The Western Grandstand at EnergyAustralia Stadium

Scott · Post by **Scott** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 5:14 pm

The ISC had a theoretical capacity of approx. 50,000 when it was an oval. This was never tested for a sporting event. The 40,000 odd mentioned on the Trust web site for Charles & Di's visit is a little misleading as many of the school kids were standing on the arena itself and it was only an estimate as no official count occurred.

the crow · Post by **the crow** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 12:30 pm

the shape of the old western stand was the first piece of a showring for the old showgrounds of newcastle, it was canned and turned into a sports ground...this stand will be redeveloped shortly to match ther new stand.

Jeffles · Post by **Jeffles** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 1:02 pm

the crow wrote:the shape of the old western stand was the first piece of a showring for the old showgrounds of newcastle, it was canned and turned into a sports ground...this stand will be redeveloped shortly to match ther new stand.

Is that inside information from the industry or is it just your personal speculation?

the crow · Post by **the crow** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 1:59 pm

true on both accounts

Jeffles · Post by **Jeffles** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 2:07 pm

Is there a timeframe or is it like Leichhardt Oval's masterplan (ie. have all the designs and wait for funding) ?

the crow · Post by **the crow** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 2:29 pm

masterplanning and potential staging diagrams have been done...so you are quite correct regarding funding but i dont think its too far away.

there is a huge need to do it to improve players and back of house facilities so the preassure is on funding bodies.

Jeffles · Post by **Jeffles** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 2:39 pm

the crow wrote:there is a huge need to do it to improve players and back of house facilities so the preassure is on funding bodies.

Good point. My experience is that the BOH setup is prehistoric and inappropriate, especially for a ground that houses two national league football teams and has ambitions of hosting greater events.

I may be a bit pessimistic but I cannot see funding coming through for a proper rebuild. When Joey retires, crowds will decline (stupid as that is). With the demand for extra capacity not there, the coin may only be pledged to fix the sheds. Of course, elections are funny times when money can come up for a lot of things.

the crow · Post by **the crow** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 3:01 pm

True but there now is the A league team there now as well so the preasure is on, the state govt is committing money towards the SCG stage 1 matching the federal input (Stage 2 Branman / Nobel members area is yet to be negotiated, but will most likley be underway in the near future,) so the next cab off the rank i would say would be Newcastle as far as public sports ground funding in NSW.

Jeffles · Post by **Jeffles** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 3:12 pm

the crow wrote:True but there now is the A league team there now as well so the preasure is on, the state govt is committing money towards the SCG stage 1 matching the federal input (Stage 2 Branman / Nobel members area is yet to be negotiated, but will most likley be underway in the near future,) so the next cab off the rank i would say would be Newcastle as far as public sports ground funding in NSW.

What's the plan there - knock and rebuild the Bradman/Noble Stands down or give them a good old clean?

the crow · Post by **the crow** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 4:23 pm

bigdan · Post by **bigdan** » Thu Jan 18, 2007 11:23 pm

Here's the view from Energy Australia Stadium's Upper Western Grandstand...and it's a beaut!

Panoramic View of the Eastern Grandstand:
(WARNING: Big file pixel-wise, only over a meg)

A closer view of the field as the Jets warm up:

Bay 2 of the Eastern Grandstand, Home of the Squadron:

I've got a slow turning picture of the Eastern Stand taken from my seat, I'll upload it to YouTube either tonight or tomorrow.

HoldenV8 · Post by **HoldenV8** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 12:47 am

Sensational pics there BD. Well done.

bigdan · Post by **bigdan** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 6:24 am

Thanks for that!

Here's the video I was talking about:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmMd_tshzeo

Simmo79 · Post by **Simmo79** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 9:28 am

That Eastern Stand is a real beauty (and a great pano pic too). Near perfect design for stadiums that host NRL and A-League clubs.

I'm also surprised at the number of gold shirts in the crowd. I expected red and blue would have stuck with the fans (Knights, NUFC's previous colours when they were in the NSL). Good to see.

So what were the facilities like in the Western Stand, Dan?

bigdan · Post by **bigdan** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 12:25 pm

Simmo79 wrote:That Eastern Stand is a real beauty (and a great pano pic too). Near perfect design for stadiums that host NRL and A-League clubs.

I'm also surprised at the number of gold shirts in the crowd. I expected red and blue would have stuck with the fans (Knights, NUFC's previous colours when they were in the NSL). Good to see.

So what were the facilities like in the Western Stand, Dan?

I wasn't surprised with the amount of gold shirts in the crowd. I think the area is really starting to get behind the Jets. If they can get 15-20,000k crowds most weeks, they'll do well. I think they're sick and tired of seeing national sporting teams disappear.

As for the facilities in the Western Stand, they're quite good for an aging stand. They've got a club restaurant in the middle, and a bar on the bottom level, so if you like a drink you're covered. If you've got family who wanted stuff brought home (like mine), the merchandise van wasn't too bad, but needs a bigger area. Thankfully you've got ATM and Eftpos facilities there, so its sweet as.

The major problem is all the stairs. Quite narrow, heaven help them if it becomes crowded. Also, apart from the afore-mentioned club restaurant, everything is on the ground level, including toilets. Really inconvenient.

Also, if you're a member of the media, you had better hope like hell the media boxes don't collapse. They're attached to the roof and I'd be sh*tting myself if it ever moves or sways. Apparently 2GB's footy call team have made several disparaging comments about the boxes.

To summarise, we need a new grandstand. It's past its use by date, the views are nice, but everything else needs improvement.