mattblack wrote:Love this Adelaide attitude of 'nothing ever happens here' then in the same breath you hear 'they should of left AO as it was'. Bloody ridiculous. Im guessing your mate never went to the old members stand, it had 1930's facilities, was crumbling down and had no catering facilities except for 1 crappy little kiosk out the back, it was awful - but hang on, it's picturesque - lets do nothing!. The Bradman stand had very, very limited corporate and seating capacity and poor access issues. Lets not fix it - its picturesque! The eastern stands (Chapell) were inadequate from the start and a temporary stand joining the 2 which didn't come down for years and years. Don't touch them, they look nice!
Who honestly goes to a cricket match, not because of the cricket but because the ground is picturesque and you can see the Adelaide hills from there (an argument that I heard many times from various members)?
The ground is evolving and yet keeping some of its best elements. Unique, grand, still picturesque, fantastic facilities and a 5 minute walk to the city, a feature that only a very, very small percentage of cities in the world have.
To be fair, dude, he was mentioning the view that you get from Montefiore Hill, running down Jeffcott St / Morphett St. As I said, it was just the thoughts of what I've come to find as a standard cricket/footy supporter.
I heard a representative from the Adelaide Oval SMA on a radio sports program a few weeks ago talking about the redevelopment of Adelaide Oval and all the new facilities on offer. It sounds fantastic.
Seating, views, hospitality, coach/player facilities etc will be improved. (Drop-in pitch for cricket is supposedly fine). The slight changes in oval shape will be an improvement. The big screens will be so much better and bigger than AAMI. And the footbridge adds an extra dimension and improved access for public transport to this perfect location.
The blend of old and new will make this the best stadium in Australia, better than a somewhat sterile new build IMHO. It will be interesting to get the views of supporters, visitors, players and commentators when the Ashes game is played at the end of the year.
Some of the new facilities at the Adelaide Oval will be on show at the Christmas at Adelaide Oval Function, which will also provide scenic views over the developing Riverside. http://www.adelaideoval.com.au/102/chri ... -oval.aspx
I drove past the Oval tonight with a mate of mine, an avid AFL and cricket supporter and he said "It's pretty shit what they've done. They've ruined the most picturesque cricket oval in the world and replaced with a bowl. They replaced all the classic stands to make way for more seating and decided to leave the hill in the new idea. They should've just done nothing or ripped the fucker down and replaced it with something completely new".
I don't know whether people are loathe to admit it because it bore the great man's name, but it was horrible.
Rubbish views, dated facilities and too far from the action.
Not to mention the woefully inadequate shade it provided. Unless you were in the back 2-3 rows of the top tier you weren't protected from the elements.
What a crock that they were denied access. You can walk in there any day of the week and take pictures from the northern mound. I remember a poster asked a while back if it was fully accessible by wheel chair, well now it is. Through the Northern gate and take the path up to the hill and all will be revealed. Work on the Western stand is also coming along wil the 2 lift shafts extended up another level and steelwork in placxe for the new media facilities at the top of the stand. The whole thing is massive, the noise coming from that place in a big match will be magic.
John Olsen was in the media this week, highlighting the economic and social benefits of the AO redevelopment to Adelaide/SA, including jobs, and the impact it will have on changing the city. He defended the taxpayers contribution and gave an expected payback time.
FORMER premier John Olsen predicts the Adelaide Oval development — funded by $450 million from taxpayers — will pay for itself within five years.
Olsen, who now heads the SA Football Commission and is the president of the SANFL, is furious at suggestions the spending on the redevelopment was frivolous and tipped the extra income from the Oval would change the city.
Olsen’s key points included:
FOOTBALL will be responsible for revitalising Adelaide.
MORE money to football and community sport would make for a better society, and
THE SANFL, with several of its clubs struggling, would receive an injection of life from the project.
“It is not only the benefit that happens in the city of Adelaide, the 400 jobs that are created, but what it does do for football in South Australia, and for our two AFL clubs, is to position them in a more financially stable position to be able to compete with clubs in other states,” Olsen said.
“It’s a return for the taxpayers’ investment of $450 million in this site,” Olsen said. “Football and cricket can work with the Festival Centre and the arts so that people can have a total entertainment experience.
“There are options that weren’t there previously. Up to a million extra people, according to independent assessment and surveys, will use Adelaide Oval.
“You’ll get something like $74 million worth of direct expenditure. You’ll get $40 million extra spin-off from that $74 million direct expenditure.
"You’ll have 400 jobs created.
“This should not be lost. It is football that is the catalyst for the rejuvenation of riverbank. It is football that is the catalyst for the building of the footbridge.
“It is football that is generating the real rebirth of Adelaide Oval. And without football, Adelaide would be status quo.
“We are changing that and it’s football changing that.
“Let me put that another way — if football didn’t come to Adelaide Oval, you’d have the occasional cricket match down there, SACA would still have their $80 million-plus debt.”
mattblack wrote:What a crock that they were denied access. You can walk in there any day of the week and take pictures from the northern mound. I remember a poster asked a while back if it was fully accessible by wheel chair, well now it is. Through the Northern gate and take the path up to the hill and all will be revealed. Work on the Western stand is also coming along wil the 2 lift shafts extended up another level and steelwork in placxe for the new media facilities at the top of the stand. The whole thing is massive, the noise coming from that place in a big match will be magic.
Thanks for that I was the one who ask about fully accessible by wheel chair.
Would there be the possibility that one day in the distant future, when our population has grown and the stadium is well established as our premium destination for AFL, cricket and other large events, that a duplicated grandstand will be built on the northern mound? Just looking at the plans and envisioning a grandstand on that northern end, the same as the southern one, that would look spectacular and make the stadium wholesome. While I think it's great they've preserved the historical element at the same time as expanding and modernizing the oval, it would be awesome to see, and it won't be just a massive concrete bowl like the MCG, it will still have character and be unique for Adelaide.
russo92 wrote:Would there be the possibility that one day in the distant future, when our population has grown and the stadium is well established as our premium destination for AFL, cricket and other large events, that a duplicated grandstand will be built on the northern mound? Just looking at the plans and envisioning a grandstand on that northern end, the same as the southern one, that would look spectacular and make the stadium wholesome. While I think it's great they've preserved the historical element at the same time as expanding and modernizing the oval, it would be awesome to see, and it won't be just a massive concrete bowl like the MCG, it will still have character and be unique for Adelaide.
Sense. This post makes none.
Going by your logic, a fourth grandstand, if built, which looks exactly like the other three grandstand, which are all concrete bowls, would mean that Adelaide Oval would still have character and be unique?
Jee, the glass really is half empty isn't it Shuz? I think a northern stand is inevitable, but it's probably going to take decades until that's on the cards. At the end of the day, people don't go to AO to admire the scenery.. well, maybe some dreamers do, but the majority go there to watch sport. So if matches are sold out every week they're going to have to look at ways of raising capacity. What other options would they have anyway? Demolish the new members stand and rebuild? How many extra bums on seats would they get in there? Maybe this discussion belongs in the pub..
had a flight back from Melbourne yesterday and when coming in to land had a good view of the oval. Overheard the person next to me say to their friend/parter/whatever that they can't wait to come over and see a footy match. Good to see that people from interstate are excited as well!
I think a northern stand is inevitable, but it's probably going to take decades until that's on the cards. At the end of the day, people don't go to AO to admire the scenery.. well, maybe some dreamers do, but the majority go there to watch sport. So if matches are sold out every week they're going to have to look at ways of raising capacity. What other options would they have anyway? Demolish the new members stand and rebuild? How many extra bums on seats would they get in there? Maybe this discussion belongs in the pub..