Eddie's radical solution to major MCG problem

1 year ago 79

Eddie McGuire has defended the staging of the Ed Sheeran concerts astatine the MCG and declared a extortion indispensable beryllium built into Australia's starring venue.

The erstwhile Collingwood president weighed successful connected Nine's Eddie and Jimmy podcast aft the MCG aboveground attracted disapproval during circular 1 of the AFL season.

Geelong manager Chris Scott objected to the aboveground aft his side's 22-point decision to Collingwood connected Friday night, successful which All-Australian defender Tom Stewart suffered a genu wounded portion landing connected the turf successful a marking contest.

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A big of players were troubled by the aboveground successful circular 1 astatine the MCG, which hosted the Richmond-Carlton, Geelong-Collingwood, Melbourne-Bulldogs and Hawthorn-Essendon fixtures.

The MCG had hosted sell-out Sheeran concerts connected March 2 and March 3, 2 weeks retired from the opening of the AFL season, but attraction unit were besides hindered by rainfall that followed the shows.

"People go, 'The MCC's kicked an ain extremity due to the fact that they had Ed Sheeran'," Jimmy Bartel said connected the Eddie and Jimmy podcast.

"But the antagonistic to that is, 'What's the alternative? They've got to marque money, it's a stadium, it's an all-year-around stadium, it's determination for cricket, it's determination for different sports. What other are they expected to do?'."

McGuire was unequivocal successful his response.

"Put a extortion connected it," helium said.

"That's what they request to do. It's arsenic elemental arsenic that."

"Put a extortion connected the 'G?" said a stunned Bartel.

"Yeah. There's nary occupation with that and I'm pushing for it," McGuire said.

"You mightiness person seen past week ... Sir Rod Eddington, who was the erstwhile seat of Visit Victoria and Victorian Major Events ... He's the champion feline connected infrastructure going astir ... Basically what helium said was, 'We person to beryllium cautious present with the system tightening that we don't (settle for) adjacent capable being bully enough'.

"So the adjacent signifier of the MCG is the rebuild of the Southern Stand, and 1 of the things I'm very, very, precise keen connected is having a retractable extortion connected the MCG, oregon a sliding roof."

McGuire drew attraction to Hard Rock Stadium, the location of the NFL's Miami Dolphins, which underwent an unthinkable task that reached completion by the commencement of the 2016 season.

A extortion described by the project's engineering institution arsenic an "open-air canopy" was implemented, protecting spectators from Miami's harsh heat, rainfall and hurricanes portion besides allowing sunshine to bushed down connected the grass.

"It wasn't truthful overmuch the assemblage astatine Ed Sheeran; it was the information that it rained aft the assemblage near a mates of days later," McGuire added.

"We got done the (Women's T20) World Cup of 2020 by astir 2 hours earlier the rainfall came through.

"You can't get the large wealth present retired of the TV stations, for the cricket, for example, if (Seven boss) Lewis Martin ... is sticking his digit retired the model connected Christmas nighttime to spot if he's going to get the Boxing Day Test away.

"You're not going to get radical sitting determination for 8 hours successful the sunshine. The players successful 10 years' clip won't privation to play astatine that clip of the game. And likewise with the football, we don't privation to person the concern wherever it's the mediate of July and the rain's coming successful sideways and you can't spell to the footy.

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"It's beauteous simple; each astir the satellite they're putting rooves connected these things — and that's the answer.

"You don't get Ed Sheeran, you don't get Billy Joel to bash a one-off performance unless it's astatine the MCG, wherever they tin enactment 108,000 successful there."

Gone are the days of the MCG conscionable being a venue for cricket and Australian rules football, McGuire noted.

"The Ed Sheeran concerts were conscionable seen arsenic the astir magnificent events that person happened successful caller times," McGuire said.

"It's a multi-purpose stadium — that's the constituent I'm making.

"Once upon a clip we played footy, and we had cricket. Now it's a multi-purpose stadium, truthful we person to physique the stadium to beryllium a multi-purpose stadium. Simple arsenic that."

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