Magazine - MCG, Skilled Available to Take Games

By Editor in A.F.L on 29th Jul 2010 21:30

Skilled Stadium and the MCG are available as alternative venues if players boycott the troubled Etihad Stadium.

Geelong chief executive Brian Cook said yesterday the club was keen to attract more sporting events to the venue. ''It is always available and that's been made known to the AFL for some time,'' he said. Skilled Stadium hosts only seven home games this season and has been earmarked as a venue for the soccer World Cup if Australia wins the right to host the tournament in 2022.

''If the AFL did consider it [seeking alternative venues], we would put our hand up for it,'' Cook said.

Melbourne Cricket Club chief executive Stephen Gough said the MCG was also ready if required. ''In a pinch, you can always do something very quickly, but ideally you'd want a couple of weeks notice to give everyone ample time to make arrangements,'' he said.

''I think we've done one relocated game in an unscheduled sense over the years that was with very short notice, so it is possible. But the difficulty with any relocated game is notice to people. Ticket holders, members with their reserved seating, corporate packages. I'd be quite surprised if there were any transferred matches without a long lead time.''

Gough said he had sympathy for his one-time colleague, Etihad boss Ian Collins: ''I wouldn't like to be under the pressure of everyone having a crack at your venue … we've all been through it.

The MCG has recently had two sections of its surface re-laid but, unlike at Etihad, it has appeared to be a near flawless process

Source & More: www.theage.com.au

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