Cricket NSW calls on NSW Government to build 15,000-seat Newcastle oval

Revealing a range of funding priorities in the leadup to the NSW state election, Cricket NSW has called for backing for 170 local community and five major infrastructure projects throughout the state over the next four years.

Among its major priorities identified in A plan to grow Australia’s favourite sport - priorities 2023-2027, Cricket NSW has called for:

• $8 million for upgrades to the Newcastle No. 1 Sportsground to ensure first-class cricket can return to the Hunter region.
• $8.5 million for upgrades to North Sydney Oval to consolidate its position as the home of women’s cricket.
• Further investigation into a potential site within Newcastle’s Hunter Sports and Entertainment Precinct (Hunter Park) for a new 15,000-seat oval stadium.
• $5 million to allow a raft of cricket, from elite to community level, to be played across Regional NSW.
• A partnership with the NRL, AFL and Netball NSW to deliver bespoke mental health programs.
• Multicultural programs including $50,000 to research and develop targeted programs for South Asian communities in NSW.
• A Masterplan for the SCG.

One of those projects that Cricket NSW is seeking government investment for is a new 15,000-seat tadium within the Hunter Park sporting precinct at Broadmeadow.

The proposed stadium would be similar to Manuka Oval and located adjacent to McDonald Jones Stadium, on the current site of the Newcastle Harness Racetrack, which would be relocated to a purpose-built complex.

The headline project that Cricket NSW is seeking investment from the NSW Government is a new 15,000-seat oval stadium next to the McDonald Jones Stadium in the Newcastle suburb of Broadmeadow.

The proposed stadium would be similar to Manuka Oval would be built on the current site of the Newcastle Harness Racetrack, which Cricket NSW suggests would be relocated to a purpose-built complex.

Such a venue would allow Newcastle to host major cricket fixtures including the BBL as well as AFL matches.

The traditional home of cricket in the region, the Newcastle No. 1 Sportsground, is no longer considered fit for elite cricket matches, despite an $8 million upgrade by the Newcastle City Council recently being completed.

Advising that the release of the priorities document provided an opportunity for political parties to invest in cricket across NSW ahead of the state election in March, Cricket NSW Chief Executive, Lee Germon stated “this presents an opportunity to work with political parties and candidates and promote opportunities to invest in Australia’s favourite sport.

“Cricket is often the fabric that binds local communities, and when local cricket does well, local communities prosper.

“This document provides a footprint for the growth of cricket in NSW from a local community level right through to first-class cricket.”

The City of Newcastle last year welcomed $6.7 million in funding to prepare a full business case on the notion to transform 63 hectares surrounding McDonald Jones Stadium, the Newcastle Entertainment Centre and Newcastle Showground, into a world-class lifestyle precinct.

Also proposed is a new 11,000-seat entertainment centre to be built adjacent to McDonald Jones Stadium, to replace the existing outdated facility.

Cricket NSW’s priorities outlined in its document call for Venues NSW to begin work on the SCG Masterplan to identify much-needed upgrades at the venue and to provide adequate parking options within the Moore Park precinct.

The report advises "this famous and popular venue has some of the oldest spectator facilities in the country, and similar building code compliance issues that saw Parramatta Stadium and the SFS rebuilt. The masterplan of the SCG is needed to identify much needed upgrades at the venue. These include upgrades to the outdated Brewongle, Churchill and O’Reilly stands.”

It states the lack of any significant investment, compared to other cricket venues across Australia such as the Perth’s Optus Stadium and the Adelaide Oval along with plans for a new Hobart stadium and the rebuilding of Brisbane’s Gabba, highlights the risk that the SCG will slip further down the rankings as a top tier sporting venue.

During rain interruptions during the New Year Pink Test at the SCG, Venues NSW Tony Shepherd called for for the development of a roofed stadium in Sydney .

Click here to view A plan to grow Australia’s favourite sport - priorities 2023-2027.

Images: Concept image of the proposed 15,000-seat stadium in Newcastle (top) and Newcastle’s Hunter Sports and Entertainment Precinct (below).