Blacktown Stadium is a potential white elephant
Roar Guru By rugbyfuture, 15 May 2010 rugbyfuture is a Roar Guru
- Tagged:
- blacktown stadium, football, homebush stadium, Rugby Union, RWC
129 Have your say
I take a keen approach to urban development in the Sydney metropolitan area, considering my education, work and leisure take me from north to south and east to west.
This is pushed further when one is able to see the short comings of various levels of government in approaching the development of Sydney in a sustainable fashion.
It saddens me now though to realise that even sports administrators, possibly some of the best managers of businesses in the country, are having similar issues in terms of development.
I talk, of course, about the proposed Blacktown stadium.
This stadium, built in the Blacktown Olympic precinct (originally designed for baseball and softball), next to the GWS training sites, will be nothing more than a waste of time, space and money, all of which could be dedicated to much more useful ideas.
So what’s my reasoning for this being so unsustainable – both economically and socially?
Think about this: a forty thousand seat stadium, put in Blacktown, the district between two districts (Parramatta and Penrith) next to a couple of training grounds, and in an area which is increasingly being gentrified and developed for residential living, with some parklands.
There will be no other sporting teams based in the area, other than possibly the new A-League side, the Sydney Rovers, who will have to be superseded by a localised Parramatta and Penrith side once the Sydney metropolitan area expands.
It will then be reduced to 26 000 seats – albeit at a time when it’s most probable that Parramatta and Penrith stadium capacities will be increased.
Not only is it noticeable, it’s been done before, albeit for a different sport, with similar distances from metropolitan areas.
Rugby hosted the RWC in Australia in 1987.
With this, a new stadium was built at the home of what is now West Harbour RFC, known as Waratah Stadium or Concord Oval. Seating twenty thousand people, it was close to smack bang between the major business districts of Sydney City and Parramatta City.
How much have you heard of it in the modern era of professional football? A couple of games early on with rugby league, but not much else.
This is what serves as a proof of concept for Blacktown Stadium. It will be slightly different, yes, but there are just too many comparisons to see the possibility (and very high one at that) that yet again, Sydney will have an unused stadium, choking the pockets of its creator.
It would be much better to spend on Parramatta, Penrith, or Homebush.
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- blacktown stadium, football, homebush stadium, Rugby Union, RWC
May 15th 2010 @ 1:21pm
Arvind said | May 15th 2010 @ 1:21pm | Report comment
Do not downgrade Blacktown as a potential site. This site is easy to reach via M7, M4 and Great Western Highway. It is very close to Rooty Hill Train Station. It has no other conflicting sports as compared to Penrith and Paramatta which both have rugby league teams.
Blacktown has a massive soccer following and it is a well thought out plan to put the stadium here. We have hired the grounds inside this site for Fijian soccer tournaments and we get massive support. So please don’t discount because it is Blacktown because the population demographics of the area has changed in the last 10 years.
May 15th 2010 @ 1:43pm
Deadman said | May 15th 2010 @ 1:43pm | Report comment
why arn’t they bulding the stadium at blacktown showground?
May 15th 2010 @ 1:53pm
Pete said | May 15th 2010 @ 1:53pm | Report comment
I hope we do get the WC, but forgive me I haven’t been following the bid or the discussion about stadia very closely. RF makes a good point, what do we do with all this excess stadium capacity post Cup? IMO 15,000 people in a 20,000 seat stadium has a better atmosphere than 20,000 in a 50,000 stadium. The SMH shows some of the stadia. Are they going to destroy the Adelaide oval (its one of the most beautiful cricket grounds in the world). I’m not bashing the WC bid. It’ll be great for the country.
http://www.smh.com.au/photogallery/sport/football/australias-world-cup-stadiums-for-2018-or-2022/20100514-v4bd.html
May 15th 2010 @ 1:57pm
rugbyfuture said | May 15th 2010 @ 1:57pm | Report comment
more in depth at the official bid site
http://www.australia2018-2022.com.au/australias-bid_stadiums.aspx
May 15th 2010 @ 3:20pm
Pete said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:20pm | Report comment
thanks RF
May 15th 2010 @ 1:59pm
matty1974 said | May 15th 2010 @ 1:59pm | Report comment
Average domestic football attendances over the last 20 years:
1989 – 1990: 2,500 – 3,000
1999 – 2000: 5,000 – 6,000
2009 – 2010: 10,000 – 12,000
Notice the trend of crowds doubling every 10 years? Check out http://www.ozfootball.net/index.shtml if you doubt me.
May 15th 2010 @ 2:06pm
Akazie said | May 15th 2010 @ 2:06pm | Report comment
9,796 for the season just gone.
May 15th 2010 @ 2:21pm
Art Sapphire said | May 15th 2010 @ 2:21pm | Report comment
Akazie – NRL – average attendance in 1984 – 8464
Anyone can use stats to make an argument
May 15th 2010 @ 2:39pm
Akazie said | May 15th 2010 @ 2:39pm | Report comment
NRL wasn’t around in 1984
May 15th 2010 @ 2:31pm
Sam said | May 15th 2010 @ 2:31pm | Report comment
The crowds were always going to go down with two new Queensland regional teams being put in. Sydney FC will eventually average 15,000 to 20,000. So will Rovers. It will just take time, and to build a cullture of our supporters putting our sport first, and others second. In other words their first team they watch and follow with passion will be an a-league team (not NRL or AFL). How many people ever thought that the Swans would get close to 30,000 average in the 1980′s.
At the moment football supporters just have to take whatever bashing they get given with crowds. I am sure RL supporters experience the same thing with Melbourne Storm. But the dumbest thing to do for any sport would be to pull their teams out because of some jibes from other sports followers. Sydney will accommodate all sports. It has many divided loyalties and all sports will grow their game in their own way.
May 15th 2010 @ 2:41pm
Akazie said | May 15th 2010 @ 2:41pm | Report comment
Wasn’t soccer play in Aus in 1984, can we have the stats thanks?
Been here longer than RL.
So put your stats up.
May 15th 2010 @ 2:55pm
Art Sapphire said | May 15th 2010 @ 2:55pm | Report comment
The point Akazie is that the premier Rubgy League competion has seen its average attendance increase from a near death of 7715 in 1983 to over 17k in 2009. You should be happy about that.
Come back to me in 2030 and ask me about A-League attendances
May 15th 2010 @ 2:59pm
Akazie said | May 15th 2010 @ 2:59pm | Report comment
hahahahahahahahaha, a near death.
Crowds back then for all clubs were hopeless, the only game that got a good one each week was the match of the round.
Oh and btw, the comp back then was the local Sydney comp.
We also had the QLD comp, so RL was just a little bigger than you think it was.
Big difference these days.
Soccer people, you’re a funny mob.
Been predicting the death of RL everywhere for 100 years.
May 15th 2010 @ 3:12pm
Art Sapphire said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:12pm | Report comment
Akazie – looks like you have issues with comprehension.
I make a positive statement about Rugby League and you go all paranoid.
Here is another example – The VFL averaged 20k – 25k in the80′s before they became the AFL.
There were also SA and WA comps. Nowadays the AFL average 38k.
This is why its pointless for people who come on The Roar and bag the A-Leagues crowd stats.
Come back in 20 years time and lets see where the A-League stands in the scheme of thing.
May 15th 2010 @ 3:16pm
Akazie said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:16pm | Report comment
You made a positive remark, yet it was still tinged with the anti, I comprehend well mate
May 15th 2010 @ 3:02pm
Akazie said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:02pm | Report comment
So come on, where are these soccer stats to put up against RL from 1983/84?
After all, Soccer back then was a national code and RL was a NSW based code, so hop too it mate
May 15th 2010 @ 3:24pm
Art Sapphire said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:24pm | Report comment
Akazie when you come on The Roar and state that the
“A League is quickly becoming version 2 of the old NSL”
Is this what you really hope?
May 15th 2010 @ 3:29pm
Akazie said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:29pm | Report comment
Nope, I just like to tell it as it is mate, I get sick of every other codes fans putting the boot into RL saying it’s dying and they are going to take over.
RL fans the world over know the great unjustices done to our game over the years, it’s why we stick up for it as much as we do.
It’s a bloody good game to still be alive and that’s a fact mate.
May 15th 2010 @ 3:48pm
Art Sapphire said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:48pm | Report comment
I am glad you love your game. I don’t want your code to die.
All I want is for Australia to produce good footballers and to run a professional well run national comp for the fans to enjoy. The better the standard gets, the more people will attend. Just like NRL today, where the skills are getting better all the time.
May 15th 2010 @ 3:56pm
Akazie said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:56pm | Report comment
I understand and I fully agree 100%.
May 15th 2010 @ 3:26pm
Akazie said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:26pm | Report comment
So Art, which part in your post was positive, the:
“a near death” part?
Or the:
“Come back to me in 2030 and ask me about A-League attendances”
Hmmm, what are you insinuating with that last one
May 15th 2010 @ 3:39pm
Art Sapphire said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:39pm | Report comment
Why don’t you answer the question.
“A League is quickly becoming version 2 of the old NSL”
Is this what you really hope?
C’mon Akazie answer the question. You started all this nonsense. So finish it.
May 15th 2010 @ 3:55pm
Akazie said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:55pm | Report comment
Art I answered that already mate when I said nope.
May 15th 2010 @ 3:49pm
M1tch said | May 15th 2010 @ 3:49pm | Report comment
For the WS RL junior system its good to have a stadium there – they should get one out at Liverpool too
May 15th 2010 @ 4:10pm
Tifosi said | May 15th 2010 @ 4:10pm | Report comment
Is this stadium going to be built if Australia doesnt win the world cup rights??
The way i see it the FFA were short on stadia and this one is making up the numbers.
Hard to see FIFA going for three stadia in Sydney when two venues exist already.
May 15th 2010 @ 5:21pm
Midfielder said | May 15th 2010 @ 5:21pm | Report comment
FIFA only need 10 stadiums ….it is anyone’s guess which two they will leave out…