Sometimes, you have to see things through someone else’s eyes to get the true picture.
Walking out of Brookvale Oval – sorry, 4 Pines Park – on Sunday afternoon with my parents, in town visiting from the UK, my father remarked upon the sold out crowd and how it appeared to almost entirely be locals, Manly folk cheering on the Manly team.
Was it like this in AFL, he asked?
I replied that he had inadvertently hit upon one of the great talking points of Australia’s endless code wars, the debate between centralisation of stadia, preferred south of the Barassi Line, and suburban grounds, to the north.
With the Inner West Council currently playing politics over the future of Leichhardt Oval, it has been brought into focus.
In two year’s time, according to reports on 2GB Radio, the local authority will remove the safety classification for the stadium on health and safety grounds.
This might be a bit dramatic, and looks from the outside like a fairly naked grab for funding from the NSW Government that has so far not been forthcoming.
It is estimated that $40m is needed to get Leichhardt up to code for NRL games, and since the arrival of the Labor government under Premier Chris Minns, it has been made clear that public sector payrises are more valued than sporting infrastructure.
That debate isn’t for these pages, but the discussion of why rugby league continually favours the old over the new is one that isn’t going away.
It’s an enduring topic because there is no end in sight.
A combination of Sydney geography, public transport infrastructure and rank stubbornness means that none of this will change, though the greater question is not whether it will but rather whether it should.
Think of it this way around: they put the sold out signs up at Brookvale on Sunday, just like they did at Penrith and Cronulla on Friday night and at Parramatta the week before (stop sniggering at the back).
Could they have sold more tickets had those three games been played elsewhere? Almost certainly. Would it have been as good? Almost certainly not.
In the AFL, where all the Melbourne teams are centralised around two stadiums, they think completely differently.
I took my father on the tour of the MCG and it was barely noticeable who played there at all, and that something had probably been lost to the league as a result.
Whereas it was noticeable how local the crowd was at Manly, there seemed to be little that linked Hawthorn the team to Hawthorn the district.
Hawthorn, however, average 33,000 for every game, which would tie them with the Broncos for top in the NRL, but is only good enough for midtable in the AFL rankings.
Crowds at the MCG. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
That’s the way they went and it’s fair to say that it’s worked for them in getting bums on seats.
Doubtless Hawks fans don’t feel like they’ve lost out by not playing at a tumbledown suburban venue.
Meanwhile in Sydney, it is as if the NRL has doubled down on the nostalgia.
This weekend, six of the eight games are taking place in Sydney, including a Saturday suburban ground triple header that could have been ripped straight out of the mid 1980s.
For a national sporting competition, seven of eight will take place in the confines of the old NSWRL with only New Zealand hosting a match outside of the original state.
Canterbury will host the Gold Coast at Belmore Oval at 3pm, followed by the Dragons v North Queensland at Kogarah Oval and the Tigers v the Sharks at Leichhardt Oval.
If you’re a rugby league trainspotter, this is manna from Winfield Cup heaven.
It’s just 20 minutes in the car (and probably another 20 parking) or 45 minutes on public transport from Belmore to Leichardt, so it’s entirely doable to go to both games, if you can get a ticket.
This is, of course, a little bit of a scheduling fluke in that all three of those games are secondary grounds, and on another weekend, it might be Campbelltown, Wollongong and Homebush as the venues, not to mention games in Queensland, Victoria and Canberra.
The Bulldogs have parted ways with their CEO. (Photo: Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
But that fans will attend the slightly ramshackle confines of the older grounds, and love it, speaks to the enduring appeal of those venues.
Last year, the Dogs sold out both games at Belmore for an average of just shy of 17,000, only 1,000 less than all games played at Homebush, including finals.
The only games that beat that number were the Good Friday clash with Souths and the Queen’s Birthday game with Parramatta, showpiece events bolstered by fans of the opposing team.
For the Dogs’ home advantage, it makes sense to schedule games at their spiritual home.
Would you prefer a full Belmore or 10,000 rattling around Accor Stadium, as has been the case for the bulk of fixtures in recent years?
Similarly, the customer experience in the older ground might be worse in terms of facilities, but is it better in terms of, well, experiences?
Much as we laugh at the hill and the trains going by, it’s certainly got a lot more character than the big empty bowl. Well, it does until it starts raining at least.
Ditto the Tigers at Leichhardt.
They have abandoned CommBank Stadium and Accor Stadium entirely this year in favour of Campbelltown and Leichhardt, in the hope of building a better atmosphere in stadiums that are, for better or worse, entirely theirs.
For a club that can’t decide what its identity is, playing at a ground that was either split with three other teams or entirely Parramatta’s didn’t help.
The central question will always be one of taste.
Leichhardt and Belmore scream rugby league. The sport bleeds out of them.
For a game obsessed with its own history and taken in by an attitude that remains resolutely with and for the working class despite the modern game being as corporate as any other sport, these places matter.
Brookvale Oval (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
Funny as it is to point out how Northern Beaches locals don’t like to travel over the Spit Bridge, the stay-at-home Manly punters have a point: if they were bothered about watching the game properly, they could do so on their sofas for far less money.
The reason we go to games is because we love the experience. Yes, the beer is expensive, the queues are long, the toilets are dirty and you might get rained on.
But you’d trade ten corporate experiences in the soulless down for one of those afternoons in the game’s run-down cathedrals when the sun shines, the crowd is packed tight and the game goes to the wire.
That’s why we’re still at Belmore on a Saturday arvo. It’s why they should find the cash to make Leichhardt viable. Not nice, just viable.
It’s why rugby league won’t give up on the old grounds yet. It’s where it keeps its soul.
criag
Roar Rookie
Good article. There are upsides and downsides to the different types of ground. The views from the stands (if you can get in) at Leichhardt and Brookvale are great. From memory, not too bad in the eastern stand at Penrith, either. Kogarah’s stand is alright, too, if you don’t have the metal bar at the top of the glass in your sight line. I’m definitely a sitter when it comes to football, so standing on the hill has never been much fun for me. I remember also the bad old days of rugby tests, standing on tip-toe at the ends of Concord and the old Lang Park, trying to get a view. I won’t even mention Accor, only to say it is less worthy of an NRL or SOO game than any park in Sydney! I preferred the old SFS to the new. My issue with the two new boutique stadiums in Sydney is they should’ve followed the lead of US stadiums and had the first rows of seats 6 to 10 feet raised. And both stadiums could’ve had more rows of seats on the lower levels. Comments like ‘the view’s great from the concourse!’ only emphasise to me that there should’ve been rows of seats placed there. I visited Victoria Park in Melbourne years ago too, to see a Collingwood v Geelong game. It was an experience eating a hot jam doughnut and hearing Melbournites screaming about things I didn’t understand. I also saw a game at the MCG, which was forgettable.
Tom G
Roar Rookie
The ‘field of dreams’ strategy so favoured under Toddles Greenberg aka the worlds worst sports ceo, was an abject failure. Sydney sprawl and lack of accessibility to reliable weekend transport ensure that when you build it sometimes they don’t come. Boutique stadiums with lesser capacity but greater amenities is what the market has been screaming about for years. Manly, only in the past couple of years has received any substantial government funding despite years of promises including those from two state premiers and a prime minister who were local members.
Panthers
Roar Rookie
Except when you’re spat on , verbally abused or have other things thrown on you. Just because you’re a Penrith supporter, or player for that matter. :thumbup:
langparker
Roar Rookie
Bottom line on these arena is that the general public wants government money spent on more relevant issues like affordable housing.
Tufanooo
Roar Rookie
It has nice optics, but it's nonetheless an outdated experience and only exists because the club isn't popular to sustain higher crowds.
rodney pombart
Roar Rookie
The games that I have attended at Belmore have been terrific , even though the wins have been hard to come bye t the ground. Yes! the atmosphere is really good, so why not are more games played there? I have no doubt that it is the lack of corporate boxes in the grandstand and the inability to add more. Its the norm. Money before what the true supporters desire.
E-Meter
Roar Rookie
My closest NRL ground is Robina Stadium. The atmosphere is better at a funeral. The seats are worse than Jetstar. But my daughter loves it, so off we go. I’ve become a real enthusiast of my local team, the Currumbin Eagles. Home games every 2nd Sunday at 3pm. No big stars, but good honest grass roots footy. And I can walk there!
E-Meter
Roar Rookie
Don’t forget that Leichhardt Oval is the only rugby league ground with heritage listed toilets!
BigGordon
Roar Rookie
I think the charm of Leichardt is its hill, ditto with Belmore. They're the parts I'd keep though really upgrade facilities by using the area underneath for patron amenities, while the rest of each ground should be well and truly modernized with corporate boxes, top level restaurants/bars etc. It should be possible to get the balance right so those who want the Las Vegas style experience, can go to the footy and get that (for a price) while those who like the idea of standing on a grassy hill, scoffing a beer and pie can have that at the same venue as well.
Andrew01
Roar Rookie
Fair comment about sympathetic restoration. I think it is important to try and retain some of the history and charm of a traditional significant venue. Personally though, I don't see how Leichhardt fits that criteria. NSO, sure, SCG, Adelaide Oval, of course. If they want to refit Leichhardt, the best outcome would be to look at some of the original AFL grounds and how they have redeveloped into community venues. Like the original redevelopment of Whitten Oval. A multi purpose community venue, and training facility. With facilities that are open to the public but suitable for state league footy as well. With the aquatic centre next door, it would make it a great community hub. But the NRL can't go to Las Vegas one week, looking for big private investment and increasing the professionalism of the game to solidify its future, and trot out Leichhardt Oval and all its exposed beams, termites, failing seating, no parking, archaic changerooms and no corporate facilities the next week. , IMO
Bernie
Roar Rookie
nearly as good as Wollongong Showground, sorry i mean WIN Stadium.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
Suburban Grounds will also generally limit potential crowds due to the difficulty getting to most. The centralised stadia model of most state govs ties into public transport accessibility.
Mick Jeffrey
Roar Rookie
It actually depends on the future of the A-League, as the near permanent home for Sydney FCs women's team.
BigGordon
Roar Rookie
I think you make a fair point about upgrades, redevelopments, call it what you like. I don't agree Leichardt is a dump, but could certainly use some serious freshening up. There's a term "sympathetic restoration" that should be used when considering what to do with grounds. North Sydney Oval is a great example of restoring a place but making it comfortable for 21st century sport. The place is way better than it used to be, but still has the charm of the ground I remember from the 70's & 80's. Adelaide Oval has been sympathetically upgraded, so it now has the modern facilities you mentioned, but retains the charm of the hill, old scoreboard, etc. Either of these approaches would be the way to go when the money's found to sort out the suburban NRL grounds. We don't need any more AAMI parks but we certainly need better facilities
Andrew01
Roar Rookie
Comparing Leichhardt and Accor - one venue built for a modern Olympic Games, the other built to host Sydney-centric rugby league games 80 years ago.. Is that not the epitome of comparing apples and oranges? Leichhardt is a dump. It isn't nostalgic to play at a dump. You can invest in old grounds with tradition attached to them etc, but Leichhardt isn't even that important to the tradition of the game. It hasn't hosted Origin, or Tests, or Grand Finals. There have been less than 80 games played there in the last 20 years. I get rusted on's like to have their pie on the hill, but good luck building the sustainable financial model for the game and bringing in new supporters, based on the way we liked doing things in the good old days. Works for a retro day, not long term. And I get Joe Public doesn't care about corporate suites. But they matter. Look at the models of all the biggest sports franchises in the world, and premium tickets and corporate hospitality matter. No NRL team should be playing in 80,00 seat stadia, that is stupid, but modern boutique stadiums are the way to go. Brookvale as an example is headed in the right direction - still has a way to go, but looking better. But if the NSW govt were going to spend money on redevelopment of a local ground to upgrade to a boutique stadia (huge if, i know), leave Leichhardt alone - make it suitable for regional level play, and invest in Campbelltown Sports Ground. If nothing else, at least it is next door to a train station, not to mention not 20 minutes from Belmore... and Accor.
jdoodle
Roar Rookie
One thing you kinda missed from this excellent article is eating/drinking at these grounds which are part of the game day experience. As these grounds are great to watch footy but shit for everything else. I regularly go to shark park for NRL and allianz for the a-league. At shark park last weekend it was 15 min queue to get a crappy beer (great northern). You compare this to Allianz for Sydney FC and its a lot quicker and about 10 beers available. Additionally they don't cut no. of drinks available at half time nor close the bars early. Food queues are usually a bit quicker at shark park though but its not fantastic. I have also watched games at all the other grounds mentioned and again its the food/beverage facilities that drag it down. People want a pie/drink while they watch the game and the newer stadiums just kill them with better facilities.
Maxtruck
Roar Rookie
The future of Leichhardt depends on the shotgun wedding of Wests and Balmain staying the distance, I get the feeling Wests may have already filed the divorce papers.
Don
Roar Rookie
It is funny in AFL it can often seem like they care more about full stadiums and the "event" than the quality of the football played on the field. The crowd, the rituals, the sense of belonging and being part of something bigger among fans seems to be a critical component of AFL match day at the G. When the AFL is speaking about the big events it is almost always about the crowd, ceremony, rituals and rivalry. Whether there is actually going to be a good game of footy played is secondary. Dreamtime @ the G. Anzac Day @ the G. The NRL has some of that, but not much. And try as we may, you can't build rivalry and tribalism if you don't have a regular home ground that your core fans can call theirs. Unfortunately though, we have stadiums that need events and they will offer deals to clubs to play there that are financially enticing but not fan friendly, and the clubs take the $ first. Ultimately, if the PNG team goes ahead, expect Leichardt, Brookvale and a couple of other grounds to receive some Federal funds diverted / funnelled that way. V'landys will make sure of that.
BigGordon
Roar Rookie
The NRL would be foolish to follow the AFL model and centralise matches into 2 or 3 soulless footy stadiums. AFL is a sport that is far better to watch live for a raft of reasons which in part explains the big crowds and any time you have big crowds, you need stadiums that allow organisers to “manage” those numbers. The NRL on the other hand is a sport that can be enjoyed just as much on TV, hence attracts smaller numbers but can then get away with hosting matches in smaller, more intimate venues. It’s also a reason why it can so easily take games to bush venues, Darwin, etc. The grounds in Mudgee, Bathurst, Wagga, etc are all terrific for small crowds that generate plenty of noise. As others have said, use big stadiums for big ticket matches, eg SOO, but leave things as they are with the other games – but please upgrade some of the facilities
Albo
Roar Rookie
Yep ! Despite the dodgy facilities and having to walk a mile to get to the ground, Leichhardt Oval is still my favourite ground at which to watch a game of footy! It has that natural amphitheatre feel and a closeness to the players on the field. And with a 15 to 20 thousand crowd there, the place is fully rocking. A close game at Leichhardt is a joy to experience.