Adelaide Oval Expansion

[AndyWelsh]

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[Nort]

Another important perspective is that to demolish the hill to suit football's occasional needs is to make a mockery of the agreement that led to football moving to Adelaide Oval.

The SACA members (and there are a lot of them) voted to demolish older stands and upgrade so that football could join the oval with the condition that the cathedral end would stay in its current form.

[how good is he]

Someone suggested on radio [to keep everyone happy], they just need to build a hill and relocate the scoreboard on TOP of any new Northern grandstand.

[[Shuz]]

Honestly, I could be in a coma and wake up in 20 years and this same pathetic argument would still be going on.

The Northern Grandstand is never going to happen. Case closed.

[whatstheirnamesmom]

I don't think I have ever agreed with anything Caleb Bond has said. Until now.

From The Advertiser, August 30, 2021 - 9:13PM:

There is nothing wrong with Adelaide Oval.

I nearly spat out my cornflakes when I read what Christopher Pyne wanted to do to that great ground.

Yes, sport is about money and commercial success.

But it is so much more than that. And that is what Adelaide Oval, as it stands, embodies.

I have no doubt that the AFL chose Perth Stadium as its back up plan for the Grand Final partly because it is bigger than Adelaide Oval. Adelaide Oval’s capacity is 53,500, whereas Perth Stadium can take 60,000.

But that is not the only reason.

Perth Stadium proved at this year’s Dreamtime match that it could pull a massive crowd for two Victorian teams – 55,656 people. That’s 93 per cent of the seats.

I dare say the fact Adelaide Oval’s capacity is currently capped at 20,000 – while Perth Stadium packed in 51,692 people for the Fremantle and West Coast Eagles derby two weeks ago – also came into it.

And so keen is South Australia to celebrate its sporting heroes that the Premier and health authorities have forced Olympians into a whole month of hotel quarantine.

The AFL wants to make as much money as it can out of ticket sales and that’s its prerogative. Trigger happy lockdown lover Mark McGowan might end up having other ideas.

But, for argument’s sake, let’s say Perth is the backup purely because it’s bigger. So we lost the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hold the AFL Grand Final because of 6,500 seats.

It is only a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The MCG has a contract to host the Grand Final until 2057.

They had to tack on an extra year for hosting at the Gabba last year (which, by the way, only has a capacity of 42,000) and will likely have to do the same this year. So that makes it 2059. Nearly 40 years away.

For as long as there is a bigger stadium than Adelaide Oval – which there always will be – and particularly one in Victoria, its only hope of hosting the Grand Final is under a sharing arrangement far into the future.

In that case, its capacity would put it at no disadvantage. The SCG’s capacity is 48,000.

To destroy what makes Adelaide Oval so special over something so trivial as not getting the Grand Final because the AFL wants to sell an extra 6000 seats would be a travesty.

The Oval is in no way incomplete. It is perfect. It is widely recognised as one of the best, most beautiful cricket grounds in the world.

The UK’s Daily Telegraph includes it on its list of the world’s 14 most beautiful cricket grounds. Countless international cricketers have listed it among their favourite grounds, up there with the Home of Cricket ­– Lord’s (capacity 31,100) and The Oval (capacity 25,500).

There was much consternation over its redevelopment, but Adelaide Oval strikes the right balance between old and new. It is modern and world class while honouring the great history of the sports that have graced its turf.

That scoreboard has witnessed some of the most amazing sporting moments, from Don Bradman score 299 not out in 1932 to Amazing Adelaide – that magnificent Ashes triumph where Shane Warne took 4/49 on the fifth day of the test and set up the first whitewash in that great rivalry for nearly a century.

And it should witness every historic moment to come.

Sitting at the Adelaide Test, gazing at that scoreboard with St Peter’s Cathedral behind it, is one of the most pleasurable things I have done in my life.

A tingle rolls down my spine when I stand for the national anthem. And then that first ball is bowled. Sublime.

The fabric of what makes that experience so special is that scoreboard. It’s the hill. It’s the Moreton Bay figs. It’s the fact you can sit high in the stands and look out over North Adelaide.

You instantly know where you are – you’re in Adelaide and you’re about to witness something special. You don’t get that same feeling in a concrete colosseum.

Sport isn’t just about money. It’s about emotion and connectedness. The way Adelaide Oval is designed reminds you of that. The scoreboard connects you to everything that has happened there since 1911.

Without that, there is no Adelaide Oval.

[Brucetiki]

The hill and scoreboard is what makes Adelaide Oval unique. Replace it with a stand and you have a bog standard cookie cutter stadium.

The hill and scoreboard weren't why we lost the GF. The current 50% capacity, as opposed to Optus Stadium being at 100% capacity, was the reason we're not getting the GF.

If the ground was at 100% capacity we would've almost certainly hosted the GF.

[Goodsy]

The hill and scoreboard is what makes Adelaide Oval unique. Replace it with a stand and you have a bog standard cookie cutter stadium.

The hill and scoreboard weren't why we lost the GF. The current 50% capacity, as opposed to Optus Stadium being at 100% capacity, was the reason we're not getting the GF.

If the ground was at 100% capacity we would've almost certainly hosted the GF.

If we weren't in a global pandemic we wouldn't even be having this conversation. The grand final is at the MCG until atleast 2057.

We should be discussing the removal of the hill and scoreboard in another 25 years

[mawsonguy]

When I did my MBus I was told that, when every company is following best practice, the company with the competitive advantage is the one not following best practice.

Stadiums don't make money. Their economic rational (such as there is one) is that they attract interstate and overseas visitors who bring money into the state. If you were part of the "barmy army" where would you go for your holidays - to another soulless concrete bowl? Interestingly, the SCG is pursuing a redevelopment strategy similar to Adelaide, mostly modern stands but with retention of historical elements at the expense of more modern stands.

[gnrc_louis]

They could build a grandstand there with a safe standing area like the football stadiums have in Europe. That way at least it would retain the (supposed) rowdiness of the hill, but also have a grandstand, making the the oval look more complete. Personally though I think it is fairly pointless until they are selling out AFL games weekly - half empty stands aren't a great look and don't make for a particularly good atmosphere.

[A-Town]

The Adelaide Oval has unveiled a new $5 million LED upgrade of its light towers, now equipped with both immaculate white sports lighting and full colour ‘light show’ capabilities.

The new LED lighting replaces the high intensity discharge (HID) lighting that was last updated in 2014 as part of the Adelaide Oval major redevelopment.

The new full colour lighting capabilities will be debuted at Sunday’s New Year’s Eve BBL fixture between the Adelaide Strikers and Melbourne Stars.

While not the first Australian stadium to feature light towers with LED sports lighting and coloured LED lighting, it is the first major stadium to feature the technology and incorporate LED lights and screens throughout the venue to create a spectacular light show. The WACA Ground unveiled its new lights in December last year as part of its redevelopment.

Adelaide Oval CEO Nick Addison said the upgrade would deliver significant benefits for patrons, the venue and the South Australian events calendar.

“Adelaide Oval has a well-earned reputation as a world-class events and entertainment destination and this upgrade goes a long way to keeping us at the forefront of stadia globally,” Nick said.

“We are committed to continually reinvesting in our fan experience to ensure it’s the best it can be, while also delivering on our goals across technology and sustainability.

“The opportunities this opens up are really exciting – both in terms of giving fans an electric event day experience and helping us attract new and different events to South Australia.”

Installation was completed in just 11 weeks by a project team of 30 full-time experts, led by South Australian electrical solutions company CME and long-time Adelaide Oval project management partner Mott MacDonald, with lighting supplied by Signify Australia. Abseiling up and down each tower, the team manually switched over the globes and support system while retaining the existing light tower structures.

The new LED lighting on the four light towers complement the existing LED lighting located within the roof structure installed back in November 2017, and have since enabled spectacular light shows at events incorporating the LED perimeter fencing and video screens.

LED sports lighting allows for two things – instant switch on and off of a focused, consistent lighting level across the field of play, as well as new capabilities including colour, flash and animation. The new lights will also use approximately 40% less power than their predecessors, contributing to Adelaide Oval’s sustainability goals.

Sports lighting specialist KOJO will program and operate the new lights as an extension of Adelaide Oval’s existing AV capabilities.

“The previous stadium lighting system was the right solution at the time and has served us well for over a decade,” Nick said.

“LED has since evolved to become the gold standard, and we need to invest in the very best to keep Adelaide Oval and South Australia competitive in the national and international events market.

“The team has done an exceptional job to deliver this in such a tight timeframe without disrupting game days or daily operations.

“As far as we’re concerned Adelaide Oval is one of the world’s best and most iconic stadiums, and we’re determined to keep it that way.”

Watch the YouTube video here: https://youtu.be/fZxLZXXPN7w

https://www.austadiums.com/news/1330/ad ... m=facebook

[ChillyPhilly]

Can't wait for the SMA to jack up food and drink prices in a cost of living crisis yet again.

[rev]

Well they aren't forcing anybody buy food & drink.

I'm surprised they didn't go with VAILO, a local Adelaide company.

[Nathan]

Can't wait for the SMA to jack up food and drink prices in a cost of living crisis yet again.

It's not hard to pack your own food, and have a beer before or after the game.

[ChillyPhilly]

Can't wait for the SMA to jack up food and drink prices in a cost of living crisis yet again.

It's not hard to pack your own food, and have a beer before or after the game.

That's what nearly everyone I know does thankfully, but still.