Construction commences on New South Wales Rugby League Centre of Excellence

The commencement of construction on the New South Wales Rugby League Centre of Excellence at Sydney Olympic Park is set to benefit hundreds of promising rugby league players, along with established champions of the game.

NSW Sports Minister Stuart Ayres was joined by NSWRL Chairman Dr George Peponis, Chief Executive David Trodden, NRL Legend Brad Fittler and Jillaroo Kezie Apps to lay the Foundation Stone for the high-performance facility last Wednesday.

Welcoming the start of construction, Minister Ayres stated "this Centre of Excellence will provide a massive boost for rugby league in New South Wales.

“Sport hubs of this calibre will help drive growth and development of players of all abilities - from grassroots to the elite level.”

Sited adjacent to Sydney's ANZ Stadium, the Centre will feature a full-sized training field, gymnasium, player recovery facilities and a lecture theatre, as well as the new building for specialised support and the offices of the NSWRL.

Dr Peponis commented "the NSWRL Centre of Excellence will be one of the most sophisticated high-performance facilities of any sport in Australia.

“It will be a state-of-the-art facility aiming to ensure the future success of Rugby League in NSW. Everyone in the NSWRL family will benefit from being able to use the facility, as well as the specialist sports grounds in the precinct.”

The day also saw the NSWRL announce an exciting new partnership agreement with the University of New England (UNE) as the organisation’s university partner.

The relationship will allow the University’s sport and exercise science teaching facilities to base at the NSWRL Centre of Excellence, with UNE providing research and sports science services to NSWRL.

After considerable media speculation, Minister Ayres had been expected to announce new funding and plans for the redevelopment of Sydney's ANZ and Allianz Stadiums last week. That announcement is now awaited.

The NSWRL Centre of Excellence is funded by the NSW Government and the National Rugby League. It is scheduled to open in late 2018. 

Image shows NRL Legend Brad Fittler, Jillaroo Kezie Apps and NSW Sports Minister Stuart Ayres at last week's Foundation Stone laying event.

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