LAVINGTON Oval is in serious danger of missing out on a slice of AFL pre-season action again next year.
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The Albury Council-owned venue hasn’t played host to a match since 2011, which has left the door open for rival codes to gain a foothold in the traditional AFL heartland.
The Border’s premier venue recently hosted an A-League soccer match for points and a Super Rugby trial between Melbourne Rebels and NSW Waratahs was also played at Albury Sportsground.
Wangaratta has hosted back-to-back AFL pre-season games as part of a deal linked to the recent upgrade of Norm Minns Oval, partly bankrolled by the AFL.
But the biggest stumbling block to AFL returning to Lavington Oval and future facilities development at the venue are festering and unresolved cross-border issues.
The council is getting mixed messages about where to turn — the Wagga-based AFL NSW-ACT or the recently established AFL North-East Border Commission.
Both football bodies employ game development staff on the Border but are located in separate offices and perform similar functions.
The council wants to partner with the AFL to create a football administration hub at Lavington.
But in the short term, the chances of AFL pre-season action returning to Lavington next year will be diminished by a deal struck between the AFL and Wagga Council for three games to be played at Robertson Oval.
Wagga has agreed to pay $100,000 per year to host games and this Saturday’s match between GWS and St Kilda is the middle leg of the deal.
Albury Council is presently devising a strategy to bring the issue to a head.
The council’s events team leader, Ros Walls, said on Saturday a turf war was on and rival sports had Albury firmly on their radar.
“We had GWS and Gold Coast a few years ago and GWS and North Melbourne before that,” she said.
“But we are looking for the blockbuster because we can do the 15,000 to 20,000 crowd in Albury.”
North East Border Commission general manager John O’Donohue said there was no certainty around games next year.
“Ideally we would love to have a game in the region every year at either Wang or Lavington,” he said.
“There are challenges of how we can and can’t do that.
“We are at the whim of the NAB Challenge structure.
“We are in a very unique part of the world.
“Everyone has got soccer, but no one has the complication of two rugby codes as well.
“We’ve got to acknowledge we are in a battle for the participants and fans of the game.”
