KGV Oval

Infobox_Stadium
stadium_name = KGV Oval


location = Glenorchy, Tasmania
(coord|42|49|53|S|147|16|37|E|region:AU-TAS_type:landmark)
opened = 1957
closed = Still Operating.
demolished = Still Operating.
owner = Glenorchy City Council
operator = Glenorchy City Council
pitch Surface = Grass
stands = Cresswell-Beakley Stand, Anfield Street Stand
tenants = Glenorchy Football Club - SFL Premier League
Glenorchy Cricket Club - TCA
seating_capacity = 18,000 |

The KGV Oval is the home headquarters of the Glenorchy football and cricket clubs.
The ground is a former TFL and current SFL Premier League venue.
It is located in the heart of Glenorchy less than 1 kilometre from the Glenorchy CBD, 7 km from Hobart City.

History

KGV Oval was opened in 1957 by the Glenorchy City Council to provide a professional standard Australian Rules venue for the Glenorchy District and its newly relocated team - Glenorchy Football Club - which had relocated from New Town to make KGV its home.
It was named in remembrance of King George V, former King of Australia, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Commonwealth Realms.
He was a popular monarch in Australia, and there are several locations in Glenorchy named after him.
The ground has a large playing surface measuring 160 m x 134m (East to West) and is also the third largest capacity venue in Tasmanian football after North Hobart Oval (18,000), and Aurora Stadium (21,000).
There were two main grandstands at the venue, the wooden Cresswell-Beakley Stand at the KGV Avenue end was built in 1957, and the Anfield Street Stand on the broadcast wing was built in 1968 when the Glenorchy Football Clubrooms were also erected in the same year.
It is located in a large park area known as KGV Precinct, and sits next to the much smaller KGV Soccer Park.
KGV Oval was redeveloped in 1982 when there was a considerable push from both the TANFL and the Glenorchy City Council to make KGV the home of TANFL football away from a decaying North Hobart Oval but the plan failed to materialise and was later shelved by the late 1980s.
Large gravel mounds were installed around the Elwick Road side of the ground to eventually be covered in grass as a bank for spectators and some terracing was installed at the KGV Avenue end (next to the Cresswell-Beakley Stand) with seating and a new scoreboard built on that side. Despite the 18,000 capacity, the record attendance was 6,500 for a TFL match in 1966 between Glenorchy and their fierce cross river rivals, Clarence.
However, more than 23,000 attended two concerts (Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton and Dire Straits) in 1985 and 1986.
The ground has hosted one Escort Shield Inter-State match (Tasmania v New South Wales in 1985), has also held four TFL finals matches in 1987 and 1988 as well as hosting STFL/SFL Grand Finals in 1997 and 1998.
It also stages home finals for Glenorchy in the SFL Premier League
During the summer, Glenorchy Cricket Club play their home games at KGV Oval.

Creswell-Beakley Stand Destroyed By Fire

Just three weeks after the Glenorchy Football Club celebrated their first premiership since 1999 by defeating bitter rivals Clarence in the SFL Premier League grand final, in the early hours of 10 October 2007, a disastrous fire swept through and destroyed the 50-year old Cresswell-Beakley Stand [cite web | year = 2007 | url = http://www.abc.net.au/hobart/stories/s2055372.htm | title = Fire destroys main grandstand at KGV Oval in Glenorchy | publisher = ABC Local Radio | accessdate = 2008-02-24] .
The blaze caused $600,000 [cite web | year = 2007 | url = http://www.magpies.net/nick/bb/viewtopic.php?t=40078&start=0&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight= | title = Fire ruins main Grandstand at KGV Oval
publisher = Nick's Bulletin Board | accessdate = 2008-02-24] damage and was believed to have been caused by local youths setting fire to materials in the back corner of the stand, which spread to the curved wooden ceiling and ignited the seating below.
After many months of posturing on what to do with the remains of the stand it was eventually demolished in April 2008. [cite web | year = 2007 | url = http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/10/10/2055987.htm | title = Fire ravaged grandstand to be demolished
publisher = ABC News | accessdate = 2008-02-24]

References

External links

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