Parramatta expect the NRL to ask them to shift their upcoming blockbuster against South Sydney to ANZ Stadium but want the clash to remain at Pirtek Stadium, where they are unbeaten this season.
A sell-out crowd of 18,631 watched Saturday afternoon's 36-0 thrashing of St George Illawarra, which keeps the Eels entrenched in the top eight.
But while the renaissance of the 2012 and 2013 wooden spooners has their large fanbase crawling out of the woodwork, it is presenting a dilemma for their management and officials at League Central. Parramatta are wary of not locking out supporters from marquee matches such as Sydney derbies due to the capacity restraints at Pirtek. However, they are reticent to abandon a happy hunting ground where they have prevailed on all five occasions this season.
With the potential for a crowd well in excess of 30,000, the round-19 encounter with Souths is exactly the kind of major fixture the NRL has in mind with its stadiums policy of playing big games at big venues such as ANZ and Allianz Stadium. Parramatta are not against that principle but they don't want this particular match relocated.
"At the end of the day we want to win footy games. That is the No.1 thing right now," Eels chief executive Scott Seward said. "We also understand we have a responsibility to our members and our fans and also the rugby league public, so it is a real balancing act right now. But certainly our preference is we stay at Pirtek Stadium and maintain our unbeaten record there. We will obviously get the views of the NRL on it and I imagine what their view will be. We'll make a decision very quickly or a decision will be made for us, one way or the other."
Already this season the Eels have had a "home" game against Wests Tigers, on Easter Monday, at ANZ, drawing an attendance of 50,668. The meeting with Souths is set down for a Friday night in July.
The quandary facing the Eels and the NRL may not be an isolated one if Parramatta continue to impress under Brad Arthur. It is the reason they are desperate to get an answer on their $120 million joint proposal with Western Sydney Wanderers to transform Pirtek Stadium into a 32,000-seat venue.
"The other issue that this highlights and that needs to be addressed very quickly is: what is the future of Parramatta Stadium. What is the government going to do there?" Seward said. "Are they seriously going to redevelop Parramatta and give it the capacity it deserves or are we going to continue to have these discussions. It's a fantastic problem to have. It means things are starting to improve and the club is going in the right direction. The fear that I've got right now, and it's a great fear, is if we get where we expect we're going to end up in a short period of time this is going to be a question that gets asked every week regardless of who we're playing. It's a hard argument if you think you can draw 35,000 to 40,000 for that (Souths) game. How do you justify not moving it? The simple way to look at it is if we played at ANZ Stadium we would get a bigger crowd. But we want to play at Parramatta."
Replies
If NRL want us to move a home game then they should give us another home game like canberra at pirtex
LOL
When I read this, straight away I thought Seward HAS to say.., "we don't want to leave Pirtek".
I bet deep down he does though!
Indeed. Sounds very much at odds with what was said earlier on in the year. I expect it's simply lip-service.
Never stand between a chief executive and a bag of money.
Maybe it's time to simply burn down Parra, then they'll be forced to fix it. Oh wait, it's made of concrete....
The team needs every advantage, and means playing at Pirtek. We've filled our obligations at ANZ, meaning the NRL have no say in the matter.
KEEP GAMES AT PARRA!!!
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