Melbourne's New Stadium

[Super Cronk]

This should only occur if the NRL wants to get rid of some sydney teams (but this will never happen). However if a sydney club wants to merge because its in financial trouble or any other niggles then i would say no. Plus i couldnt stand having the Melbourne Rabbitohs, it should always remain the Storm

Agree totally....well kinda..i dont want a merge. but if both clubs were in big financial trouble and it meant kicked out or merge then i wouldnt mind. but other wise...no.

i think the NRL should continue with what they started, and they seem to be putting more effort into the storm lately.

[Dakink]

No Sydney teams will ever merge with the Storm - they will always be a stand alone entity as Melburnians will never willingly associate with a team that is part Melbourne part Sydney.

The Storm is all Melbourne and WILL be a success in the years to come - the NRL is not going to let them fail.

[Research Station Drive]

All I can think is:

If you build it, they will come...

Hope it works for the Storm! :ok:

[Lennox Titan]

This is a good thing for league in Melbourne , Lets not have any Melbourne bashers saying "its no point for a big stadium if they cant draw a crowd" cause thats just plain stupid, look at Souths using Telstra stadium, it will be so empty u could hear a pin drop.

And Broncos using Suncorp for a semi and drawing only 25,000. Happens a lot.

[Queenslander]

And Broncos using Suncorp for a semi and drawing only 25,000. Happens a lot.

This year the broncos had an average crowd of 30000, souths had less than 10000 i think..........30000/52500 is better than 10000/80000.

[The Original Idiot]

Melbourne will be a success and the NRL MUST do whatever it taked to ensure that. Even if it means salary cap concessions etc. The AFL would never let an expansion team die - look at Sydney and Brisbane - both were given huge advantages to suceed and they have.

And Melbourne haven't succeeded? This move should have happened ages ago, who wants to play in a 50-year-old stadium.

[Dakink]

Sorry I meant an off field success.

[Christabella]

Yeah but they are making the new staduim to attract more people. Olympic park is just an awful ground from what ive heard from friends that been there...i have seen pics of teh seats aswell..your knees are touching the seat in front...very uncomfortable. hopefully the new look and facilities will encourage some of the old diehard fans to come back and start supporting the storm. aswell as some new ones.

While I agree with you on the eagerly anticipating the new facillities in Melbourne I must point out that Olympic Park is by no means the worst stadium. It's actually a lot more comfortable than many of the Sydney suburban grounds and while the athletics track does put some distance between the stands and the ground it's nothing in comparison with watching football at the Showground (thank God that is no more) or Carrara.

In fact due the highly annoying 2006 draw I am leading towards avoiding Carrara in favour of Melbourne.

It will be a good thing when both teams have new stadiums.

[Dakink]

Very true but in Sydney League is a tradition. In Melbourne Im sure people would turn up to crap stadia to watch AFL.

[League Freak]

Ths thing about Melbourne is they get NO media coverage, NO promotion and they play out of the worst stadium in porfessional sport in Australia!


Give them a nice stadium and you'll help their crowds right away.


You know, Souths get a heap of media attention, they play in the biggest Rugby League city in the world, they;ve been around for nhearly 100 years, they play out of a made for Rugby League stadium....and they havent got much on the Storm as far as crowds go.


Give the Storm a chance.

[DIEHARD]

Victory makes leap from park to stadium

Underperforming A-League franchises have been put on notice after the Melbourne Victory raised domestic soccer's credibility bar to new heights with its move to the 50,000-seat Telstra Dome.

The Victory will play six of its eight remaining home games this season at Telstra Dome, deciding to shift matches from the 18,000-seat Olympic Park because it is now too small.

The club was tapped on the shoulder by Telstra Dome management after it attracted nearly 40,000 fans for its match against Sydney FC earlier this month and was offered a sweetheart deal to transfer most of its games there.

Victory officials have sold more than 10,000 club memberships, and were forced to turn hundreds of fans away from a sold-out Olympic Park last weekend.

The league leader's next match at Telstra Dome will be on Sunday week against the second-placed Queensland Roar.

"It's fantastic. The Victory has really got its act together this year," Football Federation Australia chief executive John O'Neill said of the move.

"Clearly the message is if you're doing well on the park, people will come."

While Melbourne, Sydney FC and Queensland are now attracting impressive crowds in top-class stadia, New Zealand, Perth, Newcastle and Central Coast have struggled for attendances this year.

O'Neill confirmed on Thursday the FFA does have the power to move franchises that aren't up to scratch in certain performance criteria despite all clubs holding five-year licences.

But he pointed out the sport's national governing body was pleased with the vast majority of its clubs and would have a clearer idea by the end of November how well they were travelling.

"If a licensee hands back the licence, or if they're in breach such that the FFA takes the licence back, the FFA could move the licence to another city," O'Neill said.

"The three big cities with big stadia - Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne now with Telstra Dome, fantastic.

"Perth's getting better ... they will start to get over the 10,000 crowd mark very shortly.

"Gosford, Newcastle, Adelaide, they're smaller cities and smaller venues so you've got to work harder to get over 10,000.

"But I'd be keener to pass judgement in six weeks' time because we've got to get the NRL and AFL out of the way, and then we're into clear space and we'll be ramping up the marketing."

The only Victory home matches to remain at Olympic Park will be the clash with Newcastle on November 26, and the game against the struggling New Zealand Knights on December 17.

Source: NINEMSN

OK I realise this is soccer related, but will this effect the proposed new Olympic Park II stadium that will house the Storm and Victory. I hope he has no effect at all. And the Storm and Victory could still use Telstra Dome for bigger matches but call OP2 home.

I'd hate to see the Storm and rugby league miss out on getting a fully rectangular stadium in the heart of Melbourne, it would break my heart.

[Social Loafer]

Hasn't the design and construction schedule been confirmed?

[DIEHARD]

Hasn't the design and construction schedule been confirmed?

As far as I know, yep.

[philstorm]

Don't see why it should, really.

Construction should start in early 2008 methinks. Can't wait for it to be up!

Anyway, the Telstra Dome deal is just for this year? Don't see why it should affect where the Victory play in 09.

[Dakink]

I think it is a done deal, The Storm need a new home and I have a feeling their crowds will sky rocket when housed in a decent stadia.