New lights for Busloop Oval
The QBE Sydney Swans Academy in partnership with the AFL has taken a major step forward in its quest to grow the talent pool in the harbour city with a new 200-Lux lighting system installed at Busloop Oval on Thursday night.
For the first time ever, the Academy will have access to a purpose built AFL oval 12 months of the year both day and night right in the heart of the city, opposite the Sydney Cricket Ground.
It is a significant coup for the Academy as training sessions can now be scheduled after school and work hours, enabling matches to be played at the venue at night.
The Academy and AFL is committed to providing opportunities for aspiring footballers to make it in the AFL in Sydney and broader NSW/ACT and access to first-class training facilities is an important step to fulfilling this goal.
The lighting upgrade was made possible by an AFL contribution of $150,000 from the Facility Development Reserve and significant investment by the Sydney Swans.
QBE Sydney Swans Academy General Manager Dennis Carroll said Australian football has come a long way since he first moved to Sydney in 1982.
“The lights are a key part of the infrastructure that will assist us to run our Academy program,” Carroll said.
“They will offer the many junior athletes aspiring to play the game at the highest level with an opportunity to train. The Academy wouldn’t be possible unless we had this sort of lighting.
“I never expected this to happen. Thirty years ago this was a car park and previous to that it was a waste disposal area so to see this as a purpose built AFL ground and now to have lights is just amazing.
“In the heart of Sydney, within the magnificent precinct, it’s fantastic.”
The Busloop Oval lighting redevelopment is the first step in working with the Centennial Parks Trust to upgrade the AFL infrastructure within the parklands.
There is already talk about upgrading the lighting at Bat and Ball Oval while other sporting grounds are likely to get a facelift in the future.
Centennial Parks Trust Chairman John Walker said the upgraded Busloop Oval is a glimpse into the future for professional and community sports using the facilities.
“The Sydney Cricket Ground Trust and us have pretty well agreed that master-planning this area is the perfect place to provide [elite and community] facilities for the sporting clubs that play next door,” Walker said.
“There’s a long way to go … there’s thought of maybe [building] synthetic fields and other options so there’s a lot of work to be done.”
The lighting launch was attended by Joseph La Posta (AFL), Dean Moore (Sydney Swans), Peter Hadfield (Centennial Parklands Foundation), Kim Ellis (CEO Centennial Parklands Trust), Tom Harley (General Manager – AFL NSW/ACT), John Walker (Chairman Centennial Parklands Trust), Dennis Carroll (Sydney Swans), Stuart Dutton (CPT), Simon Wilson (AFL), Sanjay and Scott (Musco).
