24 September 2010
Game On 2012
Game On 2012 – Stadium Southland has unveiled its new catch-cry as it takes the first steps towards rebuilding the complex possibly within the next 18 months.
General manager Nigel Skelt said his personal dream was to open a new state-of-the-art venue at the Surrey Park site on March 30, 2012.
“It’s a very nostalgic date as it would coincide exactly with the opening of the first stadium 12 years earlier … that would be a fitting tribute to past successes but also mark the start of many more triumphs for Southland sport,” he said.
“We are very passionate about Game on 2012.”
Watching crowds flocking to the Dunkley’s Great New Zealand Craft Show at Stadium Southland’s ILT Velodrome today was “fantastic”.
“It’s a huge buzz for us to be back in event mode already,” Skelt said. “Here we are – the journey has begun, this is the first step and we will continue to gain momentum from this point on.”
The task of transforming Stadium Southland’s ILT Velodrome into a suitable home for the Ascot Park Hotel Southern Steel and the Southland Sharks basketball franchises was “progressing favourably”.
“We want to create something very unique worldwide – where else on the globe will there be a facility with such flexibility and diversity than what we want to create here?” he said.
“While it has been forced upon us by Mother Nature, it is an exciting opportunity nonetheless.”
The preferred option was to purchase a portable sprung wooden floor left surplus following the 2010 Youth Olympics in Singapore, although other quotes were being sought to ensure it was the right option.
“It’s like a jigsaw,” Skelt said. “For training sessions and regular use, it would be placed over one of the existing courts, but on game day we could spin it 90 degrees, increase the run-off area and configure additional seating around it to bring capacity up to around 2700.”
Stadium Southland’s temporary stand, which is currently being utilised at Rugby Park, could be configured into different components.
“One of the key objectives for us is to ensure it can be put down and pulled up within a minimum amount of time but that will just take manpower,” Skelt said.
“We need to ensure other events aren’t adversely affected.”
However, there were still several logistical issues to work through before the concept got the green light.
While the Steel’s ANZ Championship draw was already set, with all games televised live on both sides of the Tasman, Southland Basketball was working with its governing body in an attempt to establish events in its national league to coincide.
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