Eels greats Eric Grothe, Ray Price and Brett Kenny forced to stand at WIN Jubilee
By Josh Massoud | September 08, 2009 12:00am
HAVING combined to win all four Parramatta premierships in the 1980s, Eels greats Ray Price, Brett Kenny and Eric Grothe are more accustomed to receiving standing ovations than standing-room-only tickets to the footy.
Yet that's what the legendary trio were given at Kogarah's WIN Jubilee Stadium last Friday night.
Already critical of St George Illawarra's refusal to move Sunday's final to a bigger venue, Eels officials have revealed Price, Kenny and Grothe were allocated tickets on the hill after all grandstand seats were exhausted at the 18,000 capacity venue.
Parramatta chairman Roy Spagnolo said he was "too embarrassed" to ask Price, Kenny and Grothe - who are also Eels football club directors - to stand on the hill with thousands of packed punters last Friday night.
"I couldn't believe it when I saw their tickets were for the hill," Spagnolo said. "They are greats of not only this club, but of rugby league.
"I was too embarrassed to hand them over.
"I understand the ground is small and there was a great atmosphere, but you can't have guys like that standing on a hill on those conditions.
"In the end I gave them my seats in the grandstand and watched the game with the team."
Families of Parramatta players were also given tickets to the hill last Friday. If not for his connections with WIN television, another league great - Peter Mortimer - would have watched son Daniel in the elements rather than a corporate box. The NRL, which controls ticket allocations for finals matches, last night assured the quasi-comical possibly would not repeated on Sunday.
"Each team will be given 84 seats in the grandstand - there's no preferential treatment even though it's a St George Illawarra home final," NRL chief operating officer Graham Annesley said.
"I wouldn't have had a problem sitting on the hill per se," Price said.
"I probably would have copped a bit more lip though."
Kenny, however, supported St George Illawarra's decision to knock-back a $250,000 NRL guarantee and stay at Kogarah.
"The home ground advantage is a big thing and they really thrived off that last Friday night," Kenny said.
CEO Paul Osborne said the club had purchased extra tickets yesterday to ensure all its guests would be seated in comfort.
