigo, Shepparton, Wangaratta, to Albury-Wodonga allocated for its junior development programs. You could easily divide that region in half with Richmond getting NE Victoria (encompassing Wallan, Kilmore, Seymour, Shepparton, Benalla, Wangaratta, and Albury-Wodonga), and North Melboune the North West (Mildura, Swan Hill, Echuca, Bendigo, Gisborne and Castlemaine). Each of those zones encompass cities and towns with combined regional populations of approx 250,000 each, which is ample for a club to manage and to build support bases within.
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- May 23, 2016
- 713
- 836
- AFL Club
- St Kilda
- Other Teams
- Port Melbourne; Kalkee; Horsham Demons
More than just AFL football is played at Mars Stadium, you know.
- May 23, 2016
- 713
- 836
- AFL Club
- St Kilda
- Other Teams
- Port Melbourne; Kalkee; Horsham Demons
I wonder if Footscray would be willing to shift a few games to Mars in the VFL or VFLW competitions. North Ballarat were keen to return to the VFL at one stage, but I believe AFL Victoria wanted them to rebrand to align with the GVW Rebels, and they turned that down. A new team based in the region could really succeed if it was branded properly, but I doubt it's on the cards given the state of the VFL right now.
The development of Mars Stadium from 2014 was a significant contributing factor to North Ballarat no longer being in the VFL.
Could you explain why given this led to much better facilities for them?
I understand they ended their association with NM who provided them players but this would have happened anyway when North fielded their own VFL team in 2018.
- May 23, 2016
- 713
- 836
- AFL Club
- St Kilda
- Other Teams
- Port Melbourne; Kalkee; Horsham Demons
The council took over ownership of the stadium in early 2017 as part of a Government scheme to turn it into a minor AFL venue, which included the carpark and social club, which affected the clubs bottom line.
There was also a lack on on field success, instability at board level, and a greater focus on North Ballarat City, the club they operated in the BFNL.
I understand that after thier licence was terminated in 2018, they tried to return in 2019, but AFL Victoria required them to rebrand, and they weren't willing to do that.
