EnergyAustralia Stadium

Infobox_Stadium
stadium_name = EnergyAustralia Stadium
nickname = ISC


location = Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia
broke_ground = 1967
opened = 1970
owner = New South Wales Government
operator = Hunter International Sports Centre Trust
surface = Grass
architect = Various
former_names = International Sports Centre
Marathon Stadium
tenants = Newcastle Knights (NRL) (1988 - )
Newcastle United Jets (A-League) (2005 - )
seating_capacity = 26,126 - upgrading to 33,000

EnergyAustralia Stadium is a football stadium located in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. It is the ground of the Newcastle Knights (National Rugby League) team. It is owned by the New South Wales government and administered by the Hunter International Sports Centre Trust.

Work began on the stadium on December 1, 1967, and was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II of Australia on the April 10, 1970. It was originally known as the "International Sports Centre", and is still part of the ISC complex to this day.

The Knights secured a lease on the stadium in 1986, and converted it from an oval to a rectangle layout. In the early 1990s, local tyre outlet Marathon Tyres became the naming rights sponsor for the stadium, and it was renamed "Marathon Stadium". Towards the end of 2001, energy supplier EnergyAustralia took over naming rights, and thus the stadium became "EnergyAustralia Stadium".

Before redevelopment, the stadium had a capacity of 28,000, including 5,000 in the main grandstand. The ground attendance record is 32,642, which was set when the Knights took on the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in July 1995. Despite a lack of incidents, police subsequently asked for the allowed capacity to be lowered for reasons of safety.

Following the retirement of former Knights captain Andrew Johns, the new eastern grandstand was renamed "The Andrew Johns Stand" in front of a packed crowd before the Knights vs Brisbane Broncos NRL match on Sunday 22 April 2007.

The non-commercial name for the venue is simply Newcastle. The name is used primarily by those who wish to mention stadiums by their non-commercial names, such as non-commercial organisations like the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. However, it is worth noting that the local ABC station uses EAS as the stadium's name during coverage of Jets games.

Redevelopment 2003-05

The stadium underwent redevelopment during the years 2003-2005, funded mostly by local and state government grants.

Factors that brought on the redevelopment included:
* non-compliance of National Rugby League (NRL) stadium criteria, especially the dressing rooms;
* failure to attract major sporting events to the area;
* inadequate and ageing spectator and corporate facilities;
* covered seating capacity well below best practice and NRL standards;
* minimal areas within the grandstand to increase members' patronage both during a sporting event and on non-match-days;
* poor facilities for media officials;
* unsatisfactory temporary spectator facilities to the north and south of the western stand;
* the perceived need for the incumbent State Labor government to contribute to the public infrastructure in a region of safe seats [cite web
last =
first =
title = Newcastle Stadium, NSW Legislative Assembly Hansard extract
publisher = New South Wales Government Publisher
date = 2002-06-27
url = http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/PARLMENT/hansArt.nsf/V3Key/LA20020627040
accessdate = 2007-05-23 ] [cite web
last =
first =
title = Newcastle Stadium, NSW Legislative Assembly Hansard extract
publisher = New South Wales Government Publisher
date = 2002-05-28
url = http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/hansart.nsf/5f584b237987507aca256d09008051f3/9c942a6216b283faca256d410020a251!OpenDocument
accessdate = 2007-05-23 ] .

The first stage of the redevelopment was completed in early 2004. This consisted of:
* The construction of the lower level of the Eastern Stand (brought into operation for the 2004 NRL season and Anzac Test between Australia and New Zealand). This level holds 7,700 people.
* The relocation of corporate boxes and seating to the North and South stands.

The second stage of construction began in 2004 and was completed in 2005. This consisted of:
* The construction of the Eastern Stand's second level of seating and corporate boxes;
* a new video screen; and
* remedial work for the Western Grandstand, including updating the media facilities.

Redevelopment 2008-10

During the 2007 NSW Election campaign, the Premier Morris Iemma promised $30 million towards an upgrade of the stadium, conditional on the Federal Government matching the funds. [http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Protesters-climb-on-top-of-Iemmas-car/2007/03/20/1174153021988.html]

On April 1 the federal government confirmed $10m towards the development of the Western Grandstand. This is in addition to the $30m commitment from the state government. This is a critical step for the stadium's development for the upgrade to be in by 2011. [ [http://www.health.gov.au/internet/ministers/publishing.nsf/Content/mr-yr08-ke-ke006.htm?OpenDocument&yr=2008&mth=4| 'Funding powers development of stadium' - Department of Health and Ageing] ]

The $40 Million will contribute to an expansion of the stadium's capacity to eventually hold over 40,000 as well as general improvements in the stadiums facilities. [ [http://theherald.yourguide.com.au/news/local/general/groups-goal-for-growing-stadium/1179693.html Group's goal for growing stadium - Local News - News - General - The Herald ] ] [ [http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,23486060-5006068,00.html Sydney fights Melbourne for the right to host World Cup | The Daily Telegraph ] ]

From 2008-2010 the stadium is being upgraded again [ [http://theherald.yourguide.com.au/news/local/news/general/states-20m-grand-stand/777208.aspx State's $20m grand stand - Local News - News - General - The Herald ] ] to around 33 000 seats, with a hope for the stadium to be involved in the 2015 Asian Cup and 2018 World Cup should Australia be the host of those tournaments. As part of the announcement, Morris Iemma stated that the capacity of 33,000 can be increased to the 40,000 necessary for World Cup Hosting, through temporary seating. [ [http://theherald.yourguide.com.au/news/local/news/general/20m-to-create-a-field-of-dreams/778026.aspx $20m to create a field of dreams - Local News - News - General - The Herald ] ] The total cost of the upgrade is $60 millon, with $50 million from the state government and $10 million from the Federal Government. The stadium development is being carried out over four stages.
*Stage 1 (now completed) included dressing, warm up and medical rooms, with showers, toilets, ice baths and 855-seats of the spectator concourse in the stadium's south-west.

*Stage 2 will replicate Stage 1 on the northern side of the Western Grandstand and will also include the main western stand's lower concourse.

*Stage 3 will involve building the northern and southern ends of the ground, replacing the grass hills with seated areas.

*Stage 4 will demolish the current western Grandstand and replace it with one similar to the eastern stand.

Although construction will take place during both the Newcastle Knights and Newcastle Jets seasons, developers have stated that there will be minimal affect on attendances due to the staged approach. [ [http://theherald.yourguide.com.au/news/local/news/general/states-20m-grand-stand/777208.aspx State's $20m grand stand - Local News - News - General - The Herald ] ]

External links

* [http://www.hunterisc.com Hunter International Sports Centre Trust]
*Austadiums|46
* [http://www.newcastleknights.com.au/about/stadium.asp EnergyAustralia Stadium page at newcastleknights.com.au]

References