Sea Eagles players speak out against moving Manly games to Allianz Stadium
37 minutes ago
DEAN RITCHIEThe Daily Telegraph
MANLY players have spoken out against the club taking games away from Brookvale Oval to appease the NRL in negotiations for major stadium funding.
The Daily Telegraph revealed last week Sea Eagles management would consider shifting home games to Allianz Stadium for financial compensation of around $500,000 per match.
The players though, are adamant the Brookvale experience is invaluable.
“Personally, I wouldn’t like to see it — I love Brookie,” Manly fullback Brett Stewart said.
“I have scored a lot of tries there but, just for the fans, the kids on the hill on a Sunday arvo, they are memories I will never forget. Be sad to lose all that.”
The NRL is attempting to encourage a number of Sydney clubs, including Manly, to play more matches each season at Sydney’s three major stadiums at Moore Park, Parramatta and Olympic Park.
The State Government wants a 65-game commitment from the NRL before it makes available $1.6 billion to build or refurbish the major venues.
A final decision from the clubs may be reached later this week.
Manly centre Steve Matai let his views be known.
“Our fans love it, we love playing at Brookie,” Matai said. “It is such a unique ground where everybody is close to the field. The atmosphere, you can’t get it anywhere else. We love playing in front of our fans, I’m sure they love seeing us play there. I’d love to stay there at Brookie.”
Asked which major ground he would prefer if Manly was to shift games, Matai said: “It’s like the five-day turnaround, we’ve got no say in it. We’ve just got to turn up and play.”