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Field One was always pretty good and I think the grounds staff there did some work on it post floods to install new irrigation and drainage. The new Field 3 (the one on an angle) is going to be pretty good - apparently the exact dimensions as Suncorp and the builders are claiming it will be...

A lot to unpack here. Going by the Annual Report, the QRU paid off almost all its debt last year and still reported a surplus of $1.5m (once you take out the Ballymore grants). There's a massive crane up at Ballymore and a new stand being built (admittedly the place had been let go, but the...

Excellent point and that's just what the plan is - the planning approvals allow new medical and sport facilities. http://www.yourneighbourhood.com.au/ballymore-redevelopment-masterplan-approved/ Still, it'd be nice to see some of the itinerant cubbies clubs play there - Brisbane Irish or the...

Good call and yes, there would be an issue asking some clubs like GPS, which can make upwards of $40k on a weekend, play home games at Ballymore. There will be a heap more games there after the redevelopment (touring sides, Wallaroos etc) but remember the development going on at the moment is...

So...apart from the fact that Ballymore is a construction zone on one side, and has an ageing stand on the other that needs a multi-million dollar refit? Ballymore will almost certainly be used for a range of games in the future, but the hard facts are that the QRU makes about $500-$1m more a...

It's looking slightly better than that now, this was taken right after the floods. Ambrose Treacy College are using Field 2 (behind the Hill) as their home ground at the moment. The McLean Stand area has been raised up above flood levels and the slab's getting laid in the next few weeks. Still...

Rudd had nothing to cancel on Ballymore. It was an election promise from Howard, who was defeated. The QRU chairman at the time (who was eventually tapped on the shoulder after $13.5 million in losses) was an arrogant Tory who didn't even bother talking to Labor for a matching promise. The same...

Kegs on legs and $5 rumbos! What could possibly go wrong?

The new McLean Stand's going to have about 3000 capacity - 2600 in the seats and another 400 or so in the corporate boxes behind. Toilets are built in under the stand like the old one and food and beer will be bumped in (food trucks and lots of little bars rather than one big one where you get...

Reds average crowd last year was about 14,500*, not including the final, with crowds against the Brumbies, Crusaders and Auckland I think exceeding that. You wouldn't have been able to fit 14,500 into the old Ballymore - Northern Stand was condemned and McLean Stand could only seat about 3000 -...

Given Rugby Australia's financial position I think you'll find the Reds are the ones who would be shoring up Rugby Australia... You're right on the financial security though. Ballymore costs about $1m a year to mow the grass (and keep everything else running, but you get the point). Even halving that figure means the QRU...

That Brisbane Times story was written by Cameron Atfield, who's a notorious soccer booster and won't let the Perry Park proposal go. Complete bullshit like most of the things he writes about rugby (he hates it...). Soccer has no chance of getting the boutique stadium they want - the Government's...

To be fair I understand Grace has been pretty supportive and was instrumental in getting the State funding across the line. Problem is a couple of noisy constituents who have been whinging to her. One is a former town planner who dragged the old DA through the court for about four years. She's...

What Reg said. Hockey is easy enough (if expensive) to do at Ballymore for the four weeks of the Olympics and would revert back to being a rugby stadium afterwards. It wouldn't become a permanent hockey field, much the same as "Quins are still playing at the Stoop, despite it being the 2012 2...

"It comes as club officials renegotiate a long-term deal with the University of Canberra to house Brumbies headquarters in an effort to secure cash flow in the coming years. The Brumbies initially paid 30 years of rent upfront to the university, planning to co-exist and share facilities until...

Would be a commercial climbing facility (like West End or Milton), with the ability to be used as a high-performance centre for the QAS/Olympic team.