Eureka Stadium
Former names | Northern Oval #1 |
---|---|
Location | Creswick Road, Wendouree. Ballarat, Victoria, Australia |
Operator | City of Ballarat |
Capacity | 8000[1] |
Surface | Grass |
Construction | |
Broke ground | 1990 |
Built | 1990 |
Opened | 1991 |
Tenants | |
North Ballarat Football Club (VFL), North Ballarat Rebels (TAC Cup) North Ballarat Cricket Club (Ballarat Cricket Association) (1993-) North Ballarat Eagles (VWFL) |
Eureka Stadium, (formerly known as Northern Oval or more accurately Northern Oval #1), is an oval shaped sports stadium located in the Ballarat Showgrounds at Wendouree, an outer suburb of Ballarat in Australia.
History
The stadium was built between 1990-91 when the North Ballarat Football Club and North Ballarat Cricket Club moved from their nearby Showgrounds Oval. The stadium is owned by the City of Ballarat and is part of the Ballarat Showgrounds complex. Eureka Stadium currently has a capacity of around 10,000 and features a main grandstand with limited seating and social club on the main wing. The record attendance at the stadium is 8,000, set during an AFL pre-season match between North Melbourne and Western Bulldogs during the 2012 NAB Cup.
The ground is a major venue for multiple sports events, but primarily Australian rules football and cricket, and home to the Ballarat Gift and has a large sports club, hospitality and gaming venue constructed in 1991 with an upgrade to the playing surface. It is also used by the Ballarat Agricultural and Pastoral Society during the annual Ballarat Show.
The ground is tenanted by the North Ballarat Football Club of the Victorian Football League and North Ballarat Rebels of the TAC Cup, and is the homeground for both teams.
AFL venue
Australian Football League club North Melbourne established a relationship with the local club in 2009 and played pre-season matches at the ground in 2010, 2011 and 2012 with strong attendances.
The venue hosted a 2010 NAB Challenge match between North Melbourne and Hawthorn and drew an attendance of 4,500. The healthy crowd saw the AFL schedule the stadium to host the 2011 NAB Challenge between North Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs which drew 7,000[2] and a 2012 NAB Cup between North Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs which drew a record attendance of 8,000.
Redevelopment
The Western Bulldogs have committed to playing two or three of its AFL premiership season matches at the stadium each year from 2017. Redevopment plans were first discussed in early 2014, though many Ballarat locals have been sceptical of the idea, partly because the stadium is not located centrally in the city and is a "cold...windswept" venue.[3]
Despite these concerns, the Victorian Government announced in June 2015 a $31.5 million commitment to upgrade the stadium and the wider precinct, with approximately half that funding flowing directly to the stadium infrastructure redevelopment.[4] Concept designs for the stadium upgrade were revealed in November 2015, featuring a new 5,000 seat grandstand flanking approximately half the oval and bringing the total anticipated capacity of the stadium to 11,000.[5] Re-alignment of the oval dimensions to match Melbourne's Etihad Stadium and installation of four 300 lux light towers and a video scoreboard were also included in the plans.[6]
Installation of a new playing surface occurred in January 2016 and the Western Bulldogs anticipate playing AFL premiership matches at the venue in time for the 2017 AFL season, though this is not guaranteed.[7] The Ballarat City Counil is currently reviewing the prospect of further stadium and seating upgrades, to be installed by 2020.[6]
References
- ↑ "Eureka Stadium". austadiums.com. Austadiums. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
- ↑ NAB Challenge hit-out: Roos right at home, The Courier, 9 March 2011.
- ↑ "Locals cold on Eureka Stadium makeover". The Age. 7 February 2015.
- ↑ "Eureka Stadium funding confirmed". Western Bulldogs. 17 June 2015.
- ↑ "Ballarat a step closer to hosting AFL games at Eureka Stadium". Herald Sun. 20 November 2015.
- ↑ "Turf installed at Eureka Stadium". Western Bulldogs. 1 February 2016.
External links
- Eureka Stadium at Austadiums
Coordinates: 37°32′22.3″S 143°50′52.9″E / 37.539528°S 143.848028°E