Concerns grow about World Cup venue surfaces

Dan · Post by **Dan** » Sun Jun 15, 2003 4:21 pm

Concerns grow about World Cup venue surfaces
14 June 2003
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,253 ... 23,00.html

SYDNEY: Serious concerns have been voiced about the playing surfaces at the quarterfinals venues for the rugby World Cup after a spate of injuries in other codes.

Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane and the Docklands stadium in Melbourne will host two quarterfinals each furing the tournament in October and November.

The surface at the redevloped $A280 million ($NZ324.93 million) Suncorp Stadium, was labelled a "beach" and a "sand pit" after Queensland rugby league player Justin Hodges suffered a season-ending knee injury on Wednesday.

Several leading Australian Rules Football (AFL) players have also complained that the playing surface at Melbourne's Docklands stadium is so hard it is dangerous.

Docklands will host a total of seven World Cup matches, while nine matches will be played at Suncorp Stadium. Australia face England in a test at Docklands on June 21.

Hodges' manager Jim Banaghan said a number of lawyers had urged him to seek financial compensation for his injured client because of the surface at Suncorp Stadium but added he had decided not to take legal action.

Queensland's Paul Bowman will also miss up to six weeks with a knee injury suffered in Wednesday's State of Origin match.

Australian Prime Minister John Howard, an avid sports fan, added to the debate after watching Wednesday's match, won 25-12 by New South Wales.

"Probably the playing surface needs to settle down a bit... there was a bit of unevenness," Howard told local radio.

AFL club the Brisbane Lions officially complained about the Docklands surface this week, labelling it dangerous after several Brisbane and Richmond players were hurt last weekend.

AFL officials and players' representatives inspected the surface yesterday and passed it fit

Jeffles · Post by **Jeffles** » Sun Jun 15, 2003 8:51 pm

Probably a bit overrated. Hodges is quoted in today's Sunday Telegraph ruling out the surface as the problem for his injury and ruling out legal action against the Stadium. He said something along the lines that anyone would've been injured the way he fell in that tackle.

Egan · Post by **Egan** » Tue Jun 17, 2003 11:52 pm

Why the hell does John Howard got any influence or relevance to the issue stated, hmm that is just pure bad journalism.

John Howard knows next to little about the surface, so why the hell are they picking something up from a caller or presenter of his opinion like many others of the state of the pitch, Hmm this is disgraceful. It would have been better to get someone from Suncorp then add a few bits of unrelevant info from our Prime Minister.

Hmm very dissapointed with these New Zealand Journalists