Toowoomba Mayor Paul Antonio says council to take lessons from NRL match after fans face long line-ups for entry, food

Toowoomba’s first NRL match in three years acted as the perfect showcase to push for further games in the future. But questions have been raised about whether it could’ve been managed better.

More than 7000 fans support their team when the Dragons take on the Roosters as Toowoomba hosts an NRL round at Clive Berghofer Stadium. Picture: Kevin Farmer

Toowoomba Mayor Paul Antonio says the council will take lessons from Sunday’s NRL match, after several fans complained about long lines for entry and food.

Social media was littered with attendees who reportedly missed the 2pm kick-off between the Sydney Roosters and the St George Illawarra Dragons at Clive Berghofer Stadium due to the queues into the grounds.

The stadium held a record crowd of 7800 who came out to watch the match.

Many said they waited for over an hour, while others pointed to lengthy waits for food and alcohol.

“When it takes over 40 Min to get a drink something isn’t right,” Sid Cronk wrote on the Chronicle’s Facebook page.

“It took longer than that to get in. We missed 10-15 minutes of the game,” Melody Ryan added.

Mr Antonio said while he felt the game was a success for the city, there would be a review of how to improve match-day management.

“There were learnings yesterday and we will have learnt a lot from this game,” he said.

“It was a little difficult for some people to get in.

“I think in terms of the management, we’ll be having a briefing with all people concerned in the not-too-distant future.

“As part of the match, council provided traffic management and waste management services, with all other elements delivered in partnership between the NRL and the Toowoomba Sports Ground.

“Yesterday we put our case forward for hosting an annual match and when you look at the spectacle that was on display, it’s an incredibly strong case we have here in Toowoomba which I’m sure the NRL will have noticed.”