Canberra Stadium
Encyclopedia
Canberra Stadium is a facility primarily used for rugby league
and rugby union
games, located adjacent to the Australian Institute of Sport
in Canberra
, the capital of Australia. Bruce is the Canberra suburb where the stadium is located, and in turn Bruce was named after Stanley Bruce
, Australian Prime Minister 1923–1929.
, it also was the venue for the 4th IAAF World Cup in Athletics. At the latter meet, the fastest 400m for women, was recorded by East German Marita Koch
, and also the 4x100m women's relay by East Germany – times that still stand today.
In the late 1980s the running track was removed and re-located to the warm up stadium at the AIS site and in 1990 the Canberra Raiders
Rugby league team started playing their home games at Bruce in 1990 after they became more successful.
The removal of the track meant that Australian rules football
, more specifically the Australian Football League
(AFL), could now be played at the ground and in 1995 the first AFL match for premiership points was contested between the West Coast Eagles
and Fitzroy
.
There were also a number of pre-season AFL games played at the venue, mostly featuring the Sydney Swans
.
Also around this time, as an experiment, a cricket pitch was placed in the centre of the ground, and a day/night 1 day cricket match was played between 2 local teams before a small crowd. Regular cricket matches on the ground did not eventuate.
Further renovations occurred in 1997 in preparation for staging soccer matches as part of the 2000 Summer Olympics
in Sydney, which also in turn shrank the size of the playing field preventing any future Australian rules football games being played on the field. The final cost of the renovations was more than seven times what was originally anticipated by the territory government of the time, and the subsequent controversy ended the career of then Chief Minister Kate Carnell
. During the lead-up, on 28 May 2000, unseasonal snow fell during a match between the Raiders and the Wests Tigers, the only such event in National Rugby League
history, with the snow causing frost damage to the turf intended for the Olympic football
tournament.
Olympic soccer in 2000 has initiated a stadium facelift converting the playing surface from oval to rectangular and bringing the crowd closer to the action. The only downside to this revamp is the stadium can no longer host AFL games. It is now an all-seater rectangular stadium with two main grandstands on either side of the playing field.
In 2009 there was a A-League
bid
from Canberra that, if successful would have seen a team play at the stadium starting with the 2010–11 season. However, the league chose to award second teams to (Western) Sydney
and Melbourne
. Ultimately, the second Sydney team never took the field due to financial issues.
through the Australian Sports Commission
and leased to the Australian Capital Territory Government
. While the current lease is due to expire in 2010, the ACT Government is seeking ownership of the stadium through a land transfer with the Australian Government.
, and a statue of another Raiders and Australian league representative Laurie Daley
adorns the main grandstand entrance.
The eastern grandstand was named the Gregan/Larkham Grandstand on 28 April 2007, after Brumbies and Australia
rugby union greats George Gregan
and Stephen Larkham
. Both ended their international careers after the 2007 Rugby World Cup
as the two most-capped players in Wallabies history (at that time), with Gregan at a world-record 139 and Larkham at 102.
Rugby league
Soccer
's nib Stadium), and only a medium-sized NRL venue. The stadium itself is approaching 35 years old, and despite modernizations over the years is lacking in certain amenities for fans – especially under cover seating.
Additionally, Australia had bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup
and Canberra Stadium does not meet the necessary criterion to host matches. As such, the ACT Government launched a study examining the upgrading or replacing of Canberra Stadium, with options ranging from increasing capacity and enclosing the current facility, to completely re-configuring the current stadium to an oval for cricket and Australian rules football and building a state of the art rectangular facility next door.
Citing costs of building multiple facilities as an issue, ACT Sports Minister Andrew Barr
indicated his preference would be a 'super stadium' built with World Cup standard facilities and capacity, reducible to around 30,000 seats after the event. Such a facility would have to incorporate movable seating
in order to accommodate all of the major Australian sporting codes.
The official bid for the 2022 world cup indicated that the 'super stadium' plan was unlikely and the original plan of a new rectangular stadium built next door to the current stadium, with the existing facility re-configured for oval field sports, was considered to be the likely outcome.
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
and rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
games, located adjacent to the Australian Institute of Sport
Australian Institute of Sport
The Australian Institute of Sport is a sports training institution in Australia with world class facilities and support services. The Institute's headquarters is situated in Canberra, the capital city of Australia. The 66.0 hectare site campus is in the northern suburb of Bruce, but some of the...
in Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
, the capital of Australia. Bruce is the Canberra suburb where the stadium is located, and in turn Bruce was named after Stanley Bruce
Stanley Bruce
Stanley Melbourne Bruce, 1st Viscount Bruce of Melbourne, CH, MC, FRS, PC , was an Australian politician and diplomat, and the eighth Prime Minister of Australia. He was the second Australian granted an hereditary peerage of the United Kingdom, but the first whose peerage was formally created...
, Australian Prime Minister 1923–1929.
History
Constructed in 1977 for the Pacific Conference GamesPacific Conference Games
The Pacific Conference Games were a quadrennial athletics competition, held between 1969 and 1985 and contested by Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand and the United States.The 1981 event was open to athletes from all nations....
, it also was the venue for the 4th IAAF World Cup in Athletics. At the latter meet, the fastest 400m for women, was recorded by East German Marita Koch
Marita Koch
Marita Koch , is a former sprint track and field athlete...
, and also the 4x100m women's relay by East Germany – times that still stand today.
In the late 1980s the running track was removed and re-located to the warm up stadium at the AIS site and in 1990 the Canberra Raiders
Canberra Raiders
The Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the national capital city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. They have competed in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership since 1982...
Rugby league team started playing their home games at Bruce in 1990 after they became more successful.
The removal of the track meant that Australian rules football
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
, more specifically the Australian Football League
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
(AFL), could now be played at the ground and in 1995 the first AFL match for premiership points was contested between the West Coast Eagles
West Coast Eagles
The West Coast Eagles are an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League. The club is based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 and played its first games in the 1987 season. Its current home ground is Subiaco Oval...
and Fitzroy
Fitzroy Football Club
The Fitzroy Football Club, formerly nicknamed The Lions, is an Australian rules football club formed in 1883 to represent the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria and was a foundation member club of the Victorian Football League on its inception in 1897...
.
There were also a number of pre-season AFL games played at the venue, mostly featuring the Sydney Swans
Sydney Swans
The Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney...
.
Also around this time, as an experiment, a cricket pitch was placed in the centre of the ground, and a day/night 1 day cricket match was played between 2 local teams before a small crowd. Regular cricket matches on the ground did not eventuate.
2000 Summer Olympics
The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
in Sydney, which also in turn shrank the size of the playing field preventing any future Australian rules football games being played on the field. The final cost of the renovations was more than seven times what was originally anticipated by the territory government of the time, and the subsequent controversy ended the career of then Chief Minister Kate Carnell
Kate Carnell
Anne Katherine Carnell AO was the third Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory, serving from 1995 to 2000. She is currently Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Food and Grocery Council.-Pharmacy career:...
. During the lead-up, on 28 May 2000, unseasonal snow fell during a match between the Raiders and the Wests Tigers, the only such event in National Rugby League
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
history, with the snow causing frost damage to the turf intended for the Olympic football
Football at the Summer Olympics
Association football, usually known simply as football or soccer, has been included in every Olympiad except 1896 and 1932 as a men's competition sport. Women's football was added to the official programme in 1996.-Early history:...
tournament.
Olympic soccer in 2000 has initiated a stadium facelift converting the playing surface from oval to rectangular and bringing the crowd closer to the action. The only downside to this revamp is the stadium can no longer host AFL games. It is now an all-seater rectangular stadium with two main grandstands on either side of the playing field.
In 2009 there was a A-League
A-League
The A-League is the top Australasian professional football league. Run by Australian governing body Football Federation Australia , it was founded in 2004 following the folding of the National Soccer League and staged its inaugural season in 2005–06. It is sponsored by Hyundai Motor Company...
bid
Canberra A-League Bid
A-League4Canberra is the working name for a proposed Canberra-based A-League association football club.-History:A Canberra based consortium led by TransACT CEO Ivan Slavich is determined to apply for and receive a license to compete in the A-League, commencing in the 2010-11 season...
from Canberra that, if successful would have seen a team play at the stadium starting with the 2010–11 season. However, the league chose to award second teams to (Western) Sydney
Sydney Rovers FC
Sydney Rovers Football Club was a proposed professional football club based in Western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and the 12th official franchise in the A-League. The club was supposed to kick off in the 2011-2012 season....
and Melbourne
Melbourne Heart FC
Melbourne Heart FC is an Australian professional football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 2008, the club has competed in the A-League, the highest division of football in Australia, since its inaugural 2010–2011 season. It is the twelfth club to have played in the league...
. Ultimately, the second Sydney team never took the field due to financial issues.
Ownership
The stadium is currently owned by the Australian GovernmentGovernment of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
through the Australian Sports Commission
Australian Sports Commission
The Australian Sports Commission is the governing body responsible for distributing funds and providing strategic guidance for sporting activity in Australia. It is an agency of the Government of Australia within the portfolio of Health and Ageing...
and leased to the Australian Capital Territory Government
Australian Capital Territory
The Australian Capital Territory, often abbreviated ACT, is the capital territory of the Commonwealth of Australia and is the smallest self-governing internal territory...
. While the current lease is due to expire in 2010, the ACT Government is seeking ownership of the stadium through a land transfer with the Australian Government.
Seating and Capacity
Capacity is a nominal all-seated 25,011, the largest crowd being 28,753 for the 2004 Super 12 Final. The main grandstand is named after Canberra Raiders and Australian rugby league player Mal MeningaMal Meninga
Malcolm Norman Meninga AM is an Australian former rugby league test captain and current coach of Queensland's State of Origin team. As a player he was a legendary goal-kicking centre, counted amongst the finest footballers of the 20th century...
, and a statue of another Raiders and Australian league representative Laurie Daley
Laurie Daley
Laurie Daley OA is an Australian rugby league football commentator and former player of Indigenous Australian descent. He represented Australia on 26 occasions and has since been named as one of the nation's finest players of the 20th century...
adorns the main grandstand entrance.
The eastern grandstand was named the Gregan/Larkham Grandstand on 28 April 2007, after Brumbies and Australia
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
rugby union greats George Gregan
George Gregan
George Musarurwa Gregan AM is an Australian rugby union halfback who has made more appearances for his national team than any other player in the sport's history....
and Stephen Larkham
Stephen Larkham
Stephen Larkham is an Australian rugby union footballer currently playing for the Ricoh Black Rams in Japan. He is best known for his career with the Brumbies in Super Rugby, for whom he played from the inception of the professional Super 12 in 1996 through 2007, and his long tenure with the...
. Both ended their international careers after the 2007 Rugby World Cup
2007 Rugby World Cup
The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 20 October. France won the hosting rights in 2003,...
as the two most-capped players in Wallabies history (at that time), with Gregan at a world-record 139 and Larkham at 102.
Crowd records
Rugby union- 28,753 – 2004 Super 12 Final, ACT Brumbies vs Canterbury Crusaders
Rugby league
- 26,476 – 2010 NRL season Semi finals, Canberra RaidersCanberra RaidersThe Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the national capital city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. They have competed in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership since 1982...
vs Wests TigersWests TigersThe Wests Tigers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Sydney's mid-western suburbs. They have competed in the National Rugby League since they were formed at the end of the 1999 season as a joint-venture club between the Balmain Tigers and the Western Suburbs...
Soccer
- 20,032 – Asian Cup Qualifier2011 AFC Asian Cup qualificationThe 2011 AFC Asian Cup qualification saw various countries take part to determine 10 spots to the final tournament in Qatar under the new qualification system set by the Asian Football Confederation ....
, vs
Possible Replacement
Whilst the stadium suits the needs of its two current primary tennants, as of 2011 it will be the second-smallest Super Rugby stadium (behind the Western ForceWestern Force
Western Force is a rugby union team based in Perth, Western Australia playing in the international Super Rugby competition. They first competed in the 2006 season and finished with the wooden spoon in that year, however their performances greatly improved in 2007. In 2008 they finished in 8th...
's nib Stadium), and only a medium-sized NRL venue. The stadium itself is approaching 35 years old, and despite modernizations over the years is lacking in certain amenities for fans – especially under cover seating.
Additionally, Australia had bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup
2022 FIFA World Cup
The 2022 FIFA World Cup will be the 22nd FIFA World Cup, an international association football tournament that is scheduled to take place in 2022 in Qatar. The competition is scheduled to take place in June and July, although proposals have been made for a winter season. The tournament will involve...
and Canberra Stadium does not meet the necessary criterion to host matches. As such, the ACT Government launched a study examining the upgrading or replacing of Canberra Stadium, with options ranging from increasing capacity and enclosing the current facility, to completely re-configuring the current stadium to an oval for cricket and Australian rules football and building a state of the art rectangular facility next door.
Citing costs of building multiple facilities as an issue, ACT Sports Minister Andrew Barr
Andrew Barr
Andrew Barr is an Australian politician and Deputy Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory. He has been an Australian Labor Party member for the seat of Molonglo in the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 5 April 2006, after being elected on a countback to replace...
indicated his preference would be a 'super stadium' built with World Cup standard facilities and capacity, reducible to around 30,000 seats after the event. Such a facility would have to incorporate movable seating
Movable seating
Movable seating is a feature of some facilities like stadiums, often known as convertible stadiums, or moduable stadiums. It allows for the movement of parts of the grandstand to allow for a change of the playing surface shape...
in order to accommodate all of the major Australian sporting codes.
The official bid for the 2022 world cup indicated that the 'super stadium' plan was unlikely and the original plan of a new rectangular stadium built next door to the current stadium, with the existing facility re-configured for oval field sports, was considered to be the likely outcome.
Other Notable Events
- Super 12 Rugby unionRugby unionRugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
Final 20002000 Super 12 seasonThe 2000 Super 12 season was the fifth season of the Super 12, contested by teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The season ran from February to May 2000, with each team playing all the others once. At the end of the regular season, the top four teams entered the playoff semi finals,...
, 20012001 Super 12 seasonThe 2001 Super 12 season was the sixth season of the Super 12, contested by teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The season ran from February to May 2001, with each team playing all the others once. At the end of the regular season, the top four teams entered the playoff semi finals,...
, 20042004 Super 12 seasonThe 2004 Super 12 season was the ninth season of the Super 12, contested by teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The season ran from February to May 2004, with each team playing all the others once. At the end of the regular season, the top four teams entered the playoff semi finals,... - Four group matches from the 2003 Rugby World Cup2003 Rugby World CupThe 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup and was won by England. Originally planned to be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the New Zealand Rugby Football Union and Rugby World...
were also played at the stadium. - In 1990, the stadium hosted an International Rules match (a combination of Gaelic footballGaelic footballGaelic football , commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic", or "Gah" is a form of football played mainly in Ireland...
and Australian rules footballAustralian rules footballAustralian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
) between IrelandIreland international rules football teamThe Ireland International rules football team is the representative team for Ireland in international rules football, a compromise between Gaelic football and Australian rules football...
and Australia. - In 19951995 AFL seasonResults and statistics for the Australian Football League season of 1995.-Round 1:-Round 2:-Round 3:-Round 4:*This was the first ANZAC Day clash held between Collingwood and Essendon which famously ended in a draw.-Round 5:-Round 6:...
, the AFLAustralian Football LeagueThe Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
's ailing Fitzroy Football ClubFitzroy Football ClubThe Fitzroy Football Club, formerly nicknamed The Lions, is an Australian rules football club formed in 1883 to represent the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria and was a foundation member club of the Victorian Football League on its inception in 1897...
played one home game against the West Coast EaglesWest Coast EaglesThe West Coast Eagles are an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League. The club is based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 and played its first games in the 1987 season. Its current home ground is Subiaco Oval...
at the venue. - A day night cricket match between 2 local clubs was played in the mid-1990s.
- The 2nd leg of the 1996 OFC Nations Cup1996 OFC Nations CupThe 1996 OFC Nations Cup was not held as a cohesive tournament, but consisted of semi-finals and a final played on a two-legged basis, stretched out between November 1995 and November 1996....
Final - Kanga CupKanga CupThe Kanga Cup is the most prestigious youth football tournament in Australia, is the largest of its kind in the southern hemisphere and one of the biggest tournaments in the world. Winning a Kanga Cup is the most coveted prize in youth football. The tournament is open to club, school, association...
International Youth Soccer Tournament. - The 2008 Pacific Schools Games
- One Group Match from the 2008 Rugby League World Cup2008 Rugby League World CupThe 2008 Rugby League World Cup was the thirteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup since the inauguration of the tournament in 1954, and the first since the 2000 event...
was also played at the stadium.