Leichhardt Oval could drop off the
NRL fixture properly at the end of next season.
According to veteran sports reporter Neil Breen, Inner West Council, which controls Leichhardt Oval, has informed the
Wests Tigers that the ground will be closed to professional sport in two years, citing growing OH&S issues.
There is no suggestion that the ground will be razed with smaller fixtures below the NRL level potentially able to continue using the venue.
"The Inner West Council has decided that the oval itself has a two-year shelf life for pro sports, that's including the NRL," Breen told 2GBs
The Continuous Call Team.
"For an NRL game and all the things that come with a big crowd, it's an occupational health and safety issue.
"It's a big issue for Leichhardt and the NRL."
The upgrades needed to ensure the facility meets both elite sport and community requirements are estimated to cost between $20 to $50 million.
"Let's put it at $40 million [for an upgrade]," Breen said.
"Who's going to come up with the $40 million?"
Funding to modernise the stadium was discussed in last year's NSW state election and subsequent budget but never eventuated.
Unless funding is secured, the future of the stadium hangs in the balance.
Any combination of the three levels of government, the NRL, the Wests Tigers and private investment needs to come to the table.
Leichhardt Oval sits in Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's seat of Grayndler. Breen pointed out a Federal election will be held in the next year or so, and funding could become an election promise.
"But Anthony Albanese doesn't love stadiums. He didn't love funding the Brisbane Olympics and what he has to fund there," he said.
With no help from state or federal governments, the NRL may need to open its wallet.
"When sports are doing well like the NRL is, there is an expectation of, 'Why can't they put some money in," Breen said.
The Continuous Call Team agreed that Leichhardt Oval and its iconic Wayne Pearce Hill was in desperate need of a facelift, with toilets, food outlets and public transport connections severely lacking.
But all but argued that the ground was crucial to "the tribalism in the game".
Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V'landys has advocated for preserving the league's suburban grounds as opposed to relocating and centralising teams in big, multi-purpose stadiums.
"From a government point of view, they go, 'We've got CommBank Stadium, we've just rebuilt Allianz Stadium — we have these stadiums'," Breen said.
"But the way Sydney builds itself around rugby league, people who support the Tigers don't all want to go to Allianz for the game."
The team also argued that rugby league fans do not like to travel for matches.
"Because the product is so good on TV, people go, 'You know what, I'm not going to travel into town," Breen said.
"If I'm a Manly fan, I'm not going to travel to the Sydney Football Stadium when I can sit at home and watch it."
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