Like the Death Star in Return of the Jedi, its only about 75 per cent completed, so youll need to use your imagination a bit.
But as these pictures illustrate, the new Western Sydney Stadium – now known as Bankwest Stadium after the firm entered into a seven-year naming-rights deal – is set to be completed on time and on budget.
If the Parramatta Eels have another shocking year, they wont be able to blame their home ground. The architects have borrowed the best bits of stadium design from here and abroad to give sporting fans out west something unique.
A sneak peak at the new Bankwest Stadium, home of the Parramatta Eels.Credit:Louise Kennerley, Fairfax.
The 30,000-seat venue is the steepest in Australia, a nod to the tight seating bowl of Brisbanes Suncorp. If Jarryd Hayne was still playing for the Eels he would liken it to the home ground of the San Francisco 49ers, where all of the corporate seats are located on one side. Theres also a touch of Children's Mercy Park, the home of the Kansas City Football Club, another intimate arena that lets the punters get closer to the players.
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“In the world of stadia and entertainment, closeness to the field of play is like the holy grail, thats what youre trying to achieve,” said Venues NSW chief executive Paul Doorn.
“In a 30,000-seat stadium it means you can be tighter and closer to the field of play than you can on a larger scale.
“Weve taken the best of a whole host of venues that are benchmarks [internationally].”
Every one of the seats is under cover and, regardless of which one they chose, punters are never further than 30 metres from a toilet or a food outlet. They will also be able to walk around the entire facility courtesy of the 360-degree open concourse, meaning they wont miss a try or a goal while lining up for beers and pies.
The Eels, having waited until the eve of the NRL draw announcement to sign on as the anchor tenants, believe they negotiated a contract that leaves them about $1 million a season better off than the deal originally tabled. The Wanderers will undoubtedly also commit, but may delay until closer to the state elections in the hope of also extracting a better outcome.
Regardless, the Red and Black Bloc will be beneficiaries of what Doorn described as a “big innovation from an Australian perspective.”
“Weve got stand-up seating,” Doorn explained when pointing to a section behind the goalposts. “So when its in football or soccer mode, theres an ability to remove the seats and have a designated standing area for a thousand people."
Bankwest Stadium is already attracting plenty of sporting content. The Eels will open the ground against Wests Tigers on Easter Monday, the first of 14 NRL games scheduled there for 2019. The Waratahs will also take three Super Rugby games west, the Wanderers will host Leeds in July and the inaugural World Cup of international league nines will be held two weeks after the NRL grand final.
While all systems are go in the golden west, a cloud still remains over the fate of Allianz Stadium in the east. Labor leader Michael Daley has turned the stadium debate into an election issue, threatening not to rebuild Allianz if it is knocked down before the March elections. NSW Minister for Sport Stuart Ayres said taxpayers would be the big losers as the SCG Trust couldnt afford to foot the bill.
“Theres no way the SCG Trust could afford to pay a $730 million loan back,” Ayres said.
“No other stadium anywhere in the country would be able to do that. It would require repayments of about $60 million a year and their current operating surplus is just $2 million.
“It seems pretty clear to me that Michael Daley wants to shut the SCG down; he doesnt want it to function.
“He wants to send the Sydney Swans away from Sydney, he wants to get rid of the SCG Test. If he doesnt want to do those things, hes going to use taxpayer funds from the health and education budget to fund that $60 million repayment.
“He should probably explain that to the people of NSW.”
Adrian Proszenko is the Chief Rugby League Reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald.
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Like the Death Star in Return of the Jedi, its only about 75 per cent completed, so youll need to use your imagination a bit.
But as these pictures illustrate, the new Western Sydney Stadium – now known as Bankwest Stadium after the firm entered into a seven-year naming-rights deal – is set to be completed on time and on budget.
If the Parramatta Eels have another shocking year, they wont be able to blame their home ground. The architects have borrowed the best bits of stadium design from here and abroad to give sporting fans out west something unique.
A sneak peak at the new Bankwest Stadium, home of the Parramatta Eels.Credit:Louise Kennerley, Fairfax.
The 30,000-seat venue is the steepest in Australia, a nod to the tight seating bowl of Brisbanes Suncorp. If Jarryd Hayne was still playing for the Eels he would liken it to the home ground of the San Francisco 49ers, where all of the corporate seats are located on one side. Theres also a touch of Children's Mercy Park, the home of the Kansas City Football Club, another intimate arena that lets the punters get closer to the players.
Advertisement
“In the world of stadia and entertainment, closeness to the field of play is like the holy grail, thats what youre trying to achieve,” said Venues NSW chief executive Paul Doorn.
“In a 30,000-seat stadium it means you can be tighter and closer to the field of play than you can on a larger scale.
“Weve taken the best of a whole host of venues that are benchmarks [internationally].”
Every one of the seats is under cover and, regardless of which one they chose, punters are never further than 30 metres from a toilet or a food outlet. They will also be able to walk around the entire facility courtesy of the 360-degree open concourse, meaning they wont miss a try or a goal while lining up for beers and pies.
The Eels, having waited until the eve of the NRL draw announcement to sign on as the anchor tenants, believe they negotiated a contract that leaves them about $1 million a season better off than the deal originally tabled. The Wanderers will undoubtedly also commit, but may delay until closer to the state elections in the hope of also extracting a better outcome.
Regardless, the Red and Black Bloc will be beneficiaries of what Doorn described as a “big innovation from an Australian perspective.”
“Weve got stand-up seating,” Doorn explained when pointing to a section behind the goalposts. “So when its in football or soccer mode, theres an ability to remove the seats and have a designated standing area for a thousand people."
Bankwest Stadium is already attracting plenty of sporting content. The Eels will open the ground against Wests Tigers on Easter Monday, the first of 14 NRL games scheduled there for 2019. The Waratahs will also take three Super Rugby games west, the Wanderers will host Leeds in July and the inaugural World Cup of international league nines will be held two weeks after the NRL grand final.
While all systems are go in the golden west, a cloud still remains over the fate of Allianz Stadium in the east. Labor leader Michael Daley has turned the stadium debate into an election issue, threatening not to rebuild Allianz if it is knocked down before the March elections. NSW Minister for Sport Stuart Ayres said taxpayers would be the big losers as the SCG Trust couldnt afford to foot the bill.
“Theres no way the SCG Trust could afford to pay a $730 million loan back,” Ayres said.
“No other stadium anywhere in the country would be able to do that. It would require repayments of about $60 million a year and their current operating surplus is just $2 million.
“It seems pretty clear to me that Michael Daley wants to shut the SCG down; he doesnt want it to function.
“He wants to send the Sydney Swans away from Sydney, he wants to get rid of the SCG Test. If he doesnt want to do those things, hes going to use taxpayer funds from the health and education budget to fund that $60 million repayment.
“He should probably explain that to the people of NSW.”
Adrian Proszenko is the Chief Rugby League Reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald.
