Brookie Forever
November 17, 2007 12:53 amBy eb
Is Manly the best team in NSW with the worst home ground?
Brookvale Oval is a mecca to Sea Eagles fans. It has an atmosphere and character that is unique in the NRL of 2007 where many teams are opting for soulless giant stadiums and abandoning suburban grounds.
Since moving to the Riverina I have not had the opportunity to visit Brookvale for a Manly home match, though about 7 years ago I was a regular. I love that ground. It is saturated with history and Sea Eagle tradition. My father first took me there as a very young kid and I still have the autograph book with the names Fulton, Randall, Eadie, Krilich throughout. Though unfortunately Brookvale is also becoming an eyesore, rundown and… yes neglected by those who own it Warringah Council.
After the dissapointment of the joint venture with North Sydney, and the bitter feeling that has left on both sides, Manly is seriously looking at relocation to the Central Coast unless Brookie has some serious money spent on it.
Manly CEO Grant Mayer confirmed,
There is an attractive financial commitment for any club to permanently move to the Central Coast. This option is our last option. The owners, board and entire management team want to remain at Brookvale long term, but the reality is Brookvale Oval cannot support the needs of the club or the community in its current state.
As a community asset Brookval Oval cannot even attract private investment due to zoning restrictions. It no longer complies with OH&S requirements and cannot adequately cater for disabled patrons. The lack of undercover seating and corporate facilities is becoming an embarrassment for the Sea Eagles.
Chairman and joint owner Scott Penn explains.
Brookvale is the priority for both the Delmege and Penn families. We want Manly to be in the NRL, we want Manly to be competitive in the NRL, we want Manly to win the NRL but for too many years now other NRL clubs have received millions in Government funding while Brookvale Oval crumbles before our very eyes,
What an absurd situation! The Sea Eagles pay $400,000 a year for the use of the ground, while other teams train and play for free at venues like Telstra Stadium and the SFS. Leichhardt Oval has $11 million in campaign promises for only 3 games per year!
The Central Coast Sea Eagles… 
it will be a dagger in the heart of Manly fans if it ever becomes a reality. Fans who have been through some lean times in recent years, who faced the very real prospect of losing their team permanently.
In many ways rugby league lost its soul during the Super League war, yer it has crawled back and the NRL Premiership has produced some fine football in recent years and a strong competition. But what made league great is its “tribal” nature… the suburban grounds… the local derbys. How many teams can call Telstra Stadium “home”?
The Sea Eagles are holding a rally on Wednesday the 21st of November calling it “Brookie Forever” and urging all fans to get along to the Oval and send a message to Warringah Council and Government representatives at all levels.
3 Responses to “Brookie Forever”
My memories and knowledge of Rugby League are of the tribal days of the NSWRL. 12 teams all from Sydney and it’s suburbs.
As a Cronulla local, there were no greater days to go to “Endeavour Field” (a mere 600 metres down the road from home) than the days when the Sharks were playing the hated Manly. I always liked Wombat, but he was rarely kind to me, as a Cronulla supporter.
I always took delight in seeing Manly lose - didn’t happen often enough, and Rex Mossop can bear some of the brunt of the blame for that delight - but the NRL is a completely different animal to the olden days, there are new rivalries, new reasons to “hate”, but more importantly there are (at least perceived) inequacies in the set up of the League: eg, the Broncos have a city the size of Brisbane (and more) to draw support and finance from, compared the the Sutherland Shire that is the support base for the Sharks. But that is getting off subject.
I only ever made it to many grounds once in my teenage RL following days - Cumberland Oval (Sharks 20, Eels 18), North Sydney (I think that we dicked them), Lidcombe Oval (can’t remember the score, but we won well - AND this was with Donnelly, Gibbs and Boyd in their pack!), Leichhardt Oval (10 all draw?), twice to Belmore (honours shared, pretty good result considering), many times to Jublilee (maybe more wins than losses??).
It was a good era for the Sharks (not good enough but).
I only ever made it to Brookie the once (and we got done well and truly), but that is enough to know that great neighbourhood grounds like Brookie and Shark Park NEED to be kept, maintained, preserved, nurtured, cherished, etc, etc, et-bloody-cetera!!
Take a look at the AFL, it has gone the way that the NRL is heading, there is no such thing as a local derby in Melbourne anymore, as both those teams either use the same “home” grounds or, one is at the MCG and one is at Telstra Dome.
With very few exceptions, local Sydney matches get fairly low (<25,000) attendences, surely the local grounds are suitable for most of these matches.
BROOKIE FOREVER!!!
Is Manly the best team in NSW with the worst home ground?
I wont comment on the first part of that question but the 2nd is not quite but very close.
Brookie hasn’t yet had fans fall through the floor of the grandstand. Hasn’t been condemned by engineers. Only reason people are allowed to enter without hard hats is they welded a few RSJ’s to the superstructure as temporary measures. Many of the structural bolts in the steel are missing and only minimum are there again as a temporary measure not supposed to be used longer than 4 years its been 19 years.
However I support a boutique stadium between the central coast and the harbour if its brookvale well than Brookie forever although I’m told one of the rugby grounds nearby is better positioned for this stadium.
Guess what I’m saying as soon as they cough up the money to fix the EAS than my campaign for better social infrustructure moves onto Brookie (or whatever) forever.
Just been reading that 2008 is safe, that the 10 home games will be played at Brookvale. Beyond that… who knows?
For a club to take the $8million on offer and relocate to the CC then they would surley have to relinquish their current identity. So that would mean no more “Manly” in the rugby league premiership.
eb
Care to comment?