Battle for Ashes Test hosting rights heats up between Hobart and Melbourne
With the plug now officially pulled on Perth hosting the fifth Ashes Test, it is game on in the race between Blundstone Arena and the MCG to host the series finale. LATEST >>
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IT’S officially game on in the race for Tasmania’s first ever Ashes Test.
As was widely expected, Cricket Australia has pulled the plug on Perth hosting the fifth Test because of the West Australian government’s strict border controls.
It is now down to a race between Hobart’s Blundstone Arena and the MCG – which is already hosting the third Test on Boxing Day – for the fifth Test.
And there could be an answer as soon as Wednesday to coincide with the commencement of the series in Brisbane.
While Hobart remains favourite, with the state’s borders to reopen on December 15, it is believed the MCG’s push could have the backing of a large cheque from the Victorian government.
The Tasmanian government is also willing to financially back Blundstone Arena, likely to be $2.5m for the five-day fixture, having paid about $500,000 for each AFL game this year.
An Ashes Test would be an economic boon for tourism and hospitality given the number of supporters following the English team.
Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein said the door was well and truly open for CA to award the historic match and series finale to Hobart.
“Hobart has only been allocated 13 Tests in the 32 years since hosting our first Test and CA should now act in the best interests of the country, make history, and award us our first Ashes Test,” Mr Gutwein said.
“Tasmania stands ready to host the match, whether the preference is for a day match or a day-night match – we can easily accommodate either option.
“CA have a clear choice — they can make history in Hobart and do the right thing by the game or they can rinse and repeat in another state to the detriment of cricket lovers in Tasmania.”
The WA government made an audacious last-minute bid to switch Tests with Adelaide, to allow the players to come directly from Queensland without having to quarantine.
Adelaide hosts the second Test starting on December 16 and the mere suggestion of changing matches was scoffed at by SA Premier Steven Marshall.
“Western Australia made themselves the 12th man and now they’re complaining about not being able to get onto the oval,” Mr Marshall said.
“The reality is we are keeping the second Test here in Adelaide.”
It is the second year in a row Perth — and its new $820 million stadium — will have missed hosting a Test.
CA chief executive Nick Hockley said all avenues had been explored in trying to keep the Test in Perth.
“We are very disappointed that we are unable to stage the fifth Ashes Test at Perth Stadium,” Mr Hockley said.
“We did everything we could in partnership with the WA government and WA Cricket to make it work under the current border and health arrangements, but unfortunately this was not possible.”
Vic government moves to buy fifth Ashes Test
NOT satisfied with one Ashes Test, the Victorian government is now looking to buy a second one that would come at Tasmania’s expense.
The MCG is preparing to make a bold pitch for the fifth Ashes Test should Perth be unable to host the match, securing a lucrative financial sweetener from the Victorian government.
The WA government’s hard-line quarantine rules have thrown Cricket Australia’s plans for the final match of the Australia v England series into chaos, and a new host city may be required.
Hobart and Melbourne are the two most likely candidates if the Perth option falls over, and could depend on whether Cricket Australia is guided by sentimentality or financial security.
The MCG is understood to be ready to step up for the marquee match, which would be held about a fortnight after the Boxing Day Test wraps up.
News Corp can reveal the Andrews government has committed to splash some cash to secure the event if required, as Cricket Australia sounds out its options.
A day-night Test would also be guaranteed.
The Tasmanian government would also open the chequebook for a day-night Test, which would be the first between the two countries in the state’s history.
The Cricket Australia board met on Friday but no decision was made on the series finale.
However, Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein was remaining positive.
“The strong mail I’m hearing is that Tasmania is now the front runner to host the fifth Ashes Test,” Mr Gutwein said.
“We just need Cricket Australia to act in the best interests of the country, make history, and award us the Test.
“Even the Western Australian Premier and the Lord Mayor of Perth have conceded they can’t hold it and there’s no value in allowing two tests in the same State as that will just cannibalise the market.”
He said with the Test only five weeks away, certainty needed to be provided so arrangements could be made and tickets sold.
“Tasmania stands ready to host the match, whether the preference is for a day match or a day-night match, we can easily accommodate either option,” he said.
The decision by the government to up the ante with a financial carrot comes after Victorian Sports Minister Martin Pakula trumpeted the commercial benefits of a packed MCG to Cricket Australia this week.
Mr Pakula said he “wouldn’t assume WA is out of the mix” but reiterated Victoria’s strong interest in hosting duties.
He said there were some elements of the cricketing community that wanted to “spread the love” and support Tasmania but that the benefits of having another big test at the MCG were clear.
“We think from a commercial point of view, and an iconic venue point of view, the chance to have a day-night Test at the MCG would be incredibly attractive to Cricket Australia,” he said.
“Regardless, we have got the Boxing Day Test here in only just over three weeks time, with a full crowd at the MCG it’s going to be remarkable comeback for our city.”
More than 90,000 people are tipped to flock to the MCG on Boxing Day — the first chance for a capacity crowd at the home of cricket since the government’s coronavirus restrictions began last year.
Premier hits Melbourne and Sydney for six over fifth Ashes Test
PREMIER Peter Gutwein intensified his push for an Ashes Test in Hobart on Wednesday saying “why would you bother” giving Sydney or Melbourne a second match when the state’s capital is “ready, willing and able” to host the biggest rivalry in world cricket.
A day after penning a passionate letter to players in Australia and England’s Test squads via the players association, Mr Gutwein said Hobart was a perfect location with its world-class boutique cricket venue and economic benefits which would outweigh that of an AFL match.
Western Australia’s strict Covid-19 policy and 14-day quarantine requirement for travelers entering WA has ruled out Perth as an Ashes Test host.
Sydney and Melbourne have now jumped on the bandwagon for the Perth Test in an attempt to gazump Hobart, which has been pushing for the match for months.
“It’s an opportunity for Tasmania to have one of the biggest traveling shows in the world come to our state and that is an Ashes test and being the fifth test it could be the test that decides the series” Mr Gutwein said.
“We have written to the players association to ask them to provide information to the Australian players and English players so they understand fully what the opportunity would be.
“Our plan from December 15 is you will be able to enter the state as long as you are fully vaccinated and if you are coming from a high-risk state or area, you need to have a test done before you come.
“In Western Australia, you’d be looking at 14 days in quarantine.
“So the game could go on with very few restrictions here in Tasmania, so come down and let’s show the world have good Tasmania is.”
Cricket Tasmania’s staunch defense last week of former Test captain Tim Paine, who resigned after a sexting scandal came to light, and criticism of Cricket Australia for its lack of support for Paine, would not damage Hobart’s Ashes hosting chances.
“I stress very strongly to Cricket Australia that we stand ready, willing and able to hold that Test and I hope they give us the consideration we deserve,” Mr Gutwein said.
“This is an opportunity to share Test cricket with the country.
“Western Australia is obviously out. Sydney and Melbourne will get a Test. Let’s not double up, why would you both? Let’s give Hobart a go. Tasmania’s deserve a Test.
“We have, over a long period of time, on a per capita basis, turned out the highest number of players to represent this country.
“I’d like to see a Test here and I Tasmanians would like to see a Test here too.”
Tasmania appeals directly to players in bid to secure fifth Test
TASMANIA has upped the ante in its bid to host the fifth Ashes Test, by directly lobbying the players to gain their support.
It seems almost inevitable now Perth will not host the series finale after West Australian premier Mark McGowan declared all players must quarantine for 14 days upon entering the state.
Part of England’s agreement to tour Australia was the stipulation that its players would not have to quarantine again in any way after doing their initial time on entering the country.
And under the schedule, there is only five days between the end of the fourth Test in Sydney and the start of the fifth.
Cricket Tasmania and the Tasmanian government are working on a joint bid to host the state’s first Test between cricket’s oldest rivals, with Melbourne and Sydney believed to be the favourites to land a second match in the series as they offer bigger financial returns to Cricket Australia.
Tasmanian premier Peter Gutwein has written to Australian Cricketers Association chief executive Todd Greenberg of the benefits of Hobart hosting the Test.
“Importantly, should the match be played in Tasmania, as it stands at the moment there will be no requirement for quarantine, nor for any changes to match rules and conditions,” Mr Gutwein wrote.
“Cricket players and all associated with the Australian and England teams will be able to operate under exactly the same conditions as resident Tasmanian’s.
“There will not be any of the special arrangements that may be required in Western Australia, which will deny people being allowed entry to that State without quarantine.”
Included in the letter was a brochure to be distributed to the players, highlighting Blundstone Arena, Salamanca markets and the world famous MONA.
“As well as the opportunity to play at arguably the best boutique cricket ground in the world at Blundstone Arena, I am sure players and their families would also enjoy experiencing Tasmania’s world-class food and beverage offerings, our fine restaurants, hospitality, and tourist attractions,” he wrote.
Mr Gutwein believes the state is perfectly placed to host the Test given its high vaccination rates, current non existent Covid levels and has proven its ability to showcase big events after hosting two AFL finals and a number of WBBL fixtures earlier this year.
Greenberg did not wish to comment when contacted by the Mercury.
‘We’ve got everything here’: CT steps up case for Hobart Ashes Test
IT’S the unmissable elephant in the room but Cricket Tasmania insists its recent spat with Cricket Australia will have no bearing on the fifth Ashes Test location should it become available.
The fifth Test is scheduled for Perth, but even WACA chief executive Christina Matthews conceded the state was only a 50-50 chance of hosting it given WA’s hard border restrictions and the state’s relatively low vaccination rates.
CT and the Tasmanian government have been pushing hard to be the back-up option, which would allow the state to host its first Ashes Test.
However, part of that sale was a fairytale ending for then-Australian skipper Tim Paine in what would have been his first Test on his home ground.
Paine resigned over a historic sexting scandal, with CT launching a scathing attack on CA for its lack of support for the captain.
But CT chairman Andrew Gaggin said as a one-sixth member of CA under the federated model, he was well and truly in his rights to stand up for Paine and said it would have no bearing on the fifth Test location.
“The six states are the owners of CA, not the other way around,” Gaggin said.
“And 99 per cent of the time the states and CA collaborate very well but sometimes we have spats and you see it around the states.
“I’m chairman of CT so we are not a branch office of CA and I’ll represent the views of the CT members and the CT community and from everything I’ve received over the past week, CT has judged the Tasmanian mood pretty well.
“There was anger about how Tim Paine was treated but we’ve moved on from that.
“This is a separate issue. The two aren’t connected and there is no reason that because Tim Paine is unlikely to play that Hobart wouldn’t host the Test.
“We’ve got everything here.”
Gaggin believes with the financial backing of the Tasmanian government, a Hobart Ashes Test stacks up as Melbourne and Sydney loom as the likely contenders if it becomes available.
Both the MCG and the SCG would return more money to CA’s coffers if they were to host the match.
But Gaggin said it was about growing the game and rewarding Tasmania, which would have been hosting the historic first Test against Afghanistan this week.
He said no timeline had been set for a decision on the Perth Test, but believed it would be made in the next fortnight and he was brimming with confidence Hobart would get the support from CA required to host “easily Tasmania’s biggest sporting event”.
“We have positioned ourselves very well to host the game,” Gaggin said.
“You can never say for certain but I would be very confident Tasmania would be successful if Perth can’t host.”
Hopes rise for Hobart Ashes Test
AFTER a horror week for Tasmanian cricket, there may be some good news coming with Perth’s chances of hosting January’s fifth Ashes Test being reduced to a coin-flip prospect.
Cricket Tasmania and the Tasmanian government have been positioning themselves for a joint bid to Cricket Australia for Hobart to host the state’s first Ashes Test should Perth be unable to do so.
Perth’s ability to host the Test due to the West Australian government’s tough border restrictions and comparatively slow vaccination take-up rates is starting to raise serious concerns, WA Cricket chief executive Christina Matthews has conceded.
After confidence was increasing in the past few weeks that Optus Stadium would keep the final match of the highly anticipated series, more doubt has been cast due to the state’s stringent border rules.
Matthews told ABC Grandstand she had at one point been “97 per cent confident”, but the challenge of broadcast logistics – including the number of specialists required to enter WA – pushed that confidence back down to 50-50 in a worrying sign.
The Test is due to be played from January 14-18.
“We’re slowly working on things behind the scenes. There’s great co-operation between Cricket Australia and the state government and us as well,” Matthews said.
“It’s fair to say there’s a few hurdles to get across, but the beauty is we don’t have to make a decision tomorrow. We’re trying to imagine what it might be like in mid-January as opposed to what it’s like today.
“But as everybody knows, our government has very well-known and strict protocols around different things and it’s a matter of whether cricket can meet those demands or not.
“I think it’s quite possible that Cricket Australia might have got a bit distracted over the past week but there’s still a lot work being done on getting the Test here.
“I’d probably say at the moment I’m 50-50. I’d gone as high as 97 per cent, but I’ve gone back to 50-50. We’ll wait and see.”
If Tasmania was to secure the historic Test, it would also be an economic windfall given the number of “Barmy Army” members that follow the English side, as well as broadcasting the state internationally in what many view would be the state’s biggest sporting event.
In the background is a breakdown in the relationship between CT and Cricket Australia over the handling of Tim Paine’s historic sexting scandal that resulted in the Tasmanian standing down as Test skipper and eventually from play all together.
While there is still much to play out, Matthews said clearing entry into WA for the significant number of broadcast staff was looming as an increasingly difficult hurdle.
“It’s such a complex environment and one of the difficulties for cricket is just the high level of technology needed around the broadcast and number of people needed around the broadcast compared to an AFL broadcast,” she said.
“It’s one thing getting the players in, it’s another thing getting the people that have to broadcast it in, so we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.”
WA Premier Mark McGowan will in the coming weeks schedule a date for the state to reopen for interstate travel, which will be based around an estimated time when 90 per cent double vaccination status is reached.
But that is unlikely to be before the January 14 Test start date.
Earlier in the month, both Matthews and Ms McGowan said they were “very confident” of Perth keeping the event.
Originally published as Battle for Ashes Test hosting rights heats up between Hobart and Melbourne
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