The old suburban VFL/AFL grounds

[SportsCentre]

I played little league for 2 years as a kid. Represented Footscray about 5-6 times over 1987, 88 and 89.
Everytime we played at the Western Oval, it was pretty much a guaranteed day off on the Monday from the flu.
I remember one afternoon playing against Geelong there. It was horizontal rain and freezing wind, so a stock standard day.
You used to play wing to wing for little league, and the ground stunk like cow manure. It was all chopped up and muddy but the stench almost made you dry reach.

Despite the criticism, playing at half time of a Panasonic Cup grand final in 1989 (Melbourne and Geelong I think) at Waverley was a great experience. A big crowd, under lights was a buzz as a kid.

 

[Bombermania]

I went to Glenferrie Oval for the first time in a long time for a family day and happy to report that the council have actually done a bit of work on the old girl. Some nice benches on the Glenferrie Rd end, easier access through the awesome tunnel underneath the train tracks and the ground was in much better nick than last time I was there. Perhaps councils are realising old VFL grounds are amazing assets.

That tunnel under the train tracks is indeed awesome, just image what it must have been like to take a mark in that pocket, with Hawthorn fans sitting basically on top of you.

 

[Rusty Brookes]

That tunnel under the train tracks is indeed awesome, just image what it must have been like to take a mark in that pocket, with Hawthorn fans sitting basically on top of you.

I used to play footy with a bloke (RIP Rocket) who was a big Saints fan but reckoned Glenferrie was an experience as you were so close to the action. I had the chance to go out to Windy Hill last week. Still looks great and it's great that it's being used for VFL.

 

[Teagueeee15]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/a...to-redevelopment/story-fni5f9q3-1227324662416

Saints getting closer to moving back to Moorabbin. I hope that they don't bulldoze the Huggins Stand as the article suggests.

 

[Pykie]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/a...to-redevelopment/story-fni5f9q3-1227324662416

Saints getting closer to moving back to Moorabbin. I hope that they don't bulldoze the Huggins Stand as the article suggests.

Nice of St Kilda to railroad the deal at the 11th hour and * the local football competitions over in the process.

This redevelopment had already been announced for the HQ and home of the SFL, SMJFL and the Sandi Dragons, the SFL was going to hold their finals here and be a real boost to the league as well as inter league games, headline games etc.

The deal had been in the works since St Kilda abandoned it to Seaford.

Doubt they will get a look in now with St Kilda and their VFL side needing it for training and games.

St Kilda just saw the opportunity to piggy back onto it to get out of Seaford.

 

[Teagueeee15]

Nice of St Kilda to railroad the deal at the 11th hour and **** the local football competitions over in the process.

This redevelopment had already been announced for the HQ and home of the SFL, SMJFL and the Sandi Dragons, the SFL was going to hold their finals here and be a real boost to the league as well as inter league games, headline games etc.

The deal had been in the works since St Kilda abandoned it to Seaford.

Doubt they will get a look in now with St Kilda and their VFL side needing it for training and games.

St Kilda just saw the opportunity to piggy back onto it to get out of Seaford.

According to Caro's article in The Age all of those parties will be apart of the redevelopment, but I sense that these organisations will be an after thought from now on.

 

[Pykie]

According to Caro's article in The Age all of those parties will be apart of the redevelopment, but I sense that these organisations will be an after thought from now on.

Those parties announced it as their stand alone HQ in the middle of last year, St Kilda has since piggy backed onto it to get out of Seaford and have brought their admin and VFL side along with it.

Theres now 2 football leagues, a TAC Cup side, an AFL side and a VFL side going to be based out of it.

I wonder which will get precedence and which will start getting muscled out as soon as it's opened.

 

[Pykie]

Plan B, obviously after they couldn't get funding to Junction Oval.

How things change, who cares that you ruin 5 years of hardwork from grassroots leagues.

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-ne...ment-funding-at-moorabbin-20140503-zr3wi.html

5.5.2014

St Kilda will not be budging from its presence at Seaford, despite the state government pledging $8 million to fund a redevelopment of the Saints' former training base at Moorabbin.

Former Fremantle coach and now Sports Minister Damian Drum unveiled the Liberal government's plan on Saturday, one that paves the way for a stand-alone St Kilda reserves team to play its home games at the venue when it re-enters the VFL in 2016.

New Saints chief executive Matt Finnis expressed his club's excitement at the announcement. "For years St Kilda fans flocked to Linton Street to see the Saints in action and it is incredibly exciting that a revitalised Moorabbin will now play host to a new generation of footballers and their families," he said.

The refurbished Moorabbin Community Reserve will also serve in housing the Sandringham Dragons TAC Cup club, the South Football League, and the South Metro Junior Football League.

Despite making the commitment to Moorabbin, the Saints made it clear they would be remaining at Seaford, despite long-standing conjecture over the future of the club's current home.

"These developments at Moorabbin do not impact the club’s base at Linen House Centre, Seaford, where we enjoy first-class training facilities and a strong relationship with the City of Frankston," St Kilda said in a statement on its website.

The Saints ended their 46-year stay at Moorabbin in 2010, following an impasse between the club and the Kingston Council over poker machines.

 

[GeorgeMullins]

Do any of the Essendon faithful miss Windy Hill? I'll admit, I've never been to Australia, but to me, Windy Hill was a sort of sacred ground; my being one for the Bombers and all.

As for the North faithful, do any of them miss the old grounds at Arden Street?

I welcome your comments.

 

[Great8]

Do any of the Essendon faithful miss Windy Hill? I'll admit, I've never been to Australia, but to me, Windy Hill was a sort of sacred ground; my being one for the Bombers and all.

As for the North faithful, do any of them miss the old grounds at Arden Street?

I welcome your comments.

Of course I miss Windy Hill, holds some real great memories going out there but we outgrew the place. After being out to Tulla a few times its pretty easy to see we made the right move. Could never of had those facilities at Windy Hill

 

[bradrowe#32]

Everyone knows about the Victoria Park and Moorabbin "experience" but what was Windy Hill like? Were opposition supporters scared to go there? Were the Essendon locals a tough crowd?

 

[Great8]

Everyone knows about the Victoria Park and Moorabbin "experience" but what was Windy Hill like? Were opposition supporters scared to go there? Were the Essendon locals a tough crowd?

Windy Hill could be a very tough place for visitors. Quite a small ground and the crowd were crammed in like sardines. Plenty of biff in the outer between supporters (usually our own after having a skinfull) and I remember opposition fans being pelted with 50c coins as they tried to change ends at the end of the quarter. Karl Langdon was grabbed by a fan coming up the race one day and some of the language and abuse was an eye opener for a kid. I do miss the smell of stale beer and urine and getting soaking wet at the footy though

 

[bombersfan4000]

Everyone knows about the Victoria Park and Moorabbin "experience" but what was Windy Hill like? Were opposition supporters scared to go there? Were the Essendon locals a tough crowd?

it was probably a similar experience as all the other club grounds

 

[Wallaby]

it was probably a similar experience as all the other club grounds

Ours was the toughest!!!!

Seriously, it's one of the great things about football in Australia (AFL & NRL) - sure,we joke with opposing fans, but we've never had to segregate them at the ground, the police who have the duty at the match treat it like a free day at the footy, because all they have to deal with are a few drunks, we all get the same trains there and back, and we razz each other at work all week. Occasionally someone goes over the top with the abuse, and there are some punch-ups, but these are at the same rate as at any other large crowd gathering.

Compare that to a soccer game just about anywhere else in the world, and the game is treated by authorities like a military operation. 'Fans' regularly vandalise pubs, shops and other buildings while walking to the ground, there are strict rules regarding supporter segregation, and brawls between rival fans are an everyday occurrence.

 

[atlaser]

Yeah such a good oval

I had the privilege of playing a couple of games of junior football a few years ago at Brunswick street against I think Fitzroy. Lovely ground. Would kill to play finals there again instead of out in the middle of nowhere at Warrandyte or Templestowe

 

[Catfish1975]

Do any of the Essendon faithful miss Windy Hill? I'll admit, I've never been to Australia, but to me, Windy Hill was a sort of sacred ground; my being one for the Bombers and all.

As for the North faithful, do any of them miss the old grounds at Arden Street?

I welcome your comments.

I grew up around the corner from Windy Hill and we used to go the games. 50 cents to get in under 13 years old I think and the peanut man would sell peanuts while walking around the ground for 20 cents. The cheer squad would walk around with a blanket at half time to throw money into to pay for the banner. It was Crammed and always felt like a tiny ground to play on. We used to have a scam going where we would watch training and wait for them to kick the ball over the fence. A simple kick over to the waiting kids in the school behind the ground was all it took and the yellow Sherrin was ours.

 

[PerfectFooty]

it was probably a similar experience as all the other club grounds

Not ours

 

[krisholio14]

Everyone knows about the Victoria Park and Moorabbin "experience" but what was Windy Hill like? Were opposition supporters scared to go there? Were the Essendon locals a tough crowd?

Moorabbin was never scary to go to. Yeah they had the 'Animal Enclosure' , but I stood in and next to it during games and while things could get a little heated on occasion, there were never any real dramas there.

Vic Park was the only ground I ever had any problems at, but going down the Yarra Falls end right in amongst the cheer squad decked out in Geelong gear from head to toe is probably asking for trouble. Not to mention a was mouthing off a bit

Essendon was never an issue for me. Used to go there a bit when I was younger because I had rellies that lived across the road, and apart from the odd drunken idiot here and there, again, never any issues. In fact, the Essendon crowd for the most part were pretty civil.

Every ground had sections of rabid fans. I always felt that there was an unwritten understanding amongst those hard core supporters that there would be an area at each home ground that was for home fans only so they could foam at the mouth all they wanted without getting into punch ons. Apart from the odd stray like me in my earlier example, this was fairly well adhered to. I never saw any violence between supporter groups at any ground I went to back in those days. The odd spot fire sure, but no full fledged riots.

It pretty much came down to watching your mouth in certain parts of the ground. If you wanted to yell and scream and have a bit of banter, there were definitely places you didn't want to stand in or near as an opposition fan. But it was more a case of showing a little respect than fearing for my safety.

 

[Cringle]

]
Compare that to a soccer game just about anywhere else in the world, and the game is treated by authorities like a military operation. 'Fans' regularly vandalise pubs, shops and other buildings while walking to the ground, there are strict rules regarding supporter segregation, and brawls between rival fans are an everyday occurrence.

Because I've seen Green Street Hooligans I know exactly what you're talking about!

 

[Teagueeee15]

Being a public holiday today, I ventured over to Moorabbin and Glenferrie to take a look around. I haven't been to either since May 2013 so wondered what changes had occurred. I was a bit surprised at Moorabbin that they'd renovated the Huggins Stand facade! Gone are the palm trees and corny Saints sign that used to be there. On such a sunny day, I was surprised that Moorabbin was deserted as it's a lovely park now and it's located in the middle of suburbia. Do locals shun it for any particular reason?

Last time I was there, there were a set of lockers that had been put out like you would put out hard rubbish, so I had a good look around today and there weren't many relics lying around for someone to take other than some signs, groundsman's equipment and the Keith Clarke Memorial Gates?

I noticed that they've removed the seating from that middle tier of the Huggins stand. Are they going to put in additional seating when the VFL plays there in 2017? I know St Kilda trained there as recently as a month ago so I guess vandals have made there mark on the goal posts since then as it was noticeable that they weren't anywhere near straight.

It took me one hour and forty minutes to get there from the inner northern suburbs which surprised me as I perceived it being much easier to get to Moorabbin than t is to get to Waverley and it took nearly as long!

2013 Facade

now

Some other pictures

Old vs new training lights. Check out the rust on those older lights!

The posts were pointing in all sorts of directions. I couldn't get a good enough picture of it!

Seating has been pulled out

 

[Teagueeee15]

With Hawthorn being in the Grand Final, the atmosphere around Glenferrie was great. All down Glenferrie road there were Hawthorn flags, banners and streamers in shop windows, hanging from traffic lights...etc and every second person wearing a Hawthorn Guernsey.

As for the ground itself, they were setting up for the family day being held there on Sunday so it was really busy. The Ferguson Stand looks exactly the same as it did when I last went there two years ago. This time I was able to get a photo of what looks like a toilet block at the rear of the Ferguson Stand as they've cut the bushes back that were hiding it. I'd hate to think what condition they would be in!

The Tuck stand looked beautiful on such a nice day. There were some workers up there giving it a clean, so maybe they will let people up there on the family day. I had a peak through the windows and nothing has been done on the inside of the Tuck stand which is a bit disappointing (you could see some of the door frames were missing). I guess there's probably squatters living in there.

I still can't work out how they managed to fit more than 10k in there as the road on one wing and train line on the other wing would be less than 5m from the boundary line.

 

[Bombermania]

I love walking around Glenferrie Oval, can picture Coleman kicking a bag.

Its a pity to think such a ground is no longer used in any capacity.

If you walk over to the railway wing, you can see the old terraces, if you go to youtube and search Glenferrie Oval, there are a few old matches, one between the Hawks and the Blues, its in black n white but it shows the crowd. there is another highlight clip of the Hawks playing South Melbourne and another one from 1964 between the Hawks and Melbourne, showing the ground with its thick mud and a Hawks v Saints match

 

[footyfan1978]

Everyone knows about the Victoria Park and Moorabbin "experience" but what was Windy Hill like? Were opposition supporters scared to go there? Were the Essendon locals a tough crowd?

Went to Victoria Park once, Moorabin at least once and Windy Hill probably 2 or 3 times. Don't remember being scared at any time but at any ground there would always be a drunk element. You got to remember even most of the people drinking were there just to have a good time and watch the footy. It is rare to have someone there just to cause trouble. Usually only when people get abusive to each other things can get out of hand. Example the idiot at the Freo v Hawks prelim final. That can happen anywhere really.

 

[bombersfan4000]

Plan B, obviously after they couldn't get funding to Junction Oval.

How things change, who cares that you ruin 5 years of hardwork from grassroots leagues.

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-ne...ment-funding-at-moorabbin-20140503-zr3wi.html

No there is funding the the junction oval but cricket Victoria will be using the oval

 

[Silent Alarm]

Interesting developments. I don't think I've been to Moorabbin for a good two years either but to be honest, I was going in expecting half of it to be bulldozed. Last I heard, a press release said they'd be tearing down the last stand there and that the Ferguson Stand at Glenferrie was due to be knocked down.

Moorabbin is such a weird ground. I know it's both hard and interesting to imagine all these small, quaint-to-archaic grounds being host to big clubs and huge crowds, but Moorabbin seems different. I think of it as a small Waverley. Every other venue is tucked into the suburbia the club represents, Moorabbin never really screamed 'St Kilda Saints' to me. I do think it's a great oval though – nice parkland around it, a fair bit of history still in tact (and things that Vic Park doesn't really have, ala disused signage from when it was last used), and a bloody beautiful surface

With all that, I don't know why you'd tear down that classic old Saints sign – really, really cool and the most 'iconic' (loosely applying that word) part of the ground. It just looks like a stock and boring, suburban pokies shithole now. When their VFL side gets up, you'd think that'd be a nice little nostalgia trip for older Saints supporters, and the ground seems absolutely perfect for a Sundeeeeeee arvo match in the sun. That cold and shade-heavy Huggins Stand seems perfect too. I just hope they do it justice and tidy up what's there, and don't continue on their route of tearing out the heart of the stadium.

As for Glenferrie, love the ground but it has so much untapped potential. With the Hawks looking at leaving Waverley, you'd think they'd really want to keep Glenferrie as their actual home. I presume they have an infinite lease too. There's nothing, but as stated, half-pulled down rooms and old band and bar equipment inside the stands – frustrating. If they take off from Waverley you'd think they could chuck the museum stuff in the Michael Tuck Stand, while the other stand seems perfect for a bar and canteen if they had their own VFL team. Hate that ugly gym from the Comm Games too. Grass is always kinda dead looking too. Probably the only grass in Hawthorn to Camberwell to Kew that isn't over-watered... Oh well.