The battle to stage the first sporting fixture at Perth Stadium continues to rumble on after the state government in Western Australia expressed hopes to host a one-day international cricket match at the venue in January.
Earlier this week, it was confirmed that Perth Stadium will officially open on January 21 with a free community open day, but the first sporting event to be held at the ground remains up in the air.
An NRL rugby league double-header has been scheduled for March, although officials at the AFL Aussie rules competition hope one of its women’s matches will open the 60,000-seat stadium beforehand.
Now it is hoped that cricket will beat both the NRL and AFL by staging an ODI between Australia and England on January 28. The match will take place in Perth no matter what, with the WACA Ground to play host if Perth Stadium is not ready.
Western Australia’s Sports Minister Mick Murray has said a final decision on the stadium’s opening event will be made in November, but expressed his confidence at the ground being ready in time for January 28.
“We are hopeful that the one-day international on January 28 can be played at Perth Stadium,” he said, according to the West Australian newspaper. “However, there are still some important construction milestones that need to be achieved over the next six to eight weeks to assure this.”
James Sutherland, chief executive of Cricket Australia, added: “Cricket was the first sport to sign up to the Perth Stadium so it makes sense that cricket opens the stadium.
“We put up a strong push to have the (Ashes) Test match played there but unfortunately the timing didn’t quite work with everything needing to be rock solid to make it a success.
“A one-day international against England would be a great event and a great way to launch the stadium. It is not our call to make judgment on the (readiness of the) stadium but cricket is putting its best foot forward and we have worked very hard with government to make sure everyone understands the things necessary to put on a big international match.”
Image: Perth Stadium
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