Waverley Park 40 years on.

[Naughton]

Wasn't so bad if you had a car.

But as a kid, traipsing out there on public transport, it was a bloody nightmare. I'll never forget the day they didn't put on enough buses, and I missed the last one after the game, and had to walk (in the rain - and darkness) to the train station.

Dunno how far it was, but it wasn't a heap of fun. I don't think they had footpaths out there back then... only muddy shoulders by the side of puddle-strewn roads.

 

[GhostOfWindyHill]

I use to go there when i was a little kid, even played aus kick on the ground. Its funny that its kind of like footy park

-concrete jungle
-inconvenient placing etc

Its just Adelaide's got nothing better. I dont see a place for it in todays game, but I liked surban atmosphere of things.

Was at the st kilda v essendon lights out game too, now that was cool, people lighting fires, throwing stuff, jumped on the ground very good memories!

 

[HBF]

Given that I grew up in the SE suburbs, used to go out there most weeks, no matter who was playing. Not a great viewing stadium, but nonetheless, had the AFL actually spent some money on it, could have re-designed the stands, and made it into a decent ground.

 

[Koutou43]

The old suburban grounds were better if you were a member.. you could get a seat or stand close to the game. However if you were playing away god knows where you would end up in the ground.

Old VFL Park had an advantage that you could always get a seat and see the game although you were much further from the action.

It is funny they are talking about a third ground within a stones throw of Docklands yet more than half of Melbourne live in the South - East corridor closer to Waverley than West Melbourne?

For all the money they spend on new grounds they could have sold off only part of Waverley's car park and renovated the ground to get the stands closer.

As for public transport Monash Uni is within a bee's dick up the road so surely there was justification for a public spending on transport through this corridor.

 

[The Swert]

Nothing wrong with the placement. Look at the growth in SE suburbs since. And take a look at Wembley in London, it's nowhere near the centre of the city and it works.

Shame the rail line was never built. I live within a kilometre of the stadium, used to watch the fireworks from my driveway and hear the crowd roar.

And yes, that image is mirrored. And yes the playing surface was in the ground below the carpark.

 

[Perce]

It had a magnigicent atmosphere.

You serious? VFL/AFL Park was like a giant machine for removing atmsophere from a game. It had the least atmos of any VFL/AFL ground I've attended - at least until Docklands came along.

 

[vinum coupe]

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[Fevola99]

Wasn't so bad if you had a car.

until you wanted to get it out of the car park

 

[PortBrillance]

Alberton's better

 

[mantis]

until you wanted to get it out of the car park

Exactly, we used to leave an esky in the car with a couple of beers in it, we would sit there & have a beer, until the traffic jam was gone. Not to forget that it was a mud heap after it rained.

It was a crap ground, glad it got trashed.

 

[HBF]

until you wanted to get it out of the car park

Used to have a kick on the ground after the game for about half an hour - getting out was a breeze after that.

 

[RTBB]

I actually liked the ground, as we could drive there within 2½ hours if we drove non stop doing 110.

 

[SaintsSeptember]

I went there quite a few times as a kid. Since I lived in Gippsland it was one of the easier grounds for my parents to get to.
It was a crush getting out of the place, complete with D.H's passing on the Left.
I didn't mind it as a venue, and I wouldn't have minded it being kept ( since I live in the SE and usually drive to a game ).

I understand the commercial reality of selling it to build Docklands but....
Apart from the footy that area is crying out for a railway, look at the congestion on the freeway.
The whole save AFL park thing was a government election furphy. I don't think anyone's idea of SAVE was to do what was done to it. Cut it into pieces and build the worlds ugliest housing estate around it. ( If you have a house there sorry if I've insulted you, taste is a personal thing ).

 

[Robbo85]

Living in the south east and being a St Kilda supporter I went there all the time. Shocking place to watch football, forget seeing anything from the upper stand. Might of been decent if the upper stand was finished off and the rail line was run out there. It's a 10 minute walk away so we go down for a kick and run around the oval every now and again.

until you wanted to get it out of the car park

Especially in the wet. Though I drove into Docklands once last year and had forgotten all about hanging your scarf out the window on the drive home.

 

[Naughton]

until you wanted to get it out of the car park

Car park kinda sucked, but it still had nothing on the pain of public transport. Never minded getting stuck in the car afterwards, providing we won. It was OK listening to the post-match on radio after a win.

My favourite memory of that place (apart from Harry Madden's giraffe run in that Prelim against the Crows) was a final between collingwood and st kilda. For some reason, my st kilda-supporting GF scored tickets right in the middle of the collingwood cheersquad.

Now I know most cheersquads are filled to the brim with nuffies, but this was like getting thrown into a day-trip with the inmates from a home for the criminally insane. By Quarter 2, they were fighting amongst themselves... proper fists-connecting-with-faces fights. Feral beyond belief.

And of course, despite it being a clear sunny day in Melbourne, we saw this lone black cloud slowly move across the sky... slow down when it reached VFL Park, and then it furiously dumped ice-cold rain down on us for a good 20 minutes.

Happened every game at that place. Should've put a dam there.

Once went to a pre-season night game there. I think there were about 11 other people in the 'crowd' and I just sat there the whole night thinking 'what the f*** am I doing here??' There was so little atmosphere, you could actually hear the players chatting amongst themselves out on the ground.

Awful place really.

 

[mattys123]

Seriously should have replaced the ground with a Dam.

It rained there more then any other place I have been to in Victoria.

 

[HBF]

Seriously should have replaced the ground with a Dam.

It rained there more then any other place I have been to in Victoria.

Those mid-season games at Waverley Park were tough.

 

[Bell Ringer]

Those mid-season games at Waverley Park were tough.

Carl v StK '95 immediately springs to mind - rained so much that day the dye ran in my clothes.

Oh, and we kicked 3 goals for the day and got absolutely pounded...

 

[Mervyn Beasley]

until you wanted to get it out of the car park

Getting out of G car park is no better IMO

 

[FootyJunkie]

last time i was there was the essendon richmond night grand final........cat fight 2 rows behind me, was only young at the time

back when people actually gave a bit of a toss about the pre-season comp

 

[mantis]

Getting out of G car park is no better IMO

Rubbish, less people drive to the G than Waverley, because they can get there by PT, unlike the shithole.

 

[raff23]

until you wanted to get it out of the car park

Dont know what your on about mate because we never used to have any problems getting out of the ground in good time. There were 4 or 5 main exits if im not mistaken and it used to take no more than 10-15 minutes to get out even with a big crowd. You look at the shambles that is the MCG and it takes a good half hour to get out and then you have to deal with the traffic on punt rd. People are sooking on here because for them it was too far to travel to get to, we lived at the time around 40-45 mins away, not once did i complain about how long it took to get there. It was always a smooth ride there, usually the traffic was alright and we were at the ground and seated within 10 minutes. You also could sit anywhere you like unlike jihad and the G where you can only sit in designated areas even though no one is sitting in the area you want to sit in. The AFL had their 3 stadiums in melbourne but were too stupid or stubborn to make the place more modern for the new millenium.

 

[serenityNow]

It was alot better than Western oval, Victoria park and Princess park

You must be joking . Would take any of those 3 any day over Waverly.

The car park was hell, The seating was disgraceful, the weather felt 10x as cold out there, public transport out there was shithouse.

A deadset piss poor stadium, that i'm glad is gone.

*went to a night grand final out there between Hawthorn and Fitzroy (free tickets) Hawks shit it in, and the only highlight was the pre game entertainment, when a hovercraft went awol and slammed into the fence right in front of us.

 

[Ron The Bear]

A mate lived on the other side of Wellington Rd, and had half a dozen cars parked on his front and back lawns most weekends. Beats paying $20+ at Etihad.

 

[Crankyhawk]

Was part of the crowd at the last game (Hawks vs Swans) - Swans finals bound and Hawks no chance to make it, we thumped them by about 15 goals or so, Thommo kicked 8

And everyone rushed the ground to get their own little piece of it.