From the ashes arose Parramatta Stadium, opened by Queen Elizabeth one week and christened with a dominant victory over the Dragons the next. Anything else would have been way too anti-climactic.

Last Tuesday I walked into the newest incarnation, BankWest Stadium for my first visit with, I must admit, mixed feelings. I was fearful as to whether there would still be a sense of what I once knew, of a place that had been such a big part of 15 of the best years of my life.

It was magic, a magnificent sporting venue built to maximise the entertainment both on and off the field with everybody sitting in the best seat in the house. It is state of the art with facilities for both fans and players that are second to none. Most importantly, it feels right. I felt it especially in regards to the playing surface and the way it sits.

I have no doubt when I walk in next Monday there will be another rush of nostalgia and a flood of memories, many of them of those who worked tirelessly in moving my club forward.

It began with Colonel Jack Argent OBE OAM ED whose persistence in applying for Parramatta to be included into the premiership in 1947 bookended his service in Tobruk.

It was men like Joe Joseph, a big Lebanese truck driver whose love for the Eels was only surpassed by the love for his wife Ava. Joe did everything from mixing the Gatorade to operating as gear steward.

He was also a self-appointed masseur, although I avoided this part of his trade. During my first ever training session I watched a cellar man from the leagues club who had hurt his back being helped across so Joe could work on him. Five minutes later he was carried out of the sheds on a door. I loved Joe’s company but not so much as to let him work on me.

Every Saturday after training Billy Rayner cooked the barbecue. Billy was an Eels great of 11 seasons, who played for state and country and was a phenomenal clubman. A tough hooker in a brutal period when you needed eyes in the back of your head and had to retaliate first. Jack Gibson knew Billy was a butcher and asked him to chase up the meat. Jack eventually nicknamed him “Briefcase Bill” because he seemingly operated with the understanding “that the tougher the meat, the longer they eat”.

Then of course there is the supercoach and his sidekick Ron Massey who taught us how to win and be better people in doing so.

I read with interest the words of Wests Tigers chief executive Simon Cook who said he was “disappointed” that Parramatta were carrying on “about the new stadium being theirs”.

We are happy to share but, make no mistake, this patch of ground has been our physical and spiritual home for over seven decades and always will be.

If there was any doubt, the statue of our greatest warrior Ray Price, personifies that the essence of BankWest Stadium is different to Cumberland Oval in name only.