Michael Slater officially wiped from history after Wagga Wagga council vote

Former cricketer Michael Slater is being wiped away with a monument in his name set to be removed following a council vote.

Michael Slater Oval is set to be no more.

The former cricketer’s sporting ground in Wagga Wagga will be officially renamed following a city council vote.

A decision to rename the oval was passed with a 4-3 vote following lengthy discussions between council members.

Three councillors pointed to Slater’s sporting achievements and his contributions to the city before his recent fall from grace as to why the oval name shouldn’t be changed.

In the end the majority won out with the naming of the oval set to be up for public exhibition in the coming days, according to the Region Riverina.

The oval was thrust into the spotlight in early May when a monument at the Bolton Park grounds had been altered with Slater’s name completely covered up.

Once one of the most celebrated names in Australian Test cricket throughout the 1990s, Slater’s public and spectacular fall from grace continued last month when the former Channel 7 TV commentator was taken back to jail following horrific allegations of his assault and abuse of a woman.

The former Test opener collapsed in Maroochydore Magistrates Court on April 16 after being refused bail on multiple charges, including stalking, enter dwelling with intent by break at night, choking, assault occasioning bodily harm, common assault and breaching bail.

Michael Slater Oval. Photo: City of Wagga Wagga.

Slater in 2014 was one of three former test cricketers to have an oval named in his honour at the Bolton Park complex, alongside former Test captain Mark Taylor and fast bowler Geoff Lawson.

Mayor of the City of Wagga Wagga Rod Kendall celebrated the announcement in 2014. Slater’s dad Peter attended the ceremony to unveil the monuments.

Michael Slater Oval also hosts AFL, football and rugby league events, leading to previous calls for the oval to be renamed in honour of one of the many other sporting heroes that have come from the NSW Riverina.

In 2020 there was a push for Aussie cricketing trailblazer Alex Blackwell, who captained the Aussie women’s cricket team, to replace Slater.

Slater, meanwhile, will return to court on May 31.

A court in April heard scores of alleged abusive texts he sent to a woman in a tirade starting from the morning and ending well into the afternoon.

Court documents showed one chilling message where he said the woman had “put a good guy in jail”.

Former Australia cricketer Michael Slater on media duties during the Cricket World Cup in 2019. Photo by Andy Kearns/Getty Images.

The texts follow similar alleged streams of abuse from the former cricket star towards the same woman since December last year, with police claiming he bombarded her with more than 300 abusive texts.

On March 10, Mr Slater allegedly sent more than 100 messages and claimed he would kill himself.

During the barrage he allegedly wrote: “Get f**ked you’re a fraud, I’m going to hang my skull at the front of my house. How does that f**king feel you c**t. You f**king killed me.”

Details of some of the alleged messages, along with his alleged physical abuse of the woman, were raised in court as police opposed Mr Slater’s bail application.

Slater is accused of physically assaulting the woman after she attended his home on December 6, 2023 over concerns for his welfare.

Michael Slater Oval will be no more

Police allege he struck her across the face, kicked her and raised a bottle of vodka while saying: “I’ll f**king kill you.”

He is then alleged to have choked her, lifting her off the ground as she fled to the laundry room.

This is despite his Legal Aid lawyer Michael Robinson stating the former cricketer would be undertaking a “major intervention” by living in a rehabilitation centre in Sydney.

Slater and his legal team have disputed allegations of physical violence.

Affectionately known as “Slats” by those close to him, Mr Slater opened the batting for the Australian Test team through the 1990s and early 2000s.

He became one of only four players to have played in each of the 15 matches between 1999 and 2001 – the era that delivered the Australian team the best run of consecutive victories in Test cricket history.

Mr Slater scored 5312 Test runs in 74 matches. He also played 42 one-day internationals for Australia.

After retiring in 2004, he moved to commentary with channels 7 and 9 and other media networks.

Originally published as Michael Slater officially wiped from history after Wagga Wagga council vote