WAFL a step closer to returning to WACA Ground in latest redevelopment plans

WAFL footy is a step closer to returning to the WACA Ground.

The iconic East Perth venue will be given a much-needed makeover on the back of a $64 million cash injection, with final designs including lengthening of the oval to host football again.

WA Cricket Association chief executive Christina Matthews will open formal discussions with the WA Football Commission in the coming fortnight.

Works are expected to start in July with the oval re-shaping early on the list.

“We’ve had approaches from individual clubs but as we would expect, we’ll talk to the WA Football Commission about all the opportunities,” Ms Matthews said.

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“We’re actually writing to them in the next two weeks to formally open those discussions.

“We’ve had informal discussions over a few years now and it’s always been positive.

“What we’ve got to remember with football though is we have to make sure our cricket isn’t compromised, so the start of the season and the end of the season can’t be compromised by football.

“But we think there’s a great opportunity for the footy commission to take advantage of this facility for commercial reasons and the benefit of WAFL supporters around the State.”

The ground hasn’t hosted a WAFL fixture since the 1994 qualifying final between East Fremantle and West Perth.

East Perth called the venue home for a couple of seasons in the late 1980s, while Fremantle and West Coast played regular home games there from their formative years until 2000.

But with ground sharing in place at both Leederville Oval (Subiaco and East Perth) and Lathlain’s Mineral Resources Park (Perth and West Coast), the fixture squeeze could lead the commission to explore new options.

WA Football Commission chief executive Michael Roberts welcomed the redevelopment announcement and was open to the possibility of WAFL footy returning to the WACA.

“Any facility development at the WACA that accommodates football is welcomed by the WAFC,” Mr Roberts said.

The Prindiville and Inverarity stands will be demolished to make way for a 10-lane indoor cricket and multi-sport facility, a central pavilion complete with food and beverage outlets, an open-air 50m pool and water slides, a multi-purpose function centre with an outside deck overlooking the ground, a community health club and a public cafe, as well as an auditorium with multi-purpose meeting rooms.

There will also be dedicated high-performance facilities for elite players, including a gym, change rooms and recovery facilities, a museum honouring the venue’s rich history.

Completion of the project, which will see a reduced capacity of 10,000 with the option to “overlay another 5000”, is set for 2024.

Matthews is adamant the WACA’s international cricket days aren’t over, with hopes to lure smaller Test nations like Bangladesh or Afghanistan over to face Australia.

“We intend in the future to host Test matches, but against developing nations so the capacity of 15,000 is about right for what we want to do,” Matthews said.