What's new
By:
Advanced search…
The Front Row Forums

Register a free account today to become a member of the world's largest Rugby League discussion forum! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

OT: Parra Stadium sharing

Poupou Escobar

Poupou Escobar

Post Whore
Messages
92,065
But we have lent our brand to it Gronk. Not that that's a bad thing, unless you're the kind of jerk that only wants to see the Eels linked to the big end of town and damn all the plebeians.
 
S

Suitman

Post Whore
Messages
56,091
Wanderers Chairman really pushing for the upgrade..........

Wanderers chairman Paul Lederer says only ‘massive offer’ will tear Tony Popovic from club
39 MINS AGO
Wanderers chairman Paul Lederer.
Wanderers chairman Paul Lederer. Source: News Limited
Tom Smithies The Daily Telegraph

WANDERERS chairman Paul Lederer tells Tom Smithies about the future of Tony Popovic, the prospect of succeeding Frank Lowy and why Parramatta must - must - have a brand new stadium.

Paul Lederer interview
Wanderers chairman Paul Lederer has big plans for the club. Source: News Limited
TS: Tony Popovic has become hot property – how can you tie down your head coach?
PL: I don’t think Tony is going anywhere, I firmly believe that. Especially, he won’t go anywhere in Australia. If an overseas offer comes, something phenomenal, then good luck to him. There’s nothing in the world I can do about that. He and I are reasonably good friends, and he has no intention of going anywhere. But in a coach’s life, if somebody was to come in with a massive offer, of course he will look at it.


TS: You were very bullish this week about the prospects of getting the government to rebuild Parramatta Stadium, not just upgrade it. Will it happen?

PL: My view on this is simple – there are three million people in Western Sydney and they deserve a stadium. The Parramatta Eels have exactly the same issue.

To spend $30m on an extension when you can have a brand new stadium for $120m, with world class facilities and corporate boxes and so on – to me as a businessman, it’s not even a decision.

There is a DA approved for a stadium, so it could be done in, say, 18 months? If the government wants to make it happen, they can do so very quickly. It will be a disaster if it doesn’t happen – for sport, for the multi-use possibilities. I’m talking about a world-class facility.

We’re averaging 17-18k per game. I’m totally convinced that if it wasn’t for the stadium we’d be averaging 30,000 per game. Where we play is ideal, but the facilities are average. It’s a 50-year-old stadium, it’s archaic.

When we have VIPs from overseas, it’s embarrassing. We had the ambassador from Saudi Arabia queuing up for half an hour to use the one lift. Compare that with Etihad Stadium in Melbourne where you’re wining and dining in style. Here you get a chicken burger if you’re lucky.

Tony Popovic and captain Nikolai Topor-Stanley celebrate their Asian success.
Tony Popovic and captain Nikolai Topor-Stanley celebrate their Asian success. Source: AFP
TS: Would you train there?
PL: Training facilities would be somewhere else. We’ve been talking to a number of people and we should have an announcement on that soon.

If you’re serious about building a world-class club, as we are, your ground, training facilities, everything has to be world class to go to the next level.

One of the things that we’ve got to be careful of here – football has made fantastic progress over the last 10 years but you don’t want to stop here. You want to go to the next level.

It would be a fatal error if people were to think we’ve made it – we haven’t. We’ve taken an intermediate step.

TS: You seem to looking at the long term and…

PL: Sorry to contradict you but I’m talking about the next two to three years, not never-never land. I want the training session up and running in two years, a licensed club up and running in two years. A new stadium in two years. Once we’ve got that we want an academy and getting into junior football – it’s a massive project.

TS: Are you keen on a marquee player? Tony Popovic doesn’t seem to like the idea of guest players and big names.

PL: The right player, we’ll always look at. Tony’s not wrong at all, it’s not about a big name, whoever it is would have to fit in to our club and culture – and still have something to offer. Shinji Ono had everything – excitement, skills, hard work – but there’s not too many of those around.

Wanderers fans turn out in big numbers for ACL final first leg.
Wanderers fans turn out in big numbers for ACL final first leg. Source: Getty Images
TS: Is it too early to worry about the A-League form?

PL: We played our first game after six weeks off in pre-season. The hardships endured, the guys were very focused on the Asian Champions League and now they have to refocus. There’s no question there’s hiccups on the way – it’s hard to play two games in a week and travel, no matter who you are. It shows in the results, but I wasn’t discouraged against Wellington, not at all.

TS: Frank Lowy retires as FFA chairman in less than ayear, your name has been floated as a replacement.


PL: I am delighted with Western Sydney, and I think I owe it to Western Sydney to do something special. I can contribute there, that’s what I want I want to do.

What happens down the track? I don’t rule anything in or out. But that’s not my intent. I really want to put down foundations that are rock solid in Western Sydney. The west deserves a break. I’m committed to Western Sydney, I’ve given my word to the boys. That’s good enough.

Originally published as ’Western Sydney deserves world-class facility’
Click to expand...

http://mobile.news.com.au/sport/foo...opovic-from-club/story-fnk9a3dc-1227122305583

Interesting that the Terrorgraph later changed the headline of the online article to what was actually printed this morning.
 
S

Suitman

Post Whore
Messages
56,091
Soccer chiefs lobby Premier Mike Baird for bigger Western Sydney Wanderers stadium

  • by: LINDA SILMALIS
  • From: The Sunday Telegraph
  • November 16, 2014 12:00AM

5



Share
×
Share this story




5


5

216527-e5d30f5c-6b0c-11e4-9f16-015de3bbdad9.jpg

Mad Western Sydney Wanderers fans, Anita and Darko Grabarevic, with their sons Lukas (left) and Aiden, would like to see a bigger stadium. Picture: Mitch Cameron Source: DailyTelegraph



A HOMETOWN stadium big enough for fans to watch the Western Sydney Wanderers is shaping up as a key state election issue in the battle for western Sydney seats.

With Parramatta Stadium unable to accommodate the volume of Wanderers fans wanting to watch home ground matches, both the Liberal and Labor parties are being lobbied to commit to building a new 35,000 seat venue.
Businessman and Football Federation Australia chairman Frank Lowy visited NSW Premier Mike Baird last week to discuss the issue.

It is understood Mr Lowy was accompanied by Wanderers co-owner Paul Lederer, although Mr Baird’s office would not comment on the meeting.
216579-78d6590a-6bb0-11e4-b2e3-ff776def1d7c.jpg

Parramatta Stadium is becoming too small for the increasing number of Wanderers fans. Source: News Limited




Demand for Wanderers’ tickets is so strong that home matches sell out at the start of the season, with thousands of fans missing out.
Tickets to the current season which ends in May sold out last month.
During a civic reception for the A-League team on Monday, fans chanted “stadium”, “stadium” during speeches given by Liberal Parramatta MP Geoff Lee and Parramatta Lord Mayor, Councillor Scott Lloyd.
Parramatta Stadium has a seating capacity of just over 20,000. This compares with 45,500 at Allianz Stadium and 83,500 at ANZ Stadium — both of which are also lobbying each party for cash for their own upgrades.
The Baird government recently negotiated a $29 million upgrade to the stadium to accommodate the Wanderers and the NRL’s Parramatta Eels.
However, the upgrade adds just 4,000 seats to the mix — well short of the 35,000 seat capacity stadium the Wanderers are demanding.
Click to expand...

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/ne...124216179?nk=5e6f1a1b79a5a746ac0b44c2d9b8b10e
 
Obscene Assassin

Obscene Assassin

First Grade
Messages
6,398
Hopefully the Eels have a strong season next year so that there's even more pressure on the Government to knock down and rebuild the stadium properly. 35k seats, and the best facilities for fans to get in and out of the game as efficiently as possible.
 
hineyrulz

hineyrulz

Post Whore
Messages
154,347
Why weren't the Eels in there lobbying with the Wanderers guys??? The Wanderers seem to be doing a great job try to get the stadium seating increased a united front with both teams can only be a good thing.

Hope parra don't decide just to leave it up to the Wanderers.
 
S

Suitman

Post Whore
Messages
56,091
hineyrulz said:
Why weren't the Eels in there lobbying with the Wanderers guys??? The Wanderers seem to be doing a great job try to get the stadium seating increased a united front with both teams can only be a good thing.

Hope parra don't decide just to leave it up to the Wanderers.
Click to expand...

Well it seems that's the way it is. We hear very little from the Eels about pushing for an upgrade, but we hear something from the Wanderers weekly, not only lobbying Macquarie Street, but Canberra as well.
The Wanderers wanted safe standing seating installed at the northern end, but the Eels poo poohed that idea. It really makes you wonder what the Eels plans are for the long term, but the Wanderers have made theirs clear - stay at a significantly upgraded Parra Stadium, and they are doing everything they can to make that a reality.

Suity
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Top