Sydney Showground or ANZ Stadium

[Beaussie]

Which is the better option as Western Sydney's home ground? Personally I think it's a no brainer with the Sydney Showground being the preferred option. Hope the AFL and NSW government see it that way and commit to a redevelopment.

 

[dlanod]

Which is the better option as Western Sydney's home ground? Personally I think it's a no brainer with the Sydney Showground being the preferred option. Hope the AFL and NSW government see it that way and commit to a redevelopment.

Sydney Showground is the smaller stadium across from ANZ, isn't it? I've walked around it at the show and it definitely has a better feel as a smaller stadium. ANZ is just too far from the action unless there's a huge crowd. Watch the NRL games there and it always feels like there's no one, even if there's around 15-20 thousand.

 

[Beaussie]

Sydney Showground is the smaller stadium across from ANZ, isn't it? I've walked around it at the show and it definitely has a better feel as a smaller stadium. ANZ is just too far from the action unless there's a huge crowd. Watch the NRL games there and it always feels like there's no one, even if there's around 15-20 thousand.

Indeed, the Sydney Showground is the smaller stadium across from ANZ. Perfect in the sense of capacity for non blockbuster games and right next to the train station with buses out the front. Fingers crossed that the NSW government comes to the party with funding for the proposed redevelopment.

Below are some pics that Glory and Fame posted of the Sydney Showgrounds in footy mode.

 

[Fire]

Am I being Naieve here, or does that ground look like it needs minimal upgrades? I mean, they are already playing AFL footy on it aren't they?

 

[dlanod]

Am I being Naieve here, or does that ground look like it needs minimal upgrades? I mean, they are already playing AFL footy on it aren't they?

I think there's an increase in capacity needed to get it up to a 20-25k stadium. They'd probably also want covered stands, change the dirt circle to be grassed, etc.

 

[Bas44]

I thought they would have to remove the dirt track to make the ground longer.

It would make more sense to play the games from there.

 

[Riggy1]

Am I being Naieve here, or does that ground look like it needs minimal upgrades? I mean, they are already playing AFL footy on it aren't they?

that's not AFL
that's the St George Crows (now Dragons) vs East Coast Eagles

nice to see the Crows winning though (more so because I hate those Eagles, Im a Demons fan in that league)

 

[Professor Knowall]

I've been to the Olympic Stadium (I refuse to use corporate names for stadiums) 3 times for Collingwood games - each with over 60,000 in attendance. The atmosphere was great - at least amongst the Pies supporters, coz we always beat the Swans.

But given that not all games are so-called "blockbusters", then the smaller Sydney Showground's is the logical choice for Western Sydney. Apparnetly the Federal Gov't is willing to pitch in $50 million and the AFL $20 million. The only hold up is with the NSW Gov't pitching in it's $50 million for a $120 millioon redevelopment. It's under fierce pressure from certain interests in NSW not give any funding to anything AFL - in complete contrast to the millions spent by the Victorian Gov't for Newsltd Storm, without any opposition in sight.

 

[dlanod]

Doesn't surprise me in the least. NSW Government's a bloody joke any which way you choose to look at it.

 

[SM]

I've been to the Showgrounds when it's raining and sat out on those seats in the second picture. Not fun.

 

[Giants FC]

Am I being Naieve here, or does that ground look like it needs minimal upgrades? I mean, they are already playing AFL footy on it aren't they?

The playing area is very small, although it could be marginally increased by getting rid of the dirt track. Also the grass terraces as a standing room area would be unlikely to meet with AFL approval - and it'll be hard for the club to sell memberships unless they can guarantee their members a seat.
But the Showgrounds has potential, and could be a nice little cauldron. The big games would always be at the Olympic Stadium, but the Showgrounds would be good for the non-blockbuster games. In its current form it has a capacity of about 16,000; but if the 2-tiered stand would be extended to cover the grass terracing it would raise the capacity to about 22,000. All with a close view to the action, put a decent crowd in there and the atmosphere would be great.

 

[Fire]

The playing area is very small, although it could be marginally increased by getting rid of the dirt track. Also the grass terraces as a standing room area would be unlikely to meet with AFL approval - and it'll be hard for the club to sell memberships unless they can guarantee their members a seat.
But the Showgrounds has potential, and could be a nice little cauldron. The big games would always be at the Olympic Stadium, but the Showgrounds would be good for the non-blockbuster games. In its current form it has a capacity of about 16,000; but if the 2-tiered stand would be extended to cover the grass terracing it would raise the capacity to about 22,000. All with a close view to the action, put a decent crowd in there and the atmosphere would be great.

Thanks for all who responded.

So its going to cost 120 million to grow grass on a dirt track and extend a grandstand?

Considering that Cararra is costing a similar ammount to make a stadium that can hold 25k from scratch, wouldn't it be better to spend that money on making the Blacktown oval the boutque stadium? It would be in the heartland and have a real suburban feel to it, which I would assume would be a good contrast to the urban swans they will be trying to distance themselves from.

 

[Beaussie]

Apparnetly the Federal Gov't is willing to pitch in $50 million and the AFL $20 million. The only hold up is with the NSW Gov't pitching in it's $50 million for a $120 millioon redevelopment.

Where did you hear or read about the Federal government's potential involvement? That's the first I've heard of it. Not doubting you, in fact would love to hear more about it, just curious. Is it part of the Infrastructure Australia funding perhaps?

The NSW government recently committed funding to upgrading WIN and Parramatta Stadiums. Surely they can find some money to upgrade the Sydney Showground too.

 

[Beaussie]

Considering that Cararra is costing a similar ammount to make a stadium that can hold 25k from scratch, wouldn't it be better to spend that money on making the Blacktown oval the boutque stadium? It would be in the heartland and have a real suburban feel to it, which I would assume would be a good contrast to the urban swans they will be trying to distance themselves from.

Having the home ground in Blacktown I think would alienate potential footy fans from south western Sydney. I certainly wouldn't find the trip on public transport from Campbelltown or Liverpool to Blacktown attractive. Not to mention the lack of public transport options at Blacktown to the ground. Homebush is well serviced by trains and buses and is near enough to being the centre of Sydney along with being a familiar setting for Sydneysiders particularly when blockbusters would be played at the adjacent ANZ Stadium.

 

[Fire]

Having the home ground in Blacktown I think would alienate potential footy fans from South Western Sydney. Not to mention the lack of public transport options. Homebush is well serviced by trains and buses and is near enough to being the centre of Sydney along with being a familiar setting for Sydneysiders particularly when blockbusters would be played at the adjacent ANZ Stadium.

You would be more in tune with the people and culture of Sydney than I.

Do you think westies will be happy to travel to a location that is 'technically' in the western suburbs, or will the location of their games be seen as a point of contention, and GWS risks being seen as a team that doesn't really connect with them?

I am thinking about all the NRL and A-league matches that will happen within the heartland of WS. Travel may be a factor, but it doesn't seem to be concerning the A-league club.

 

[Beaussie]

You would be more in tune with the people and culture of Sydney than I.

Do you think westies will be happy to travel to a location that is 'technically' in the western suburbs, or will the location of their games be seen as a point of contention, and GWS risks being seen as a team that doesn't really connect with them?

I am thinking about all the NRL and A-league matches that will happen within the heartland of WS. Travel may be a factor, but it doesn't seem to be concerning the A-league club.

Like I said, I think potential footy fans in the huge south western Sydney area would be alienated by a team based in Blacktown. ATM there is no direct train link to Blacktown from south western Sydney other than from memory, 4 trains in the morning peak and afternoon. Yes that's the NSW government and City Rail for ya.

A potential fan from Campbelltown or Liverpool would need to catch a train to Granville and change for another train out to Blacktown before catching a bus to the ground. All up probably 1 and half hours travelling each direction. Would you do that trip on a fortnightly basis if you lived in south western Sydney? The Sydney Showground is in my opinion the only viable option as all train lines from western and south western Sydney can pretty much feed into Olympic Park or Lidcombe where one can change for the one stop Olympic sprint train.

 

[Brave New World]

Best chance of adequate funding may have to wait for State and Federal Elections next year, and hope they are close. Both sides of politics would then need to appeal to the large number of losable seats in Western Sydney with 'bribes' in out doing each other.

Problems would be with time lag for AFL entry in 2012.

 

[dlanod]

Blacktown would increase the time taken for me to get there from the Inner North-West area from about 30 mins to over an hour, and probably closer to one and a half. That'd definitely make me reconsider my enthusiasm for making it to games...

 

[Redb#]

Showgrounds looks Ok from those pics. Some sun/rain protection in the terraces, not that expensive to do. Go for a capacity of around 15-20K. Is that possible at current levels?

I assume the Showgrounds is superior for parking as well compared to Blacktown?

Just how realistic is ANZ stadium for anything but Swans v GWS games?

 

[dlanod]

I've heard of quotes of 10,000 car parks at the Olympic precinct, though obviously those would be shared with any other events being held there.

I think ANZ would be used for Swans, Collingwood and any other Melbourne clubs that traditionally draw a large Sydney crowd (probably mainly whoever's on top of the ladder at a given time).

 

[jpdixon]

Just how realistic is ANZ stadium for anything but Swans v GWS games?

I think ANZ is virtually paying NRL clubs to play there. Depending what you mean by "realistic", the money really could be an issue.

 

[Tigger Please!]

But given that not all games are so-called "blockbusters", then the smaller Sydney Showground's is the logical choice for Western Sydney. Apparnetly the Federal Gov't is willing to pitch in $50 million and the AFL $20 million. The only hold up is with the NSW Gov't pitching in it's $50 million for a $120 millioon redevelopment. It's under fierce pressure from certain interests in NSW not give any funding to anything AFL - in complete contrast to the millions spent by the Victorian Gov't for Newsltd Storm, without any opposition in sight.

where are you getting this information from?
the reason for the delay in funding from the nsw government is more likely to be that the sydney showgrounds would be way down in the pecking order of sporting venues requiring upgrades in nsw, regardless of whether it's used for afl or nrl fixtures.
nrl clubs have been lobbying the state government for years to get their grounds upgraded; gws will just have to join the queue.

 

[Beaussie]

where are you getting this information from?
the reason for the delay in funding from the nsw government is more likely to be that the sydney showgrounds would be way down in the pecking order of sporting venues requiring upgrades in nsw, regardless of whether it's used for afl or nrl fixtures.
nrl clubs have been lobbying the state government for years to get their grounds upgraded; gws will just have to join the queue.

Not so sure about that. It appears the NRL has been lobbying the NSW government to give the AFL nothing, whilst funding upgrades to NRL grounds all over the state. The following two articles, particularly the second, demonstrate the state of affairs when it comes to stadium funding in NSW. Difference between the codes is the AFL actually contributes to stadium construction/redevelopments around the country. When was the last time the NRL contributed?

Geoff Carr backs grand plan for WIN Stadium
1/05/2009 5:00:00 AM

Rugby league supremo Geoff Carr has called on the State Government to redirect its withdrawn funding for a western Sydney AFL franchise to the WIN Stadium redevelopment.

NSW Premier Nathan Rees this week revealed the Government would not assist in funding the $100 million redevelopment of the Showground at Homebush to be the AFL base for the second Sydney team.

It is believed the State Government is concerned about a voter backlash about making such a major commitment to AFL's expansion into traditional rugby league areas in western Sydney.

Carr said it would make better economic sense to invest in the redevelopment of the Wollongong ground's western and southern stands because it is a rugby league ground in the middle of the code's heartland.

http://www.illawarramercury.com.au/...backs-grand-plan-for-win-stadium/1501120.aspx

Sydney's Awash With Stadiums, Thanks To Sloppy Strategy
Sydney Morning Herald
Monday June 9, 2008

Roy Masters

THE Sea Eagles have received a $6 million post-budget grant from the NSW Government to upgrade Brookvale Oval, while the Dragons anticipate funding for their Kogarah base, as do Wests Tigers with Leichhardt Oval.

The Kogarah and Leichhardt renovations will complicate the irrational spread of football stadiums in the greater Sydney region. Wests Tigers have had four venues for home games this year - ANZ Stadium, Homebush Bay; Campbelltown Sports Stadium; Leichhardt; and they hosted the Dragons in the kick-off at the Sydney Football Stadium.

St George Illawarra divide games between ANZ Stadium and WIN Stadium, Wollongong, while Oki Stadium, Kogarah, is being renovated, following successive grants - $800,000 by the Carr government, $8 million by the Howard government, $7 million by the Iemma Government and the to-be-announced grant.

The NSW Government has also awarded WIN Stadium $80,000 as a consultancy fee to replace the western grandstand. A local state member, Noreen Hay, said the redevelopment would attract more games to Wollongong. From where? Kogarah, which is being renovated at taxpayers' expense? Or ANZ Stadium, which reverts to government ownership in 2031?

The NSW Government has no venue management strategy.

The AFL plans to exploit this haphazard approach by moving on Homebush, despite a $27.5 million Government commitment 18 months ago to develop a site at Blacktown for Aussie rules and cricket.

http://www.greatersydney.com.au/gre...wash-with-stadiums-thanks-to-sloppy-strategy/

 

[Fire]

Dissapointing that the terrirtoy is so hostile that the govenrment fears assisting the development of a sporting team which will make some happy, and others will benifit in the created jobs and economic activity.

I honesly don;t understand how it can cost $120 million just to redevelop the oval to the extent I have heard propsed.

Lets not forget the QLD government took this stance but eventually saw the light. FFS, they will be getting $120 million worth of developments for only $50 million.

I hope this issue can be sorted as I don't see playing matches out of Homebush as an option. It will * development as people are repulsed from that place if a sizable crowd isn't guarenteed.

 

[Sydney Cat]

Which is the better option as Western Sydney's home ground? Personally I think it's a no brainer with the Sydney Showground being the preferred option. Hope the AFL and NSW government see it that way and commit to a redevelopment.

It will be ANZ, the surface of the showground is way too small, and the capacity is only 15000. There is no way the AFL is going to spend all that money and play at a z grade venue. They may aswell play at Blacktown.