Achi news desk-
Wests Tigers may have to fulfill their promise to leave Leichhardt Oval at the end of the year after the NSW government rejected their bid to fund upgrades.
The Tigers will play five of their 12 home games this season at Leichhardt Oval but have long been concerned about the state and facilities of the hallowed inner west ground.
Leichhardt doesn’t have enough changing rooms to host NRL men’s and women’s double headers, regularly features some of the NRL’s longest queues for refreshments, and pales in comparison to other Sydney stadiums in terms of corporate facilities and medium.
On Monday, Tigers chief executive Shane Richardson and Inner West Council Mayor Darcy Byrne came together to ask Leichhardt Oval to receive 10 per cent of the funding allocated to upgrade the Penrith stadium from the NSW government.
The Panthers’ BlueBet Stadium will receive a $309 million facelift in 2025 that will expand the field’s capacity to 25,000 with an all-new west stand and a renovated east stand.
The Tigers, who have also played home games at CommBank Stadium, Campbelltown Stadium and Accor Stadium in recent years, are yet to commit to any home ground beyond 2024.
Richardson threatened to move the Tigers out of Leichhardt entirely if the bid went unfulfilled, having moved South Sydney’s home games from Moore Park to Homebush during his time in charge of that club.
But on Tuesday, NSW Premier Chris Minns pointed to the state’s financial situation as grounds for blocking the Tigers’ smart bid.
“I appreciate that (the Tigers) have to make a decision about their club and where they play their home games,” Minns said.
“But we have, as everyone knows, got $180 billion worth of debt in NSW.
“We have tremendous pressure on the hospital system, the education system, (and) in addition to that we are introducing the largest public transport projects in the history of the state.”
Leichhardt Oval’s status as a part-time NRL venue also influenced Minns’ decision.
This season, the Tigers play five of 12 home games at Campbelltown Sports Stadium, one at Scully Park in Tamworth and one at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium as part of the Magic Round.
“I don’t have any spare dollars at the moment to pump into Leichhardt Oval, especially as the Tigers’ games are split between those two home grounds (Campbelltown and Leichhardt),” Minns said.
“My real fear is that we give money to Leichhardt and the week after they say now we need the money for Campbelltown.
“These things have to be very balanced and I’d love to have the spare revenue to pump into a suburban stadium at the moment, but I don’t have it.”
The Tigers scored an emphatic 32-6 victory over Cronulla on Saturday in their first game at Leichhardt Oval for the season.
They will next return on June 15 to host the Gold Coast.
