| Ballymore Stadium | |
|---|---|
| Location | Herston, Brisbane, Queensland |
| Opened | 1966 |
| Closed | Open |
| Demolished | N/A |
| Owner | Queensland Rugby Union |
| Surface | Grass |
| Tenants | |
| Capacity |
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Ballymore Stadium is the name of a rugby union stadium situated in Herston, a suburb of Brisbane, Australia. Herston is an inner suburb of Brisbane, Australia located 3km north of the Brisbane CBD. Brisbane ( is the state capital of Queensland. Brisbane is the third most populous city in Australia and the most populous city of Queensland Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern corner of the mainland continent Overview See also Playing rugby union A rugby union match lasts for 80 minutes (plus stoppage time with a short Herston is an inner suburb of Brisbane, Australia located 3km north of the Brisbane CBD. Brisbane ( is the state capital of Queensland. Brisbane is the third most populous city in Australia and the most populous city of Queensland For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. It was the home of Queensland Rugby Union, and used to be the home ground for the Queensland Reds and the Brisbane Strikers Soccer Club. The Queensland Rugby Union (QRU is the governing body for the Sport of Rugby union in the Australian state of Queensland. The Queensland Reds (for sponsorship reasons referred to as QR Queensland Reds) represent Queensland in the sport of Rugby union. The Brisbane Strikers are an Australian Football (soccer club from Brisbane, Queensland, Australia who play in the Queensland State The Queensland Reds have since moved to Suncorp Stadium and the Brisbane Strikers moved to Perry Park before folding. Perry Park is a sporting ground located in the Brisbane suburb of Bowen Hills.
The QRU set up headquarters at Ballymore in 1966 under a deed of grant from the state government. The first club game played at the new site was a match between Teachers and Wests. The QRU then officially moved in February 1967. In March of the following year Ballymore's grandstand was officially opened. The Eastern Stand was opened on June 21, 1992. The ground exceeded capacity in 1993 when 26,000 squeezed in to watch the Wallabies play South Africa. A year later the first match under lights was played at the ground. Today the grandstand is known as the McLean Stand (named in 1980), and the Eastern stand is known as the Bank of QLD stand.
The QRU said that the Australian Rugby Union (ARU), the state government and the Brisbane City Council all supported conducting a feasibility study. The Australian Rugby Union (ARU is the governing body of Rugby union in Australia. It will apparently share traits with the French Rugby Federation's Centre National de Rugby, which is near Paris. Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city The QRU proposed that the training centre be built on the land adjacent to the headquarters at Ballymore. The new complex would include advanced sports medicine and training facilities, a gymnasium and aquatic facilities, as well as on-site accommodation for visiting teams.
Though the Reds have since moved out of Ballymore, to the Suncorp Stadium, which has double capacity, Ballymore is still the host to many rugby union matches. The Queensland Club rugby final is usually held at the ground, and Queensland XVs and off-season matches for the Reds are also played at Ballymore. The Reds also played both of their home games during the 2006 Australian Provincial Championship at Ballymore. The 2006 Australian Provincial Championship ( APC) held in September was the inaugural season of a competition between Australia's four Super 14 Rugby The stadium also hosted the Ballymore Tornadoes during the only season of the Australian Rugby Championship in 2007. The Ballymore Tornadoes were an Australian Rugby union football club that played in the now-defunct Australian Rugby Championship. The Australian Rugby Championship or ARC (also known as the Mazda Australian Rugby Championship or the Mazda Championship for sponsorship
During the 1987 World Cup, the groundsman at Ballymore Stadium was Michael Hayes (An Australia 21's Representative, NSW 1st XV Representative and a QLD 1st XV Representative) .
Australian National Rugby Academy
In mid-2007 it was announced through a federal government grant that Ballymore would become the Australian National Rugby Academy
The two stage, 12. 7 hectare (31. 5 acre) Ballymore project will become the internationally recognised centre for Australian Rugby as well as provide significant flow-on benefits to other sports and the local and wider communities including medical and recreational facilities.
As the new home of the Australian National Rugby Academy, Ballymore will accommodate a range of facilities in three broad categories (subject to the necssary approvals):
Sporting facilities including
- A new public gymnasium
- A redeveloped elite sports gymnasium
- A 50m training pool, open to the general public out of season
- A covered training area
Residential facilities including
- A sports team village planned on strong team building principles
Commercial facilities including
- A sports medicine centre with hydrotherapy facility, MRI, radiology
- A combined conference centre/club/restaurant
- A Rugby Hall of Fame
- Sports-orientated commercial accommodation
This grant has since been cancelled by the newly elected Federal Government.
External links
- Ballymore Redevelopment Proposal
- Ballymore Stadium at Austadiums
- “State of the art” Rugby Centre proposed for Ballymore
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