Marrara Stadium

Marrara Stadium
Former names	Marrara Stadium, Football Park
Location	Darwin, Northern Territory
Coordinates	12°23′57″S 130°53′14″E / 12.39917°S 130.88722°E / -12.39917; 130.88722Coordinates: 12°23′57″S 130°53′14″E / 12.39917°S 130.88722°E / -12.39917; 130.88722
Opened	1991
Owner	AFLNT
Operator	TIO Insurance and Banking
Surface	Grass
Capacity	15,000

Marrara Stadium (also known as Football Park and currently as TIO Stadium due to naming rights) is a sports ground in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. The ground was built in 1991 and Australian rules football and Cricket are primarily played at the venue. This includes Northern Territory Football League matches, pre-season Australian Football League matches, and also one AFL Premiership match each year - a 'home' game for the Western Bulldogs (although in 2009 there were two games). The record crowd of 17,500 was set in 2002 for an AFL pre-season practice match between the Aboriginal All-Stars and Carlton Football Club which the All-Stars won.

The stadium hosted two cricket Tests in 2003 with Australia against Bangladesh and 2004 against Sri Lanka, as well as a total of four one day internationals against Bangladesh in 2003 and 2008. The current total capacity is around 15,000 including 5,000 seats. In 2007 the Western Bulldogs played the Fremantle Dockers, in the Dockers' first home and away season game at the ground. Port Adelaide Power has also played five games at TIO against the Western Bulldogs, in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2009. Port Adelaide also has had a three-year deal with the Northern Territory government and Marrara Stadium, that stats that Port would play two home and away games at TIO Stadium each year for three years starting in 2009.

TIO Stadium has hosted AC/DC for their "Ballbreaker" tour in November 1996, when 13,000 fans and 170 tonnes of equipment packed the ground. Sir Elton John performed for the first time in the Northern Territory, at TIO Stadium on the 17 May 2008 as part of the his Australian Tour.^[1][2]

See also

• List of Test cricket grounds

References

1. ^ "Elton John to rock with the crocs". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/01/2205237.htm?section=entertainment. Retrieved 2008-04-02. 
2. ^ "Sir Elton rolls in for crocodile rock". Northern Territory News. http://www.ntnews.com.au/article/2008/04/01/3760_ntnews.html. Retrieved 2008-04-02. 

External links

• Marrara Stadium at Austadiums