Brisbane Sports Travel Tips by ASTIEL

Theme: Sports Watching

Suncorp Stadium in Milton is the spiritual home of Rugby League in Brisbane, and is the home of Queensland Rugby League, the Brisbane Broncos, the Queensland Roar FC, the Queensland Reds and the annual State of Origin rugby league clash between Queensland (the Maroons) and New South Wales (the Blues). Lang Park became Suncorp Stadium in 1994 after Suncorp became naming rights sponsor. Teams based there include: Queensland Roar FC (Soccer), Brisbane Broncos (Rugby league), Queensland Reds (Rugby Union). Individual players and officials face stiff fines if they accidentally publicly refer to the venue by its former name.

Suncorp Stadium is also home to the Wally Lewis statue. The statue was commissioned by the Courier Mail who raised money by seeking donations from the public. It was then entrusted to the then Lang Park Trust to ever more reside at Suncorp Stadium. It was designed and built by Art Busters who did a lot of the personal art statues for Expo 88 in Brisbane. The statue is made of bronze and is hollow. The bronze exterior had faded to a very dull finish over the years, but the Queensland government, as part of the stadium redevelopment had the statue recoated in bronze and hence the shiny finish you see today.


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Phone: (+61) 07 3331 5000
Address: 40 Castlemaine treet, Milton
Directions: Near the XXXX Brewery you can't miss it. BUT on game night it would be best advise to take public transport. Which happens to be free if you have a ticket to the game.
Website: www.suncorpstadium.com.au

Theme: Sports Watching

The Brisbane Cricket Ground hosts domestic and international cricket matches, as well as Australian rules football. Home of the Queensland Bulls (Cricket) and the Brisbane Lions (Australian rules football), The Gabba hosted football matches for the Sydney 2000 Olympics and was the site of the famous tied test of 1960 between the West Indies and Australia. Teams based there include: Queensland Bulls (Cricket) and Brisbane Lions (Australian rules football).

The Brisbane Cricket Ground is better known as "The Gabba" and comes from the suburb of Woolloongabba in which the ground is situated.

There are two theories about the meaning of the Aboriginal words from which "Woolloongabba" is derived - "whirling water" or "fight talk place".

"The Gabba" dates back to 1895, when the land was designated as the site for a cricket ground.

The Gabba 1965
The first event conducted at The Gabba was a cricket match between Parliament and the Press on 19 December 1896. The result was a tie (61 runs each).

Until January 1931, Sheffield Shield and Test cricket was played at the Exhibition Grounds.

The first Sheffield Shield match scheduled for The Gabba (31 January to 4 February 1931) was washed out without the captains even bothering to toss.

The first Test match played at The Gabba was against South Africa from 27 November to 3 December 1931. Don Bradman made 226 in the first innings of this Test and this remains the highest individual score in a Test played in Brisbane.

In the 1950s and 1960s The Gabba hosted soccer matches involving the English first division clubs Blackpool (with Sir Stanley Matthews), Everton, Manchester United and the Chinese and South African National Soccer teams.

Events held at The Gabba over its 110 year history include: Athletics,
AFL, Baseball, Concerts, Cricket, Cycling, Rugby League, Rugby Union, Soccer, Pony and Greyhound Racing.


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Phone: (+61) 07 3008 6166
Address: Vulture Street, Woolloongabba
Directions: At Woolloongabba, two kilometres from Brisbane's CBD.

Best bet is to hop off at South Brisbane Train station and follow the crowd
Website: www.thegabba.org.au/
Other Contact: Fax: (+61) 07 3393 0298

Theme: Sports Watching

The venue opened in 1975 as a facility for athletics and was officially named by the Queen, as the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Sports Centre during her visit to Australia in 1977.

The Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre (QSAC), formerly known as QEII ('QE2') Stadium and later ANZ Stadium, at Nathan is the third largest sporting arena in Queensland. The stadium was built as a temporary venue for the 1982 Commonwealth Games but endured as home for the Brisbane Broncos rugby league team during the 1990s and hosted the 2001 Goodwill Games.

From 1993 to 2003, the venue served as the home of the Brisbane Broncos national rugby league team. A naming rights agreement with the ANZ Bank resulted in the venue being named "ANZ Stadium" for this decade. During this period, the venue continued to be used for local, national and international athletics events (including the 2001 Goodwill Games) and outdoor concerts. Indeed, the venue hosted an average of over 90 athletics carnivals per annum over this period.

Ownership of the venue was transferred from the Brisbane City Council to the Major Sports Facilities Authority on 30 June 2002.


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Phone: (+61) 07 3405 7511
Address: Kessels Road, Nathan
Directions: The Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre (QSAC), is located 10 minutes from the Brisbane CBD, 20 minutes from the international and domestic airports and 40 minutes from the Gold coast.
Website: http://www.thegabba.org.au/content/venue.asp?name=QSAC
Other Contact: Fax: (+61) 07 3405 7507

Theme: Sports Watching

Ballymore Stadium is the name of a rugby union stadium situated in Herston, a suburb of Brisbane, Australia. It is also the home of Queensland Rugby Union, and was the home ground for the Queensland Reds and the Brisbane Strikers Soccer Club. The Queensland Reds have since moved to Suncorp Stadium and the Brisbane Strikers moved to Perry Park.

The QRU set up headquarters at Ballymore in 1966 under a deed of grant from the state government. The first club game played at the new site was a match between Teachers and Wests. The QRU then officially moved in February 1967. In March of the following year Ballymore's grandstand was officially opened. The Eastern Stand was opened on June 21, 1992. The ground exceeded capacity in 1993 when 26,000 squeezed in to watch the Wallabies play South Africa. A year later the first match under lights was played at the ground. Today the grandstand is known as the McLean Stand (named in 1980), and the Eastern stand is known as the Bank of QLD stand.

In 2006 it was announced that there was a new proposal to turn Ballymore into a state-of-the-art training facility for Australian rugby, for teams throughout the Asia-Pacific region. The proposed development would also include a Rugby hall of Fame, and an archive for the preservation of rugby history and memroabilla.

Though the Reds have since moved out of Ballymore, to the Suncorp Stadium, which has double capacity, Ballymore is still the host to many rugby union matches. The Queensland Club rugby final is usually held at the ground, and Queensland XVs and off-season matches for the Reds are also played at Ballymore. The Reds will also play both of their home games during the 2006 Australian Provincial Championship at Ballymore. It is also likely that both of Brisbane's teams in the new national competition being launched in 2006 will play out of Ballymore.


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Address: Clyde Road, Herston
Directions: Limited parking available at the ground. The QRU provide a free shuttle bus service every 15 minutes to and from the Royal Brisbane Hospital car park, cnr of Bowen Bridge Road and Butterfield St.
Website: http://www.austadiums.com/stadiums/stadiums.php?id=10

Theme: Sports Watching

Perry Park is the spiritual home of Football (soccer) in Brisbane, and is home to the Brisbane Strikers, who play in the local Brisbane competition after being unsuccessful in their A-League bid.

Perry Park is a soccer ground situated in Brisbane. 2003 saw the return of top-class Soccer when the Brisbane Strikers move their NSL home games to the ground. The venue has a small main grandstand which stretches the whole wing and grass banks around the ground. It currently has a capacity of around 5,000. Improvements will be made in the future to lift it to NSL standard.


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Phone: (+61) 07 3252 5327
Address: Abbotsford Road, Mayne
Website: http://www.austadiums.com/stadiums/stadiums.php?id=88

Theme: Sports Watching

Sleeman Centre — team based there: Queensland Firebirds (Netball)

The Sleeman Centre was purpose built for the 1982 Commonwealth Games. Since then the centre has hosted a range of sporting events including the 1994 World Masters Games and the 2001 Goodwill Games swimming, diving and cycling events.

The Sleeman Centre and the Chandler Aquatic Centre were named after the past Lord Mayors, Sir John Chandler and Frank Sleeman.

The Sleeman Centre is a sporting and entertainment facility located in Brisbane, Australia. Construction of the centre was completed in 1982, with several upgrades and improvements having been carried out since that date. Located in the suburb of Chandler, the centre is 15km south of Brisbane's CBD and is home to an aquatic centre, velodrome, sports arena, gymnastics training hall, gymnasium and auditorium. The centre currently offers a range of services to the public, including indoor and outdoor community activities such as swimming, diving, health and fitness classes, a gymnasium, childcare facilities, and a children’s pool and water slide. The centre is open to the public and is also available for bookings from organisations.


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Phone: (+61) 07 3131 9611
Address: Cnr Old Cleveland & Tilley Roads, Chandler
Website: http://www.thegabba.org.au/content/venue.asp?name=SleemanCentre
Other Contact: Fax: (+61) 07 3131 9625